The tradition of celebrating Valentine's Day came to post-Soviet countries in the early 90s of the twentieth century. At that time, the day when Valentine's Day and Love Day are celebrated - February 14 - was an ordinary day in our calendar. The fall of the Iron Curtain allowed former Soviet citizens to join the world's festive culture, and since then we have a holiday of Love - Valentine's Day.

To answer the question: “Whose holiday and where did Valentine’s Day come from?” — we need to look into the past. If you look closely, the traditions and history of the holiday for lovers originated in the era of Ancient Rome. The Lupercalia festival, dedicated to the day of honoring the goddess of motherhood and marriage, Juno, was celebrated on February 14. He was very popular at that time.

In addition, pagan traditions of randomly creating married couples were characteristic of many pagan cults. Married couples were created by drawing lots from unmarried girls and boys. The formation of such pairs took place on this very day.

And, according to legend, the real Valentine lived in the 3rd century AD. during the time of Emperor Claudius II of Gothia. He was a priest and doctor who helped warriors in love - he secretly married them. For this he was arrested and went to prison. There, Valentin fell in love with the blind daughter of his overseer. Or maybe she fell in love with him... :) Unfortunately, this is not known for sure. But it is believed that the girl was healed by Valentin’s love - her sight returned. But Valentin himself died, leaving a farewell message before his execution, which took place on February 14. In it, he wrote to the girl about his love and signed: “Your Valentine.” This is where the so-called valentines came from.

The Middle Ages picked up ancient Roman traditions, combining them with real history. The day of February 14 began to be named after St. Valentine by the decision of the Pope in 496. But, already in our days, in 1969, the name of Valentine as the protector of lovers was removed from the calendar of saints of the Roman Catholic Church, which casts doubt on the reality of the above-mentioned events. Today the name Valentin remains in the list of Christian saints, but he is not associated with the protector of lovers.

Having figured out how the Valentine's Day appeared, let's see what its essence is today, as well as who celebrates it and how.

And the essence of the holiday today is that on this day you can openly and without fear express your feelings through valentines and small pleasant gifts. It is celebrated in almost all countries of the world. However, some Muslim countries, in particular Saudi Arabia, have officially banned it.

In America, traditional gifts for Valentine's Day are marzipan figurines, sweets and heart-shaped cookies or gingerbread cookies beautifully decorated with colored icing. It should be noted that Americans give love messages and gifts not only to their lovers, but to their loved ones and simply lonely people as a sign of wishes for happiness.

Valentine's Day is celebrated differently in England. The British give red roses to their loved ones on this day. The flowers are similar to those that Louis XVI gave to Marie Antoinette on February 14th. There is a sign that English girls can see their betrothed through the window on this day. But the strangest thing, from our point of view, is the custom of giving messages and gifts to your pets. And another tradition, giving wooden “love spoons” decorated with keys and hearts, also originated in England a very long time ago.

Refined French people present their loved ones with serenades, poetic messages and heart-shaped jewelry.

In Japan, Valentine's Day, during which girls give gifts, is followed by White Day. It is celebrated on March 14th. This time, the girls are already receiving gifts from the guys in return. The main gift among gifts is white chocolate. Reciprocal gifting occurs on the principle of tripling the value of the gift.

Valentine's Day is celebrated not so long ago in post-Soviet countries. The attitude of the church towards this holiday is not clear. After all, even among Catholics, now, Valentine's Day has become a national holiday. And in Orthodox culture, Peter and Fevronia are officially considered the patrons of family and marriage. However, this does not prevent all lovers, young and old, from exchanging gifts or simply valentines with declarations of sincere friendship and love on February 14th.

For more information about where the story about Valentine's Day, the patron saint of lovers, came from, watch this short video.

You can congratulate your dear people on Love Day using.

Lovers celebrate Valentine's Day on February 14th. How did this holiday come about? Who is Saint Valentine? Why does everyone give Valentine's cards on this day? We will tell you about the origin of the holiday, what myths and legends are associated with this day.

Valentine's Day origins of the holiday: Legends and myths

The Catholic Church venerates three martyred saints named Valentine, but there is almost no reliable information about their lives. It is only known that Valentine of Rome was a priest and suffered martyrdom during the persecution of Christians in the 3rd century AD. e. Another Valentine was the bishop of Interamna (now the city of Terni, Italy). He was executed for his faith on February 14, 270 and buried near Rome. The saint is revered by both Catholics and Orthodox. All we know about the third Valentine is that he died in Carthage.

More detailed information about the holy martyrs appeared already in the era of the Mature Middle Ages (in the 11th-14th centuries). But at first they also lacked any romantic overtones. It is likely that the legends are talking about another saint or even different ascetics with the name Valentin.

Valentine's Day origins of the holiday: “The Golden Legend”

According to legend, the Roman Emperor Claudius II could not recruit enough soldiers into his army. Then he decided that it was the wives who did not let their husbands go to war, and forbade young men to marry.

Saint Valentine was a healer and preacher of Christianity. He not only prayed for the sick, but also secretly married lovers, despite the prohibition of King Claudius. One day a prison guard turned to him for help. He asked to heal his daughter Julia from blindness. The priest prescribed eye ointment for the girl and told her to come back later.

However, rumors about secret weddings reached the emperor, and Saint Valentine was imprisoned. Knowing that he would soon be executed, Valentin wrote a suicide note to blind Julia with a declaration of love and gave it to her through her father.

Valentin was executed on the same day, February 14. When the girl opened the note, inside it was saffron and the signature “Your Valentine.” Julia took the saffron in her hands, and her vision was miraculously restored.

Subsequently, as a Christian martyr who suffered for the faith, Valentin of Interamna was canonized by the Catholic Church. And in 496, Pope Gelasius declared February 14th Valentine's Day.

This story can be called fiction, if only because in the time of St. Valentine (in the 3rd century) there was no special church wedding ceremony for marriage. In addition, the Christian religion in pagan Rome was despised and persecuted, and it is unlikely that Emperor Claudius attached great importance to this rite.

Valentine's Day Origins: Pagan Roots

According to another version, the church needed Valentine's Day to supplant the pagan holiday. The Romans believed that the founders of their city - the brothers Romulus and Remus - were fed by a she-wolf with her milk. In honor of this animal, “lupercalia” was celebrated (from lupus - wolf). A goat (the food of wolves) and a dog (the animal most hated by the wolf) were sacrificed. Then the slaughtered animals were skinned and their skins were cut into narrow belts. Two naked young men took these belts and began a ritual run, during which they lashed everyone they came across with the belts. Women and girls deliberately exposed various parts of their bodies to blows, as it was believed that this would help them become pregnant and give birth easily.

The sacred belts were called “februa”, from this word came the name of the month, in the middle of which Lupercalia was celebrated - “february” (February).

Valentine's Day origins of the holiday: Traditions

Valentine's Day only began to gain widespread popularity in the 19th century in Great Britain. Later, the holiday began to be celebrated in the USA. On this day, young people were supposed to pull notes from the bowl with the names of girls they knew. The resulting couples were “Valentines” for a year and accepted each other’s attentions and courtship.

In the middle of the 19th century, businessmen began promoting the holiday. On February 14, lovers arrange romantic dates for each other, buy heart-shaped cards - “Valentines” - and other cute gifts: plush toys, perfume, bouquets of flowers, sweets, etc.

Different countries have developed their own traditions for celebrating Valentine's Day. So, in Japan it is customary to give chocolate. On this day, a Japanese woman can, without hesitation, confess her love to a man.

In England, on February 14, girls told fortunes about their betrothed. There was such a belief: if you see a robin on this day, it means your husband will be a sailor, a sparrow - you will marry a poor man, a goldfinch you meet foretells a rich husband.

At the beginning of the 19th century in America, it was customary for brides to give marzipan - a rather expensive delicacy for those times. Nowadays, women are given chocolates, candies and caramels in red and white colors, symbolizing love and purity.

The French give their chosen ones jewelry and jewelry.

Many people believe that if you propose on February 14 or get married on this day, the marriage will be happy and strong.

At the same time, Saint Valentine himself and the religious origins of the holiday are remembered extremely rarely.

Valentine's Day origins of the holiday: Orthodox and Catholics

Saint Valentine is revered by both the Catholic and Orthodox churches. In the Catholic liturgical calendar, February 14 celebrates the memory of Saints Equal-to-the-Apostles Cyril and Methodius.

Hieromartyr Valentin remained on the lists of the church, but only as a locally revered saint, since historical information about his deeds is extremely scarce. Thus, this holiday is not obligatory for either Catholics or Orthodox Christians.

Valentine's Day came to Russia relatively recently. It began to gain popularity only in the early 1990s.

On January 15, 2003, the Bishop of the Italian city of Terni, Vincenzo Paglia, donated to His Holiness Patriarch Alexy particles of the relics of the Hieromartyr Valentine, which have since been kept in the Cathedral of Christ the Savior.

In the Orthodox Church, the two martyrs Valentine have their own days of remembrance. Valentine the Roman, a presbyter, is venerated on July 19, and the Hieromartyr Valentine, Bishop of Interamna, on August 12.

In the Orthodox tradition, Saints Peter and Fevronia have been considered patrons of family and marriage since ancient times. In 2008, the Federation Council of Russia approved the initiative to establish on the day of their memory (July 8 of the new style, which corresponds to June 25 of the old style) the “Day of Married Love and Family Happiness.”

Based on materials from http://www.aif.ru/

Valentine's Day, the patron saint of lovers, is celebrated on February 14th. Should Orthodox believers celebrate this day? Don’t we have “our own” holiday - the day of Peter and Fevronia? After all, these saints are for us an example of great love? Is it true that Saint Valentine secretly married lovers in the Catholic Church?

In fact, the tradition of celebrating Valentine's Day has a complicated history associated with martyrdom, death for the faith, and modern traditions of celebrating “Valentine's Day” are in no way connected with the events that took place in reality. It is important to remember that the essence of this day for a Christian does not at all come down to giving someone a card with a heart - a “Valentine” or white chocolate. Did you know that three Saint Valentines died for their faith? Their difficult story of life and martyrdom does not correspond to the “glossy” story about the patron saint of lovers. When we talk about Saint Valentine, are we telling the story of a Christian martyr?

Tatyana Fedorova, the author of our article, encourages us to think about the history of the tradition of celebrating Valentine's Day as the day of the patron saint of lovers and not to confuse beautiful legends with reality. Before you rush to give sweets, cards and gifts to your loved ones on this day, it is worth reading what the literature on the history of the Church writes about the veneration of saints named Valentine.

You shouldn’t accuse young people who exchange gifts of following Western traditions or that they are celebrating a pagan holiday; it’s better to read our material, in which we will tell you in detail why Valentine’s Day is not the day when you just congratulate lovers . And you can show warm feelings for each other on any day, you don’t have to wait for a non-existent romantic holiday. Moreover, if this holiday is artificially associated with a Christian saint who gave his life for the faith.

Valentine's Day February 14th – lies and truth

Human perception is an amazing thing. Very often we tend to accept certain information as truth only on the grounds that, in modern terms, it has a high citation index. In other words, the same text, with slight variations, migrates from publication to publication, from blog to blog. And the more often it is reproduced, the more often we are ready to take it on faith on the basis that “everyone says it.”

But, alas, it often happens that the text copied from each other is initially erroneous to one degree or another, and by distributing it further, we inevitably mislead a larger and larger circle of people.

This is exactly the story that happened to the biography of the man whose memory is supposedly proposed to be celebrated on February 14th. If you search the Internet, the query “ Valentine's Day» will bring dozens and hundreds of links retelling the same legend with some variations.

A little history

I became curious about how things were in those distant times. Fortunately, in addition to “glossy” literature, a lot of serious historical research is now available that allows us to separate fact from fiction. Let's try to figure out what actually happened and what is just a romantic fiction. And let's not forget that even if certain events more or less coincide chronologically, this does not mean that there is necessarily a relationship between them. As they say, “after this does not mean because of this.”

As for me, belonging to the world of science, I prefer to rely only on reliable, documented facts, avoiding speculation and fantasies.

The first thing that is confirmed by Roman martyrologies is the very fact that at the dawn of Christianity at least three people bearing the name Valentin died as martyrs for the faith.

But it is interesting to note that although all three died no later than 270, their names are not in the earliest known list of martyrs - the Chronograph of 354.

All that is known about the first of them is that he died in Carthage along with a group of fellow believers, and we will not mention him further due to the complete lack of additional information. The second Valentine was the bishop of Interamna (the modern city of Terni). What is known about him is that he was executed during the persecution of Christians, but when exactly this happened - at the end of the third century during the era of Emperor Aurelian or a hundred years earlier - sources say differently. He was buried along the Via Flaminia in the vicinity of Rome.

The date of death of the third martyr, Presbyter Valentine, is known more precisely. He was beheaded between 268 and 270 and was also buried along the Via Flaminia, but at a slightly different distance from Rome. In our time, the relics of Prester Valentine rest partly in Rome, partly in Dublin, and the relics of the bishop in Terni.

At the very end of the fifth century, Pope Gelasius decided to glorify a number of martyrs, including Valentine (now it is no longer possible to say exactly which one, but rather all of them at once). As it was formulated in the corresponding act: “...as people whose names are rightly revered among people, but whose deeds are known only to the Lord.”

Birth of a tradition

The fact that this celebration chronologically coincided with a local Roman pagan festival, which, by the way, was completely prohibited by the same pope, is not surprising; it was a common early Christian practice. It was on this principle that the dates of celebration were chosen and fell on pagan festivals in honor of the winter and summer solstice.

Lupercalia

The early Church tried in every possible way to give new Christian meaning to ancient festivals. But we cannot now say unequivocally that the celebration of the memory of the martyr Valentine was established instead of Lupercalia; no documentary records have been preserved on this score. Moreover, Lupercalia was just a local city festival, while the celebration of the memory of St. Valentine was established on a church-wide scale, i.e. affected the entire Christian Church of that time. But on an imperial scale in that era, a completely different ancient rite was celebrated - the so-called festival of Juno the Purifier, which was gradually replaced by Christian rites of the Theotokos.

Thus, the celebration of the memory of Saint Valentine was established solely as a veneration of his martyrdom, without any connection with the patronage of lovers. A little later, under Pope Julia the First, the Church of St. Valentine was built near Ponte Molle, and the city gates were called “Valentine’s Gate” for a long time.

Saint Valentine is mentioned as a glorious martyr in the Sacramentary of Saint Gregory, in Tommasi's Roman Missal and in a number of British lives of saints. In the Middle Ages, he was usually depicted either with a sword and a palm branch - symbols of his martyrdom, or at the moment of healing the daughter of judge Asterius.

Jacopo Bossano. St. Valentine baptizes St. Lucilla. 1575

Over the next nine centuries, the saint's name is mentioned in the Acts of Martyrdom, the earliest of which dates from the sixth or seventh century, and in the "Golden Legend" - the lives of the saints of 1260, which first mentions Valentine's meeting with the "Emperor Claudius", refusal to betray Christ and healing the jailer's daughter from blindness and deafness. Apparently, here two lives of completely different saints are already merging together, as we will see a little later.

As for romantic legends, secret marriages, notes “from your Valentine,” nothing of the kind is mentioned anywhere until the English poet Geoffrey Chaucer in 1382, in his poem “The Parliament of Birds,” mentioned that birds in Valentine’s day they begin to look for a mate. This phrase, however, is not entirely accurate - in the British climate, birds begin to arrange a personal life a little later, but romantic literature, which was entering its heyday, picked it up, developed it and replicated it in many later works. The Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedia, published more than a hundred years ago, states that “February 14 in England and Scotland was in ancient times accompanied by a peculiar custom. On the eve of the day dedicated to St. Valentine, young people gathered and put in the ballot box the number of tickets corresponding to their number, with the names of young girls marked on them; then everyone took out one such ticket. The girl whose name was given to the young man in this way became his “Valentina” for the coming year, just as he became her “Valentine”, which entailed between the young people for a whole year a relationship similar to those that, according to the descriptions of medieval novels, existed between the knight and his “lady of the heart”. This custom, which Ophelia speaks about so touchingly in her famous song, is, in all likelihood, of pagan origin. Even today, Valentine’s Day in Scotland and England gives young people an opportunity for a variety of jokes and entertainment.”

The custom of sending cards to loved ones on Valentine's Day also originated in the Middle Ages. The very first Valentine in the world is considered to be a note sent from prison in the Tower of London in 1415 by Charles, Duke of Orleans, and addressed to his wife.

Modern veneration and modern celebration

As for the veneration of the saint, this is what has happened in modern times. During the reform of the Roman Catholic Calendar of Saints in 1969, the celebration of St. Valentine as a church saint was abolished on the grounds that there was no information about this martyr other than his name and information about his beheading. Today, on February 14, the memory of St. Valentine is celebrated exclusively optionally.

In the Orthodox Church, on the contrary, Saint Valentine is still revered. More precisely, both martyrs mentioned earlier - the bishop and the presbyter - have their own days of remembrance. Valentine the Roman, a presbyter, is venerated on July 19 (6), and the Hieromartyr Valentine, Bishop of Interamna, on August 12 (July 30). If you carefully read the lives of these saints, it becomes clear that the legends that are widespread today mix up fragments relating to completely different people, and even medieval writings supplemented them with many romantic, but completely unrealistic episodes.

Thus, it turns out that the emergence of the image of St. Valentine as the patron saint of lovers, as well as the numerous legends associated with him, we owe to the Middle Ages and their romantic literature, and not at all to the circumstances of the lives of real martyrs who died at the dawn of Christianity.

And if we’re talking about “whose” holiday this is, then we have to admit that for more than forty years now there has been no Valentine’s Day in the Catholic liturgical calendar; instead, the memory is celebrated on February 14. So today, both Saint Valentines are “ours” , at the general church level, only the Orthodox Church honors their memory.

As for the idea of ​​the possible emergence of the feast of St. Valentine, the patron saint of lovers, as a Christianized replacement for Lupercalia, it arose in the 18th century as a hypothesis among the antiquarians Alban Butler, the compiler of Butler’s Lives of the Saints, and Francis Douce precisely in connection with the fact that the real Valentina knew absolutely nothing. Actually, this hypothesis does not have any reliable evidence, except for an attempt to link the works of the 14th century to the realities of the third. Here I only briefly outline the chronology of events, and I invite everyone interested to take a closer look at the research of historians William Friend and Jack Oruch, published in 1967-1981.

Over time, the little-known custom of sending small souvenirs and notes to loved ones on February 14, which existed mainly in England and France, came to the New World with emigrants, where it was introduced on a grand scale. It all started harmlessly enough, with notebooks of poems printed on tear-off pages to help lovers who were not gifted with the gift of poetry, but gradually the spirit of the present century took its toll. In different countries they treat it differently, in some places it is celebrated widely, in others very modestly. And here's what I think about it.

Strange things are happening in the world, progress is growing stronger. People lived for centuries, loved each other, and loved each other much more deeply than they do now. And they didn’t know any “Valentine’s Day” as a day for lovers. And now they have forgotten how to love, only 10% of created families survive, but they have learned to celebrate “Valentine’s Day” en masse. Oh, how cute he is in the pictures, this “Valentine’s Day” - “Valentine’s Day”, he’s all so plush-floral, heart-chocolate! Just a little girl's bedroom, not a holiday...

What kind of miracle holiday is this, Valentine’s Day, who invented it and why?

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Where and how did Valentine's Day come about? Being the most beloved holiday of young people, it has a centuries-old tradition and interesting history. However, lovers usually are not even interested in where and when the tradition associated with Valentines came from.

Valentine's Day, the history and traditions of which go back 18 centuries, dates back to Rome, more precisely, to the Lupercalia holiday. On this day, everyone left their affairs aside and indulged in fun and love. But not entirely erotic, but simply people trying to find a life partner or soul mate, which was often crowned with success. Usually, after this festival of eroticism, a huge number of new families appeared in Rome.

Which originates from ancient Rome, is associated with many legends and traditions. It was during the period of celebration in Rome that heralding the arrival of spring. In addition, the holiday was associated with fortune telling, and not only young people and girls, but also serious politicians and business people believed mystical predictions. The range of fortune telling was quite wide - from trade to amorous affairs. And it is noteworthy that this very Valentine’s Day is still considered today. History also tells us that around the same period of time, Panurgies were celebrated in Greece, neighboring Rome, that is, celebrations in honor of the forests and fields of Pan, who was always in love with some nymph. Just before the arrival of spring, the Roman venerable matrons made many sacrifices to the goddess of motherhood and marriage, Juno, who, by the way, in legends and myths was often associated with Faun, the Roman prototype of Pan. Where is Saint Valentine, the history of the holiday? It’s just that all the ancient holidays had some roots associated with paganism. Now let's move on to Christian legends about the origin of Valentine's Day.

So, around the 3rd century, Saint Valentine lived in the city of Ternia, located in the Roman state. The story associated with his personality is generally shrouded in darkness, but some points leave no doubt. So, his profession was one of the most noble, Valentin was a Christian priest. Endowed with all the qualities of virtue, the hero of Valentine's Day was known as a kind and honest person. The time in which Valentine lived is associated with the reign of Claudius the Second, who persecuted Christians and honored only his legionnaires and warriors. According to his decree, none of them had the right to start a family or marry, so as not to stop thinking about military glory and valor, as well as the good of the Roman Empire. And a young Christian good priest, whose name was Valentin, married the soldiers in secret from everyone, not paying attention to the emperor’s decree. And, according to legends, the noble young man reconciled quarreling lovers, helped win the hearts of girls and wrote letters for those who did not know the letters. However, this could not continue for long, and soon Valentin was arrested and executed.

Valentine's Day, the history of the holiday does not end there. According to other legends, the priest fell in love with the blind daughter of his jailer and managed to cure his beloved thanks to his knowledge of medicine. According to another version, the girl herself fell in love with Valentin, but the one who gave her was unable to reciprocate her feelings and only on the night or morning before the execution our hero wrote her the first and last love letter. The touching story of the poor heroic priest was not forgotten, and soon he was named saints and dedicated a holiday to him.

And what does Valentines have to do with it? Despite the fact that they are probably called that after the letter Valentine wrote to his beloved. Initially, valentines were written secretly, with the left hand, so that the recipient would not guess who they were from. And always in the shape of a heart, a symbol of love. So, Valentine's Day has a sad history. However, thanks to the Roman priest, all lovers in the world have a day of love and happiness.