I hope that everyone had a wonderful “Valentine’s Day”. Per the “History Channel Newsletter” the following gives the possible origin of “Valentines Day”…
“February has long been celebrated as a month of romance, and that St. Valentine’s Day, as we know it today, contains vestiges of both Christian and ancient Roman tradition. But who was Saint Valentine, and how did he become associated with this ancient rite? The Catholic Church recognizes at least three different saints named Valentine or Valentinus, all of whom were martyred. One legend contends that Valentine was a priest who served during the third century in Rome. When Emperor Claudius II decided that single men made better soldiers than those with wives and families, he outlawed marriage for young men. Valentine, realizing the injustice of the decree, defied Claudius and continued to perform marriages for young lovers in secret. When Valentine’s actions were discovered, Claudius ordered that he be put to death. Still others insist that it was Saint Valentine of Terni, a bishop, who was the true namesake of the holiday. He, too, was beheaded by Claudius II outside Rome.
Other stories suggest that Valentine may have been killed for attempting to help Christians escape harsh Roman prisons, where they were often beaten and tortured. According to one legend, an imprisoned Valentine sent the first “valentine” greeting himself after he fell in love with a young girl—possibly his jailor’s daughter—who visited him during his confinement. Before his death, it is alleged that he wrote her a letter signed “From your Valentine,” an expression that is still in use today. Although the truth behind the Valentine legends is murky, the stories all emphasize his appeal as a sympathetic, heroic and—most importantly—romantic figure. By the Middle Ages, perhaps thanks to this reputation, Valentine would become one of the most popular saints in England and France.
While some believe that Valentine’s Day is celebrated in the middle of February to commemorate the anniversary of Valentine’s death or burial—which probably occurred around A.D. 270—others claim that the Christian church may have decided to place St. Valentine’s feast day in the middle of February in an effort to “Christianize” the pagan celebration of Lupercalia. Celebrated at the ides of February, or February 15, Lupercalia was a fertility festival dedicated to Faunus, the Roman god of agriculture, as well as to the Roman founders Romulus and Remus.
To begin the festival, members of the Luperci, an order of Roman priests, would gather at a sacred cave where the infants Romulus and Remus, the founders of Rome, were believed to have been cared for by a she-wolf or lupa. The priests would sacrifice a goat, for fertility, and a dog, for purification. They would then strip the goat’s hide into strips, dip them into the sacrificial blood and take to the streets, gently slapping both women and crop fields with the goat hide. Far from being fearful, Roman women welcomed the touch of the hides because it was believed to make them more fertile in the coming year. Later in the day, according to legend, all the young women in the city would place their names in a big urn. The city’s bachelors would each choose a name and become paired for the year with his chosen woman. These matches often ended in marriage.
Lupercalia survived the initial rise of Christianity but was outlawed—as it was deemed “un-Christian”—at the end of the 5th century, when Pope Gelasius declared February 14 St. Valentine’s Day. It was not until much later, however, that the day became definitively associated with love. During the Middle Ages, it was commonly believed in France and England that February 14 was the beginning of birds’ mating season, which added to the idea that the middle of Valentine’s Day should be a day for romance. The English poet Geoffrey Chaucerwas the first to record St. Valentine’s Day as a day of romantic celebration in his 1375 poem “Parliament of Foules,” writing, ““For this was sent on Seynt Valentyne’s day / Whan every foul cometh ther to choose his mate.”
Valentine greetings were popular as far back as the Middle Ages, though written Valentine’s didn’t begin to appear until after 1400. The oldest known valentine still in existence today was a poem written in 1415 by Charles, Duke of Orleans, to his wife while he was imprisoned in the Tower of London following his capture at the Battle of Agincourt. (The greeting is now part of the manuscript collection of the British Library in London, England.) Several years later, it is believed that King Henry V hired a writer named John Lydgate to compose a valentine note to Catherine of Valois.”
While much of history would define the basis for love as romance and fertility, God’s view of love goes much deeper than that. There is an incredible story that takes place before and resolves after the resurrection of Jesus that clearly defines how God views love. This story begins that night before Jesus’ crucifixion. The scriptures point out in Matthew 26:35, that Peter and then all the disciples are boasting and declaring that they would gladly die with Jesus…”
“Peter said to him, “Even if I must die with you, I will not deny you!” And all the disciples said the same.”
Well, we all know how that turned out. All of them ran for their lives except for the youngest, John who was probably in his early teens at the time. In fact, John was the only disciple at the crucifixion besides the women who had followed Jesus. The Roman soldiers probably viewed John as too young to be a threat.
The night before Jesus’ death, Peter the bold one denies Jesus three times. (So much for emotional boasts and declarations). A few days after He rose from the dead, Jesus has breakfast prepared for His disciples on the beach and they all come and are sitting by the fire. I can only imagine the tension in the air. Because Peter was the first to state that he would die with Jesus, Jesus has the following dialogue with Peter as recorded in The Gospel of John 21
“When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Feed my lambs.” 16 He said to him a second time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Tend my sheep.” 17 He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” Peter was grieved because he said to him the third time, “Do you love me?” and he said to him, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep. 18 Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were young, you used to dress yourself and walk wherever you wanted, but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will dress you and carry you where you do not want to go.” 19 (This he said to show by what kind of death he was to glorify God.) And after saying this he said to him, ‘Follow me’.”
Unless you understand the original Greek, you can’t truly grasp the impact of this conversation between Jesus and Peter. The Greek is a very precise language. While the English has one word to define all kinds of love, there are four major words for love in the Greek: AGAPE, PHILEO, EROS, and STERGO. As the last two words describe the love that a husband and wife share and a parent and child share respectively, the first two, AGAPE and PHILEO are the two words used in this passage. Agape; This word was used in Greek literature to refer to someone who was generously favored by a god. It has the idea of a person giving all his or her love or favor to another. It was used to speak of parents giving all their love to their only child. So, in the New Testament it is used to make the same point. God gives each of us all His love.It is the most common definition of loved in the Scriptures and its used 259 times as a verb or as a noun. It defines the ultimate commitment and sacrifice between two people, the complete giving of sacrificial love to another person
On the other hand, PHILEO has the idea of emotional love. PHILEO emphasizes the affection, emotion, a fondness one person has for another. It’s love on an emotional level and not a sacrificial level.
The first two times Jesus asks Peter if he loves (agapes) him, would he be willing to lay down his life for Him. Well Peter answers Jesus twice by saying “I have fond affection (phileo) for You”. Perhaps this is the first time since he began his walk with Jesus, that he is being gut honest with himself and with Jesus. “I love you as a friend with strong emotion. The last time Jesus asks Peter, He begins where Peter is at and asks “Peter, do you have strong emotional friendship love for me?” Peter answers the same way he has answered the two previous times but is very grieved by Jesus’ persistence. Jesus then prophesies over Peter that he will indeed get to the point of agape love and be crucified for following Jesus. Such is loves process; it must move from PHILEO to AGAPE or love will never mature.
In reality, “Valentine’s Day” love probably falls under the definition of “PHILEO” love. We give cards or gifts to show our affection to those we deeply care for. It’s also probably the way most churches operate. We “PHILEO” each other or we “PHILEO” the worship but “PHILEO” can dissipate into divorce very quickly when the “warm fuzzy” feelings are not there. God calls us to a much deeper love. He calls us to an AGAPE love for Him and for one another; John 13:34-35 defines this new commitment…
“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. 35 By this all people will know that you are my disciples if you have love for one another.”
The word love is “AGAPE” in both these verses. The key principle here is that our Agape love for the Lord is shown by our Agape love for one another. We absolutely must get past the immature PHILEO love and into the mature AGAPE love of commitment and self-sacrifice. I conclude with one more exhortation from the scriptures in how we should love one another. Its from John 15:13-14 (ESV)
“Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command you.”
“Lord, help us love each other as we’re supposed to. We can only do it as we turn our hurts and disappointments over to you and are willing to risk love again, we desire to show our love to you by a demonstration of how we love one another. Fill us with the ability to do so, in Your holy name!”
On a larger scale. I believe this process is beginning to happen in the American Church. All the stressful events of the past two and a half years have shown how little the church loves. I believe small groups of people are emerging from the ashes who intentionally love one another and the Lord. Out of these groups who learn to love and war without compromise, the sons of God will arise to manifest Kingdom authority on the earth! Truly, the best is yet to come!