Love is everywhere you look around.
The colors red and pink pop up everywhere including Walmart, Target and your local grocery store. Even when grabbing your morning coffee and a doughnut at Dunkin' you can't escape the pink and red icing, sprinkles, and candy hearts.
Valentine's Day is coming and it's time to get your romance game in full gear.
When is Valentine's Day?
Valentine's Day is Wednesday, Feb. 14. Mark your calendar. Schedule a trip to the Hallmark store or the florist. Remember to make reservations at your favorite restaurant quickly, lest you get stuck in the booth near the bathroom at McDonald's or Chic-fil-A.
Why is Valentine's Day celebrated?
Shouldn't we be celebrating our love for those important in our lives every day? OK, sure, but this is the real world and we can only do so much. Plus, too much of a good thing spoils the impact.
Valentine's Day was initially celebrated as a pagan fertility ritual called Lupercalia from Feb. 13-15. According to npr.com, the pagan feast was combined with a day honoring St. Valentine in the 5th Century to expel pagan rituals. As time passed, and poets Geoffrey Chaucer and William Shakespeare romanticized the holiday, it gained popularity.
In 1913, Hallmark Cards started mass-producing cards, and Valentine's Day became the first Hallmark holiday with cards, candies, flowers and displays of affection for those we love.
What if you're not in a relationship on Valentine's Day?
So you are single and not dating anyone, that's fine. There are still people in your life you care about. You can send a card to your parents or family members to show you care about them. You can send a perfectly platonic note to a good friend.
You can also celebrate Single Awareness Day on Feb. 15. It's a day to celebrate the fact that you don't need to have a romantic relationship to celebrate life.
What is Galentine's Day?
According to cosmopolitan.com, Galentine's Day, which is celebrated Feb. 13, is "a day all about celebrating the platonic love between a woman and anyone else. Cosmo suggests celebrating it any way you choose including brunch, dinner, wine-and-cheese night; you're only limited by your imagination.
Galentine's Day was created on an episode of "Parks and Recreation. " In the 16th episode of season two in 2010, Amy Poehler's character Leslie Knope devised the holiday, gathering her female friends for brunch, "Ladies celebrating ladies." Since then the holiday has taken off. Even First Lady Michelle Obama celebrated the holiday in 2020.
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FAQs
St. Valentine's Day was a feast day in the Catholic religion, added to the liturgical calendar around 500 AD. The day was commemorated for martyred saints named—you guessed it—Valentine.
Why do we need to celebrate Valentine's day? ›
Even though we cherish the love we have for each other throughout the year, Valentine's Day has become a significant day we put aside to appreciate the special someone in our life. It's the time we show our unconditional love for our partners with gifts they can treasure forever.
What is the spiritual meaning of Valentine's day? ›
While the holiday has undergone secularization over time, its origins in Christian martyrdom and acts of love align with broader spiritual themes of compassion, selflessness, and devotion. For some, Valentine's Day serves as a reminder of the importance of love in both human relationships and spiritual practice.
Is Valentine's day really that important? ›
“Ultimately, V-Day is often a day to express love and affection toward your partner, so for those who have personal reasons for not wanting to celebrate, I encourage them just to see it as another day to express love for the person(s) in their life who deserve their flowers 365 days of the year.” So even if one half of ...
What does the Bible say about Valentine's day? ›
1 John 4:7-12. Dear friends: let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.
What is the truth behind Valentine's day? ›
Turns out, it was a pretty common name during Late Antiquity. As far as anyone can tell, the Saint Valentine of Valentine's Day was one of two guys preaching the good word in Rome in the third century. One of these two was martyred on February 14th 269, thus giving us the date for his eponymous day.
What are the purposes of Valentine? ›
Valentine's Day is an opportunity to show affection or celebrate romance with cards, flowers, and candy. It's a good day for sweethearts, but it can also be a reminder of how expressions of love and caring may benefit the body.
What is the main thing about Valentine's day? ›
Valentine's Day is a holiday when lovers express their affection with greetings and gifts. It is also called St. Valentine's Day.
What is the message of Valentine's day? ›
It originated as a Christian feast day honoring a martyr named Valentine, and through later folk traditions it has also become a significant cultural, religious and commercial celebration of romance and love in many regions of the world.
What is the deeper meaning of Valentine's day? ›
It is about sacrifice and devotion, love and honor, in the face of overwhelming and dangerous odds. While making your Valentine's Day plans, remember St. Valentine who was willing to give his life in pursuit of love and marriage, and ask yourself if you would be willing to do the same for those you profess to love.
But the biblical pattern teaches us that romantic love between husband and wife should be on display often and much. It isn't that celebrating Valentine's Day is too much; it is too little and weak. Christians, live your married years so that you don't need Valentine's Day.
Why is Valentine's day about the heart? ›
The first depiction of the heart as a symbol of love comes from the medieval times, in an illustration in a french manuscript from the 1250s called Roman de la poire, or "romance of the pear", in which a kneeling lover offers up a pinecone-shaped heart to his beloved maiden.
Why do we celebrate Valentine's Day? ›
Emperor Claudius II executed two men — both named Valentine — on Feb. 14 of different years in the third century. Their martyrdom was honored by the Catholic Church with the celebration of St. Valentine's Day.
What does Valentine mean to a woman? ›
A valentine is a sweetheart: specifically, someone who receives a greeting or attention on Valentine's Day. There are many words for someone you like in a romantic way, such as sweetie, main squeeze, boyfriend, girlfriend, significant other, and special someone.
Will you be my Valentines meaning? ›
A Valentine is simply someone you want to spend your day with. To ask someone to be your Valentine means you agree to spoil him or her with gifts. A Valentine can be someone you are interested in or romantically involved with, but it is not a promise to be cuffed the next day.
What is the sad story behind Valentine's day? ›
In another story, St. Valentine wrote the first “Valentine” greeting to a young girl he tutored and fell in love with while he was imprisoned for the crime of officiating soldiers' weddings. According to The History Channel, before dying, he wrote her a letter signed “From your Valentine,” which is often used today.
What is the dark history behind Valentine's day? ›
One Valentine was a priest in third-century Rome who defied Emperor Claudius II after the ruler outlawed marriage for young men. St. Valentine would perform marriages in secret for young lovers, ultimately leading to his death.
What is the meaning of Valentine's? ›
1. : a sweetheart chosen or complimented on Valentine's Day. 2. a. : a gift or greeting sent or given especially to a sweetheart on Valentine's Day.
Should Christians celebrate Valentine's day? ›
If that works for you, do it. But the biblical pattern teaches us that romantic love between husband and wife should be on display often and much. It isn't that celebrating Valentine's Day is too much; it is too little and weak. Christians, live your married years so that you don't need Valentine's Day.
