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The Roman love lotteries happened on February
14th, the eve of the feast of Lupercalis, when boys drew names of
girls to honor Juno, and couples were formed for the year.
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Lupercalia, the Roman feast that took place
on February 15th, was a feast of "lovemaking and licentiousness.
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Lupercalia is based on Lupercal, a wolf deity,
who was tied to the legend of Romulus and Remus, Rome's founders who
were nursed by a she-wolf.
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Young men would tie goat skins around their
loins, and run around the city laughing (a symbol of life), striking
young women with goatskin straps to increase their fertility.
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St. Valentine lived under the Roman emperor
Claudius II "the Cruel." Since young men could avoid joining
the Roman army by marrying, Claudius outlawed marriage temporarily.
However, Valentine the priest secretly conducted marriages. Once he
was caught and sentenced to death, young visitors came to him in jail,
giving "him flowers and slipping him notes expressing shared
feelings lauding love over war." Rumors that he fell in love
with his jailer's daughter and signed a note "from your Valentine"
were added on, later.
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Valentine was stoned and decapitated on February
14 in A.D. 269-the day devoted to old Roman love lotteries.
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All three catholic saints named Valentinus
have their festival on February 14th, making it impossible to know
which Valentine is THE Saint Valentine.
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The Catholic church changed the love lottery
to a saint's day lottery, putting saint's names in the urn, encouraging
young people to emulate the behavior of the saints whose name they
pulled.
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In the Medieval era, St. Valentine was the
saint of emergencies. St. Valentine became a matchmaker again in the
14th century.
Sources:
Anthony F. Aveni, "February's Holidays: Prediction, Purification,
and Passionate Pursuit" in Book of the Year : A Brief History
of Our Seasonal Holidays. New York : Oxford University Press, 2003.The
Catholic Encyclopaedia, xv. p. 254.
The Catholic Encyclopaedia, xv. p. 254
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