Today’s article is authored by my godly son, Joshua. Used with his permission.
I’ve done a lot of research on this subject and found that Valentine’s Day is rooted in paganism therefore I would appreciate if you would not wish me a happy Valentine’s Day!
What comes to mind when you think about the history of Valentine’s Day? St. Valentine and the lore surrounding him? To get to the heart of Valentine’s Day, you actually have to reach back even further than that.
But there shall by no means enter it anything that defiles, or causes an abomination or a lie, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.
Revelation 21:27
St. Valentine was famously executed on February 14 in the 3rd century A.D. However, according to ancient accounts, more than one St. Valentine was executed on that same day in the same century. Valentine’s Day started as a Christian celebration of this martyrdom and, fueled by romantic poets and writers, gradually morphed into a broader celebration of love.
Surprisingly, though, that isn’t even where the story begins. If you go back even further in history, you find that the roots of Valentine’s Day might be even more shocking than the execution of saints.
Ever heard of Lupercalia? If not, you’re in for an entirely new perspective on V-Day. Let’s take a look at the dark, dirty origins of the world’s sappiest holiday.
It Started with a Pagan Festival
In ancient Rome, Lupercalia was celebrated on February 15 every year. It was a wild Pagan celebration of sex, violence, and fertility.
For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies.
Matthew 15:19
Scholars don’t agree on whether Lupercalia directly morphed into Valentine’s Day, but it’s a popular theory. Because it was celebrated on February 15, and so many modern holidays are rooted in Pagan traditions, it’s easy to see why some believe there’s a connection.
So Jacob told everyone in his household, “Get rid of all your pagan idols, purify yourselves, and put on clean clothing.
Genesis 35:2
But these various groups of foreigners also continued to worship their own gods. In town after town where they lived, they placed their idols at the pagan shrines that the people of Samaria had built.
2 Kings 17:29
No idols!
But I have this complaint against you. You are permitting that woman—that Jezebel who calls herself a prophet—to lead my servants astray. She teaches them to commit sexual sin and to eat food offered to idols.
Revelation 2:20
“But cowards, unbelievers, the corrupt, murderers, the immoral, those who practice witchcraft, idol worshipers, and all liars—their fate is in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.”
Revelation 21:8
While our modern Valentine’s Day celebration is all about gifts, dates, and candy, Lupercalia was a much earthier festivity. Historians know it was celebrated at least as early as the 6th century B.C., but it’s possible it’s even older than that.
The word “Lupercalia” was likely derived from “lupus,” the Latin word for “wolf.” The name of the festival was probably referencing Romulus and Remus, the founders of ancient Rome who—according to legend—were raised by a female wolf. Lupercalia is also connected with Lupercus, a Roman fertility god.
You say it is wrong to commit adultery, but do you commit adultery? You condemn idolatry, but do you use items stolen from pagan temples?
Romans 2:22
How to Celebrate Lupercalia So, how did one celebrate this Roman holiday? Well, the traditions involved a lot of blood and gratuitous sex, so don’t try this at home. The festival began at Lupercal Cave, which was believed to have been the home of the wolf that raised Romulus and Remus. The Luperci (the priests of Lupercus) got naked and slaughtered male goats and a dog in the cave. They ritualistically smeared themselves with blood in the process.
Then, they skinned the goats and took a nude tour around Rome’s Palatine Hill, hitting women with strips of fresh goatskin (the two paintings above depict this part of the celebration).
If you were one of the lucky ladies who got smacked with animal skins, you would now be more fertile (or so they believed). This ritual might have been connected in some way to the sexual goat-god Pan, who, according to Ovid, was also celebrated during Lupercalia.
Some historians even think Lupercalia had a match-making element, for which men would draw the names of women out of a jar in a sort of sex lottery. Sometimes, the couple would only stay together for the festival, but, occasionally, the match would lead to marriage.
And, of course, since few Pagan celebrations were complete without a feast, the feast of Lupercal followed the ritual sacrifice.
The earliest possible origin story of Valentine’s Day is the pagan holiday Lupercalia. When Pope Gelasius came to power in the late fifth century he put an end to Lupercalia. Soon after, the Catholic church declared February 14 to be a day of feasts to celebrate the martyred Saint Valentine.
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