[Nyerges is the author
of several books. He can be reached via
School of Self-reliance at Box 41834, Eagle Rock, CA 90041, or www.ChristopherNyerges.com, where
one can view his various blogs.]
In the pre-Christian era, there was
a celebration in honor of Lupercus, a pastoral god, sometimes identified with
Faunus or Pan. Faunus is depicted as
having the body of a man but the horns, pointed ears, tail, and hind legs of a
goat. That is, Faunus is more or less
identical with the satyr, who was said to be lustful, and always ready to
party.
The pre-Christian observance of
this day was called Lupercalia, which fell on February 15. On Lupercalia, cards were given (often with
subtle or overt sexual offers and overtones), and men reportedly chased women
through the streets. Wow! Sounds somewhat like Mardi Gras, or Disneyland’s
“Pirates of the Carribbean.”
OK, fast forward to 2015, and the
stores of your town are full of red and pink hearts, and lovers and sweethearts
are looking for something to give that special person. Why?
Because February 14 is the day set aside to commemorate a real historical
person named Valentinus, the day we now call “Saint Valentine’s Day.” And who was Valentinus? With just a little bit of research, we learn
that this Valentinus person was stoned, clubbed, and beheaded in about the year
270 A.D. He was violently killed by an
unruly mob. But why? And how have we come to associate Valentinus
with chocolates and hearts and lovers and all the festivities of Lupercalia?
It turns out that there were at
least two people called Valentinus – possibly more – who lived in the 2nd
and 3rd Centuries. One – who
the Catholic Church now called Saint Valentine – was beheaded in 270 A.D.
Another Valentinus lived about a
century earlier and founded one of the most important sects of Gnosticism. He was born in Egypt and educated in
Alexandria. He settled in Rome during
the reign of Pope Hyginus and taught there for more than 20 years. He attracted a large following to his
beliefs, due in part to his intelligence, his eloquence of speech, and his
impeccable arguments.
But the teachings of this
Valentinus differed in some ways from the Christian church of that time, and
when the office for the Bishop of Rome opened up, he was not selected. Valentinus decided to split off from the
Christian church, left Rome, and continued to develop his doctrines as he saw
fit.
Unfortunately, there are no
original surviving documents from the teachings of Valentinus. So, if you want to discover what he actually
believed and taught, you have to study fragmentary quotations found in the
writings of his orthodox Christian opponents.
Through research, we learn that
Valentinus was influenced by Plato (the main source of the teachings of
Socrates), Zoroastrianism, and Christianity. Valentinus also spoke of a
spiritual realm which he called Pleroma, which consisted of “emanations”
evolving from an original divine being.
These have been described as the layers of an onion, with each layer
being a wholly complete reality. It’s
all very interesting, though it’s all a bit second-hand because whatever
Valentinus wrote was apparently “lost” or destroyed by opponents.
The term Gnosticism came from the
word “gnosis,” defined as spiritual knowledge.
Those who followed this line of study were called the Gnostics, and many
were referred to as Christian Gnostics.
But by the third century, the more orthodox Christian church (and the
political power of the day), decided to oppose and persecute the Gnostics. By the end of the third century, Gnosticism
as a distinct movement had largely disapppeared.
Now,
here’s the quiz: Where in all this
did you hear anything about chocolates, hearts, greeting cards, bunnies,
jewelry, roses, or lace underwear?
Plus, there doesn’t appear to be any historical connection with any of
the individuals named Valentinus with the date of February 14.
It is
difficult to ascertain why the commemoration of Valentinus was used to
supplant, uplift, and supercede the already-existing commemoration of Lupercus,
but that’s what happened. Yet, very
little of the trappings of modern St. Valentine’s Day have anything to do with
the historical Valentinus.
And that’s
really a shame, since Valentinus was as important as perhaps Socrates or
Pythagoras, and yet most of us only associate him with the silly commercialism
of Lupercalia’s remnants. Certainly it’s possible that the Church engineered
this substitution so that men would quit chasing women through the streets on
this day.
There’s really nothing wrong with
telling your loved ones that you love them!
In fact, we need to do that more often.
But you might also benefit by taking a little time and study a bit about
this great teacher Valentinus. This is
also a good time to contemplate the meaning of “love,” and how we can improve
our ability to be loving with everyone.
One excellent book in this regard is Eric Fromm’s “Art of Loving.” Once you get into this book, you may
discover – as I did -- that much of what Fromm wrote is very relevant
today, and very relevant to Valentine’s Day.
NOTE:
Every Sunday outdoors under a large banyan tree in
Highland Park, there is a spiritual studies presentation on topics of current
interest, such as the meanings of the holdays. The presentations are sponsored
by WTI (see www.wtinc.info for details and
schedule of upcoming talks).
