What's Love Look Like?
by Autumn Flutur
February 9, 2001

Remember back in elementary school when your mom made you send a valentine to everyone in the class, including your worst enemy? So you sorted through the box and found the ugliest one that definitely did not say "Be My Valentine" for the boy who always laughed at your moon boots. Or the girl who never smiled back. Through your embarrassment, did you ever wonder what you were celebrating?

In 269 A.D., the Roman Empire honored Juno, the goddess of women and marriage,on February 14th. The next day the festival of Lupercalia began. At this festival all the girls' names would be written on paper and placed into jars. Each guy would draw a girl's name. Then, they would be a couple for the duration of the festival. Sometimes the pair lasted an entire year, in which they were likely to fall in love and be married.

During this time Claudius II was the emperor of Rome. He liked war, but had a hard time building an army. Claudius thought it was because men didn't want to leave their wives and families. So, he banned all marriages. But Saint Valentine, a Roman Catholic priest, continued to perform marriages in secret. His good deeds came to an end when he was caught and sentenced to die. While in jail, he fell in love with the jailer's daughter. And on February 14, 270 A.D., the day of his death, he sent her a note signed, "From, your Valentine." (In 469 A.D., February 14th was set aside to honor St. Valentine.)

Valentine's Day isn't just about flowers, chocolates and sappy cards. It isn't about red hearts and white teddy bears. And it's definitely not about Cupid. Valentine's Day is about love. A love that cannot be commercialized. That cannot be bought. A love that seems elusive, yet most of us continue to search for it. We want to experience love because it is a powerful, pure emotion. And we're told in the Bible that "Love never fails" (1 Corinthians 13:8).

The cross of Calvary is proof that the love of God will never fail. The splintered wood. The nails. The crown of thorns. The painful death of Jesus. Evidence of the greatest sacrifice, so we would know the meaning of love.

This Valentine's Day, show love. Give a card to your enemy. Be nice to the guy who cuts in the lunch line. Smile at the girl who never smiles. And most importantly, love the way Christ loves us.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Autumn

P.S. Next week's "How I See It" will also be about love. If you have thoughts about this topic, e-mail me at [email protected] and let me know what you think!

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February 9, 2001