Sadie reveals the truth:
For most of us, romance leads to
torture. So it’s no wonder that Valentine’s Day was named for a Christian
martyr.
A Holiday for Martyrs |
Back in 269 A. D. a priest named
Valentine lived in Rome, and at that time (unless you were a masochist) Rome
was not a great place to be Catholic.
Sawing: A Popular Roman Pastime |
Most Romans were pagans, into partying,
and orgies, and polygamy. Valentine was pushing for monogamy which pissed-off
the Roman Emperor, Claudius—not only because Claudius had lots of girlfriends,
boyfriends, and a slew of eunuchs, but because Romans believed single soldiers
made better fighters. After all, married soldiers cared more about their families
than some dumb war. Also, in my opinion, single soldiers were hornier and they
took all that frustration and testosterone out on the enemy.
Romans Liked to Party |
Anyway, priest Valentine ignored the
emperor’s mandate about soldiers hooking up and secretly performed marriages.
That really pissed off Emperor Claudius, so he ordered Valentine to be whacked.
The priest was beaten, stoned, and finally decapitated. Those Romans knew
entertainment, not to mention partying. They already had a mid-February
fertility celebration called Lupercalia—an excuse for three days of running
around naked, raucous sex, and overeating—so, years later when the Catholics
took over Rome, fans of Valentine tacked his name onto that holiday.
Valentine Getting Whacked |
Sadie’s V.D. Advice:
Don’t mope
around waiting for some loser to give you a box of chocolates and flowers, take a
tip from ancient Romans—go down to your local bar, whip it out, create a scene. V.D. means it's time to party! And remember, nothing raises the libido like severed body parts.