What Is the Origin
of Valentine's Day?

Every February 14 people around the world participate
in the festivity called St. Valentine's Day. Greeting cards
and candy figure prominently on this occasion.

In spite of the fact that the day obviously honors a saint, most
people believe this holiday has no religious significance.

Does it?

What does Encyclopedia Encarta say about Valentine’s Day?

"Valentine’s Day, annual holiday honoring lovers. It is celebrated
on February 14 by the custom of sending greeting cards or gifts
to express affection. The cards, known as valentines, are often
designed with hearts to symbolize love.

Why? Where did these customs originate? Where do we find any such
practices in the Bible? How did we come to inherit these customs?

A Christian Custom?

Did you know that centuries before Christ, the pagan Romans celebrated
February 15 and the evening of February 14 as an idolatrous and sensuous
festival in honor of Lupercus, the "hunter of wolves"?

The Romans called the festival the "Lupercalia." The custom of exchanging
valentines and all the other traditions in honor of Lupercus - the deified hero-
hunter of Rome- was also linked anciently with the pagan practice of teen-agers
"going steady." It usually led to fornication. Today, the custom of "going steady"
is thought very modern. It isn’t. It is merely a rebirth of an old custom "handed
down from the Roman festival of the Lupercalia, celebrated in the month of
February, when names of young women were put into a box and drawn out by
men as chance directed." That’s the admission of the Encyclopedia Americana,
article, "St. Valentine’s Day."

When Constantine made Christianity the official religion of the Roman Empire
there was some talk in church circles of discarding this pagan free-for-all. But
the Roman citizens wouldn’t hear of it! So it was agreed that the holiday would
continue as it was, except for the more grossly sensual observances.

Who Was the Original "St. Valentine"?

Valentine was a common Roman name. Roman parents often gave the name
of their children in honor of the famous man who was first called Valentine in
antiquity. That famous man was Lupercus, the hunter. But who was Lupercus
and why should he have also borne the name Valentine among the heathen
Romans?

The Greeks called Lupercus by the name of "Pan". The Semites called Pan
"Baul," according to the Classical Dictionaries. Baal - mentioned so often in
the Bible - was merely another name for Nimrod, "the mighty hunter" (Genesis
10:9) It was a common proverb of ancient time that Nimrod was "the MIGHTY
hunter before the Lord." Nimrod was their hero - their strong man - their VALENTINE!

How plain that the original Valentine was Nimrod, the mighty hunter of wolves.
Yet another of Nimrod’s names was "Sanctuc" or "Santa", meaning "Saint’.
It was a common title of any hero-god. No wonder that the Roman Lupercalia
is called "St. Valentine’s Day"!

But why do we associate HEARTS on a day in honor of Nimrod - the Baal of
the Phoenicians and Semites?

"Lupercus was a hunter of wolves (Latin lupus is "wolf"),
associated with the Roman god Faunus, god of agriculture
and fertility. Since Rome took its gods from those it
conquered, we can trace Faunus to its Greek equivalent,
Pan, god of woods, fields, and flocks. The ancients
pictured both of these mythological beings as having
a human torso, but legs, horns, and ears of goats.
Pan can be traced to the Phoenician sun god Baal who
is also a god of fertility and nature. We can make a
strong case that Baal is none other than Nimrod.
In Genesis 10:9, Moses describes Nimrod as a "mighty
hunter."  Tradition says that Nimrod roamed as far as
Italy to hunt wolves.  Valentine comes into play here.
The word derives from the Latin valens, meaning "strong,
powerful, mighty." Our word valiant, "courageous,
and heroic," also comes from this root. These are apt
descriptions of Nimrod. In a sense, he was the peoples'
valentine!"
--Valentine
(From Forerunner Commentary)
by Mike Ford

And what about Cupid?

Cupid

"LUPERCALIA {the feast of Lupercus, the mighty wolf
hunter}. The ancient Roman celebration of Lupercalia
was held in honor of Lupercus, the deified great hunter
of Rome.  This celebration also included worship of the
goddess of fertility, Venus. In Roman mythology this
goddess of fertility and sexual immortality, had a son
called Cupid. Cupid was said to have attended to her
and was given power to cause love to begin and to cease.
This celebration was held from the 14th through the 15th
of February. Some of the events of this pagan holiday
included the choosing of partners by chance; in which
teenaged girls would place their names into a box. The
names were then drawn out by young men. The girl whose
name was drawn then became the sexual partner with the
man for the upcoming year; beginning in March during the
Fertility rites of the Spring Equinox."

"NIMROD (Baal) and Semiramis (ASHTORETH)--
The Greek called Lupercus by the name of "Pan",
the Semites called Pan "Baal". Baal which is
mentioned several times in the bible, is merely
another name for Nimrod "the mighty hunter"
(Genesis 10:8-9). Nimrod was the original Lupercus
and we know that Nimrod was a mighty man who
built great cities, including Babel.  Later when Queen
Semiramis gave birth to an illegitimate son, she claimed
that he was Nimrod reborn, calling him - "Nimrod-
Tammuz" by name. Another name for Nimrod-Tammuz
was "Cupid", which means "Desire".  Queen Semaramis
lusted after her son, and soon they were married. 
Nimrod-Tammuz was forever known as the child "god". 
In the Babylonian tongue the word 'heart' was pronounced
"Bal". In the depictions of Tammuz the "heart shaped" fruit
of Persea was often found in his hand. Thus Tammuz
became known as the god of the heart."
--The Truth About Valentine's Day
What's Love Got to Do With it ?
BABYLON FORSAKEN MINISTRIES

This is the true story of the origins of this celebrated holiday.
The Christians of the world will unite on February 14 to, once
again, celebrate a pagan holiday with their Christian brethren. 

Is that wise? 

No, it is not.

IS THE DOOR STILL OPEN?

What door?

Is The Door To Jehovah God's Compassion Still Open?

Remember Noah’s Ark?

While Noah built the ark according to Jehovah God's
specifications, doubtless - the people of the world of
his time laughed at him and ridiculed his work
and his preaching. When the Ark was finished and
ready the door of the Ark stood open a long time. The
people got used to seeing it stand open. It stood open
for so long that no one felt any alarm. It always seemed
that there was plenty of time, just because it stood open
for so long.

While the door stood open Noah delivered his final warning
message as the animals went aboard. He warned people of
a coming world destruction because of world-wide wickedness.
Man had filled the earth with violence. Yes, man's wickedness
was great: 

¹¹ Now the earth was corrupt in God's sight and was full of violence.
(Genesis 6:11) (NIV)

While Noah preached - the door of the Ark stood open.
Doubtless some thought that if it did rain the ark would be
a nice place to be in -- but of course they thought it would
never rain because it had never rained before. 

"...for Jehovah God had not caused it to rain
upon the earth... but there went up a mist from
the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground."
(Genesis 2:5,6) (American Standard Version)

The sun shone and the sky was blue. Absolutely nobody
outside of Noah's family believed his message.  All the
while - the door to the Ark was open.

It is just like that today!

The “door” was open to serve Jehovah for a long time, yet
the world of mankind thinks that there is still plenty of time
left before the "Great Day of Jehovah" will arrive. Many people
do not believe that the day has even come. But it Has!

What do the Bible’s prophets say?

"and all the kings... near and far, one after the other
- all the kingdoms on the face of the earth... You will
not go unpunished, for I am calling down a sword
upon all  who live on the earth, declares Jehovah God
Almighty.' Now prophesy all these words against them
and say to them: 'The LORD JEHOVAH will roar from
on high; he will thunder from his holy dwelling and roar
mightily against the earth. He will shout... against all
who live on the earth. The tumult will resound to the ends
of the earth, for Jehovah will bring charges against the
nations; he will bring judgment on all mankind and put the
wicked to the sword,' This is what Jehovah Almighty says:
"Look! Disaster is spreading from nation to nation; a mighty
storm is rising from the ends of the earth." At that time those
slain by JEHOVAH will be everywhere - from one end of the
earth to the other. They will not be mourned or gathered up
or buried, but will be like refuse lying on the ground."
(Jeremiah 25:26, 29-33) (ASV)

"This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from
heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. He will
punish those who do not know God and do not obey the
gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with
everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of
the Lord and from the majesty of his power on the day he
comes to be glorified"
(2Thessalonians 1:7-10) (New International Version)

The world's scene is changing quickly - just as Christ foretold
it would. He described clearly what life on the earth would be
like when he was to return in Matthew chapter 24 and we are
seeing it happen - now - right before our very eyes!

³ As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to
him privately. "Tell us," they said, "when will this happen, and what
will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?" ⁴ Jesus
answered: "Watch out that no one deceives you. ⁵ For many will
come in my name, claiming, 'I am the Christ,' and will deceive
many. ⁶ You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it
that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end
is still to come.
(Matthew 24:3-6) (NIV)

But Is The Door Still Open? 

¹ The LORD then said to Noah, "Go into the ark, you and your
whole family, because I have found you righteous in this generation.
⁴ Seven days from now I will send rain on the earth for forty days
and forty nights, and I will wipe from the face of the earth every
living creature I have made."
(Genesis 7:1,4) (NIV)

Noah did not close the door to the ark. Jehovah closed it.  

Why?

Jehovah knew that once the rain began to pour down -
suddenly - everyone would believe, and there would
be a mad dash to join Noah on his ark. Jehovah also
knew that if Noah were able to open the ark's great
door, he would do so, in pity for the drowning people.

"And they went... into the ark... as God commanded him:
and Jehovah shut him in."
(Genesis 7:15,16) (ASV)

So too - today - The Door to Jehovah's compassion closed
- just as it did in Noah's day. And once it closed - IT IS
CLOSED!  And it will remain closed - until God's executioner
- His Son- is done cleansing the earth of all of the evil in it.
Predictably, when Armageddon starts - suddenly - everyone
will believe; not because they love Jehovah and his Son - but
because they will see the signs that Armageddon is beginning
with their own eyes:

What Is Lent?

Many Christians make a tradition of
observing the so-called "holy days" of Lent
before Easter.

What is the origin of this ancient tradition?

According to  Columbia Encyclopedia:

http://education.yahoo.com/reference/encyclopedia/

"In Christianity, Lent is a time of penance, prayer,
preparation for or recollection of baptism, and
preparation for the celebration of Easter.
Observance of Lent is as old as the 4th cent.
In Eastern churches it is reckoned as the six
weeks before Palm Sunday. In the West the
penitential season begins liturgically with
Septuagesima, the ninth Sunday before
Easter; the next Sundays are Sexagesima and
Quinquagesima. Lent begins on Ash Wednesday,
the 40th weekday before Easter."

Please notice that the article plainly states that this tradition
was not started until a few hundred years after Christ and
his apostles died. That means he and his followers did
not teach this as a true Christian belief.

The article continues:

"In Eastern churches it is reckoned as the six weeks before
Palm Sunday. In the West the penitential season begins
liturgically with Septuagesima, the ninth Sunday before
Easter; the next Sundays are Sexagesima and Quinquagesima.
Lent begins on Ash Wednesday , the 40th weekday before
Easter. Of the Sundays in Lent the fifth is Passion Sunday and
the last is Palm Sunday. The week preceding Easter is Holy Week.
Lent ends at midnight Holy Saturday. See Shrove Tuesday. From
the 5th to 9th cent. strict fasting was required; only one
meal was allowed per day, and meat and fish (and sometimes
eggs and dairy) were forbidden. During and since the 9th cent.
fasting restrictions were gradually loosened. By the 20th cent. meat
was allowed, except on Fridays. Pope Paul VI began (1966) a trend
toward penitential works (such as acts of charity) in conjunction with
Lent. The Christian observance of Lent may have a parallel in
the fasting practiced in Greco-Roman mystery religions, in
which it was considered an aid to enlightenment and often
preceded prophecy."

From: http://education.yahoo.com/reference/encyclopedia/entry/Lent;_ylt=AoLsHFDaw_XOGoRHjU9UAQZSt8wF

Why was this tradition started hundreds of
years after Christ and his apostles died?

Why are people compelled to fast for forty days straight?

Where does it say in the Bible that God wants us to do this?

The word "Lent" occurs only five times in the King James Bible
and it only means the past tense of lend:

Exodus 12:36 - Deut 23:19 - 1Samuel 1:28 - 1 Samuel 2:20
and Jeremiah 15:10.

The Lent ritual is not mentioned in the whole Bible at
all as a period of fasting for Christians. Neither Christ nor
his followers ever fasted for forty days as an annual ritual.
However, the Bible does mention something that is relevant:

^{1 "}Now the Holy Spirit tells us clearly that in the last times
some will turn away from what we believe; they will follow
lying spirits and teachings that come from demons. ² These
teachers are hypocrites and liars. They pretend to be
religious, but their consciences are dead. ³ They will say
it is wrong to be married and wrong to eat certain foods.
But God created those foods to be eaten with thanksgiving
by people who know and believe the truth."
(1Timothy 4:1-3) (New Living Translation)

So the Apostle Paul predicted far in advance that
man-made rituals like this would spring up from
certain "hypocritical teachers and liars".

What do other respected secular authorities
say about the origin of Lent?

"Among the Pagans this Lent seems to have been an
indispensable preliminary to the great annual festival in
commemoration of the death and resurrection of Tammuz."
- The Two Babylons (New York); 1957),
by Alexander Hislop, pp. 104,105.

Who is Tammuz?

According to Encyclopedia Britannica:

"Tammuz - A god of ancient Babylonia."

So Tammuz is a god wannabe?

Coming from the Anglo-Saxon Lencten, meaning “spring,” Lent
originated in the ancient Babylonian mystery religion. “The forty
days’ abstinence of Lent was directly borrowed from the worshippers
of the Babylonian goddess…Among the Pagans this Lent seems to
have been an indispensable preliminary to the great annual festival in
commemoration of the death and resurrection of Tammuz”
(The Two Babylons).

The Feast of Tammuz was usually celebrated in June (also called
the “month of Tammuz”). Lent was held 40 days before the feast,
“celebrated by alternate weeping and rejoicing.” This is why Lent
means “spring”; it took place from spring to early summer.The
Bible records ancient Judah worshipping this false Messiah: “Then
He brought me to the door of the gate of the Lord’s house which
was toward the north; and, behold, there sat women weeping for
Tammuz” (Ezek. 8:14-15). This was a great abomination in God’s
eyes!"

From: http://www.thercg.org/articles/ttmol.html

There is far more about Tammuz in the encyclopedias, which
makes for fascinating reading. However Tammuz is just another
mythical god among thousands of other mythical gods. What we
plainly see here are an ancient people fasting prior to a festival
for a false god. Now modern people blindly follow this same
pattern!

Who are the people fasting for?

Themselves and their false god. Neither Jehovah nor His
son ever asked anybody to fast for forty days straight.

Does this ritual help to make people feel or appear more spiritual?

Perhaps. The ancient Jews did fast for many occasions and
still do it today but the fasting is usually for a short period.

Is fasting important to God?

There are lots of things more important to God more important
than starving ourselves needlessly. Having people just call Him
by His name – Jehovah - is far more important.

Jehovah Has A People
Called By His Name 

There are several prophecies in the Bible stating
That God would establish a group of people who
would carry His name:

"Jehovah will establish thee unto himself a holy
people as he hath sworn unto thee, if thou keep
the commandments of Jehovah thy God, and walk
in his ways. And all peoples of the earth shall
see that thou art called by the name of Jehovah,
and they shall be afraid of thee."
(Deuteronomy 28:9,10) (Young’s Literal Translation)

"For Jehovah will not forsake his people for his
great name's sake, because it hath pleased Jehovah  
to make you a people unto himself."
(1Samuel 12:22) (American Standard Version) 

Did the prophecies come true?

"Simeon has related how God first concerned Himself
about taking from among the Gentiles a people for His
name. SO THAT THE REST OF MANKIND MAY SEEK
THE LORD, AND ALL THE GENTILES WHO ARE CALLED
BY MY NAME."
(Acts 15:14,17) (New American Standard Bible) 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Jehovah has a people called by his name
they witness to his sovereignty they tell about his fame

The Bible's indicated that just before the end
God's people would preach, his name they defend

They follow the example set by God's own Son
who declared his Father's name to each and everyone

Jehovah God commanded that his servants follow Christ
who will lead us to Jehovah and to everlasting life.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Who are these people?

⁶ I will say to the north, 'Give them up!' and to the south,
'Do not hold them back.' Bring my sons from afar and my
daughters from the ends of the earth- ⁷ everyone who
is called by my name, whom I created for my glory,
whom I formed and made."
(Isaiah 43:6-7) (New International Version) 

"Ye are my witnesses, saith Jehovah, and my servant
whom I have chosen; that ye may know and believe me,
and understand that I am he: before me there was no
God formed, neither shall there be after me."
(Isaiah 43:10) (ASV) 

"...and ye are my witnesses, saith Jehovah, - that I am God."
(Isaiah 43:12) (Darby) 

"and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness"
(Revelation 1:5) (New International Version) 

"...the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God's creation. "
(Revelation 3:14) (NIV ) 

"...yet thou, O Jehovah, art in the midst of us,
and we are called by thy name."
(Jeremiah 14:9) (ASV) 

Jehovah’s Witnesses are the only people on the
earth who proclaim that God has a name and His
people are named after Him as He Himself prophesied.
Some people say that Jehovah is only the God of the
ancient Jews.

Is this true?

"Is God the God of Jews only? Is he not the God
of Gentiles too? Yes, of Gentiles too."
(Romans 3:29) (NIV) 

"Jehovah of hosts is his name: and the Holy One of Israel is
thy Redeemer; the God of the whole earth shall he be called."
(Isaiah 54:5) (ASV) 

⁵ I am Jehovah, and there is none else; besides me there
is no God. I will gird thee, though thou hast not known me.
(Isaiah 45:5) (ASV) 

"Praise be to THE GOD and Father OF our Lord Jesus Christ,
the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort,"
(2Corinthians 1:3) (NIV) 

Why is it so important for people to know all this?

"And this good news of the kingdom will be preached in all
the inhabited earth as a witness to all the nations and then
the end will come."
(Matthew 24:14) (NIV) 

For people who want to be saved, Jehovah’s name
will be the most important thing to know:

³² And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call
on the name of Jehovah shall be delivered;
(Joel 2:32) (ASV) 

Only Jehovah's people will be delivered from the calamities
we are seeing now. The world's problems are escalating and
the time is coming when all of the things we see around us
that don't belong in Jehovah's world will be erased. When
Jehovah is done, only His people will be left to enjoy a life
here on the earth the way He originally intended it to be.

The Bible’s Warnings
for the Last Days

In this modern world, ancient scriptures from an ancient
book seem out of place.