A Word from the Pastor
VALENTINE'S DAY
I remember when I was in grade school that on or around Valentine's Day, my teacher would give us a piece of paper and tell us to make a card for our mothers. As I got older, we would give a card to everyone in the class. In high school, we would give or hope to receive a card from that special boy or girl. After I was married, I would usually give my wife some flowers and a card and often a box of chocolates (which I usually ate). When my children got married, for awhile I would send the girls flowers, but eventually this got too expensive.
No one knows for sure how the valentine tradition started. There are many different stories. One story says: Saint Valentine, according to romantic legend, was a kind-hearted Roman priest who married young couples against the wishes of Emperor Claudius II, and was beheaded for his deeds on the 14th of February (Wikipedia). No one knows how the leap from martyrdom to romance happened.
No matter how the tradition of Valentine's Day started, it certainly is a time that we have set apart to show special attention and kindness to loved ones. So let us do that, remembering 1 John 4:19 "We love because he (God) first loved us."
Pastor Alvin (Rocky) Bronson II
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