University Press (Beaumont, Tex.), Vol. 70, No. 32, Ed. 1 Friday, February 11, 1994 Page: 4 of 6
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Page 4
University Press
Friday, February 11,1994
Getting to the heart of Valentine’s Day
By Nedone Brantley
UP staff writer
St. Valentine’s Day, considered to be one
of the more lighthearted holidays of the
year, is generally a time for a card and a call
to let someone know you care or treats and
sweets for someone special.
But exactly where and why Valentines
Day originated is a mystery for many.
Legend has it that a Roman priest or
bishop named Valentine was arrested,
imprisoned and put to death on Feb. 14 for
disobeying a decree by the Roman
Emperor Claudius II that forbade the mar-
rying of Roman soldiers during war time.
Another story has it that on Feb. 14 in
A.D. 270, a young Roman named Valentine
was beaten and beheaded because he
would not renounce Christianity. He left a
note signed, “From your Valentine,” to a
jailer’s young daughter who had befriended
him.
A pink rose is said to have blossomed on
his grave.
However cute these legends may be,
they still do not explain how the name of a
pious man of the church became associated
with a holiday for love and lovers.
Long before there were Feb. 14
Valentine martyrs, there was an ancient
spring love festival celebrated on Feb. 15.
The coincidence of these two dates shed
some light on the evolution of the holiday.
In the Roman calendar, February was
originally the last month of the year and it
fell right at the beginning of spring. It’s
name is derived from the Latin word febru-
are, which means to purify.
The Feb. 15 Roman festival of purifica-
tion and fertility was “Lupercalia,” which
was celebrated to ensure fertility for the
people, fields and flocks. The Luperci
priests, after sacrificing a goat, an ancient
symbol of fertility,
clothed them-
selves in j
goat skins Jf
and went it
about strik- 1
ml
ing women
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honor of the Roman god Lupercus (Greek
god Pan), but in honor of St. Valentine.
A symbol of love since ancient times,
Cupid was the natural heir to a holiday
when young men “chose” their valentines.
Better known as the Greek god Eros,
Cupid’s form altered, and the handsome
youth of ancient mythology became the
playful cherub we know today.
Thus, just as Cupid
J f I was linked with a
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that
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with goat
s k i n n e u ^
thongs. The %
lashes were to *
promote fertility
and make childbirth
easier.
The goatskin thongs, ^
called “februa,” and the
lashing, the “februatio,” both ^
stem from the Latin word meaning
to purify. Thus, it is from the
Lupercalia festival that we get the name
February.
When the church began to take over
Rome, it tried but failed to stamp out
“pagan” festivals. The result? Valentine was
named the patron saint of lovers and the
Lupercalia celebration continued, not in
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ever
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I %efs'
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> holiday
1 became
1 more romantic,
I so did Cupid’s
f target — the
heart.
Most of
the customs of
Lupercalia, minus
^ the lashing-sex-rite
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ritual, have survived
^ down through the cen-
turies to become a traditional
part of the St. Valentine’s day
celebration.
Ever heard the expression wearing
your heart on your sleeve?
A ritual at the ancient spring festival
included the giving of young women to men
by a sort of lottery. The names of the girls
were shaken up in a box and drawn by the
men, who then pinned the girl’s name on
his sleeve to let other’s know who he would
be courting at next year’s festival.
Enrollment
Continued from page 1
units right now, they could affect
the campus in the future.
“When the federal prison
opens, the prisoners, and more
importantly, the employees and
their families, could help to
increase enrollment,” Rode said.
Other campuses with drops in
enrollment were the Field
Center, which dropped 3.72 per-
cent from last spring; the
Institute, which dropped 2.39
percent; and Orange, which
dropped 1.07 percent, Rode said.
Some of the reasons for the
drop in enrollment on some of
the campuses may be affected by
the new admission standards as
well as TASP requirements,
Rode said. Others factors could
include economic and popula-
tion drops for the area in gener-
al.
“I expect to see enrollment
stabilizing in the next couple of
years unless something drastic
happens like a big economic
A novel idea
AP Laserphoto
What started out as a classroom assignment has now developed into a campaign with bumper stickers, like this one shown.
Bakersville College professor, Chuck Wall, had his students do a random act of kindness and write a report about it. The 4 x 12
inch bumper sticker sells for $1, with all proceeds going to the Braille Center.
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King cake mystery confusing
in Mardi Gras celebrations
By Susan Flowers
UP feature editor
downswing,” Rode said. He said
Lamar may see a pickup in 1995
or 1996 because the high schools
will be graduating more students.
Rode said Lamar has taken
several steps including heavy
recruiting, more evening classes
and Staurday classes to boost
enrollment.
February is Mardi Gras time
for the cities of Galveston and
Port Arthur, Lafayette and New
Orleans, and the legend of the
King Cake remains a mystery to
a lot of people. Confused indi-
viduals wonder what they will
have to do if they get the small
plastic doll or pea in their piece
of cake. Many commonly heard
assumptions are, “That means
you’ll be the next person to have
a baby,” or, “That means half of
the piece of cake I ate was taken
up by some plastic thing.” So to
clear up all misconceptions
about the tradition, here are a
couple of versions you can be
sure of.
King’s Day, as it is celebrated
in New Orleans, marks the
beginning of a series of parties
before the parades and masquer-
ades of Mardi Gras. The King
Cake is a necessity to get the
parties rolling. The cake is usual-
ly oval-shaped and is usually
decorated with colored sugar or
a layer of icing. Within the cake
is planted either a bean or a little
plastic baby doll.
Traditionally the same group
of people participate in the
series of parties. In this royal
scavenger hunt, the person who
bites into, spots or chokes on the
jewel will be the king or queen
of the next party in the series.
This party is to take place one
week later. Once you’ve been
the king or queen once you must
forfeit another chance at it until
everyone has had a chance at the
crown.
In many Christian churches,
the king cake is eaten on “King’s
Day,” which is observed on Jan.
6, also known as the “Twelfth
Night”. The purpose of the gath-
ering is to honor the Three Wise
Men with the infant Jesus. In this
case, the person who gets the
small plastic baby doll “finds the
baby Jesus,” and will host the
next seasonal celebration.
The oval shape of the cake
shows the unity of all Christians
and is decorated in a carnival of
colors including green, yellow
and purple. At times, bakers dec-
orate in the color red to symbol-
ize the life of Jesus.
King Cake season ends on Fat
Tuesday, Feb. 15, so if you come
across one of those small plastic
baby dolls or peas, know that
while it is supposedly a royal
honor, you’ve got a lot of cook-
ing to do.
SOTS
Today's Menu
New Hours From AHA
effective Monday, Feb. 14, our new hours will be:
Cardinal Nest...
9s30 a.m. to 1x30 p.m. R6(]*S
Monday through Friday
a convenience store
10 a .in. to 6 p.m.
Monday through Friday
Mirabeau's...
will be serving easy risers, hashbrowns,
doughnuts and coffee from 7 a.m. until
10 a.m. Monday through Friday.
Regular hours are:
7 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Monday through Friday
5 p.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday
5 p.m. to 8 a.m. Sunday
ALL YOU CAN EAT BREAKFAST
$3.66 (Door Price)
7:15 a.m.
Main Dining Hall
(Across from the Post Office)
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Louviere, C. E. University Press (Beaumont, Tex.), Vol. 70, No. 32, Ed. 1 Friday, February 11, 1994, newspaper, February 11, 1994; Beaumont, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth500276/m1/4/?q=Lamar+University: accessed June 8, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Lamar University.