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| Credits to whoever owns this :D |
I don’t. Celebrate, that is. If by Valentine’s, we define it as the bouquet giving, chocolate exchanging, date place reserving stress of a holiday, then yes, I am absolutely sure that I don’t celebrate that. Now, for those who do, don’t be offended, I’m not criticizing. We just see things differently - what you see as a celebration, I see as a stressful situation.
Yesterday, I was asked this question (out of the blue), “Do you celebrate valentine’s as a Christian?”. Surprised, I ended up saying after shrugging, “Huh? Okay lang naman.” without any additional explanation. Thinking back, I was a bit disappointed with the way I answered but I guess, that’s all the situation asked for. Honestly, I never thought my being a Christian would dictate if I celebrate valentine’s (or not), pwede pa siguro ung pagiging kuripot ko o ung sakit ng ulo ng nakukuha ko kapag sooobrang dami kong tao na nakita sa isang lugar – but my being a Christian?
I understand the question meant to probe me on my beliefs. Valentine’s day is of pagan origin (so they say… haven’t really done my research about that ) and being that I should not be celebrating pagan rituals – am I or am I not celebrating valentine’s? Well, in things like these (celebrations springing up from pagan rituals), this is where I stand: it’s all in the state of the heart. You see, we are surrounded by a lot of things that are of pagan origin and if we bother ourselves trying to identify each and every thing that is of pagan origin, I think, besides becoming a history buff, we would also be wasting a precious amount of our days. But, if we do something or use something that is of pagan origin and consecrate it to God, He will be able to redeem those things and use it for His glory. In the Bible, Jesus said “It’s not what goes into your mouth that defiles you; your are defiled by the words that come out of your mouth” (Matt. 15:11). This is what I believe He is trying to say: the outward things do not have power to make us unworthy but rather, the things inside our hearts – love vs. anger, compassion vs. hatred, respect vs. slander.
So, about the celebration that started this article – Valentine’s, this is what God showed me for today’s reading time:
“God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love” – 1 John 4:16b-18.
If you ask me if I will celebrate valentine’s after this, I will still say no – mainly due to the stress. But, for those who will, my hope is that when you celebrate, you celebrate by enjoying your time together with your loved one/s as well as remembering the One who blessed you with the capability to love, taught you how to love and showed you the perfect kind of love.
Happy valentine’s day everyone ;)
