On the 14th of February activists of the Russian Orthodox youth movement “Georgievtsy!” intend to mount an Internet protest at St. Valentine’s Day which they consider a pagan and commercial celebration.
      
      In an official message they call Internet users to replace their avatars (userpics) with anti-valentines - pictures featuring crossed out red hearts for one day as a sign of “the true love support”. Apart from the silent protest the activist also plan to spread information about “the true nature of the celebration” over the Internet. “Georgievtsy!” activists intend to convince Internet users that celebrating St. Valentine’s Day is a sin due to this day was initially based on the ancient pagan Feast of Lubercus – a celebration “encouraging promiscuous sexual relations and debauchery”, as a movement’s message says. According to the movement members, St. Valentine’s Day has nothing to do with Christianity and this date is alien to both the Orthodox and Catholics.
      
      Apart from the historic aspects of the celebration “Georgievtsy!” activists are also outraged over “commercialization” of St. Valentine’s Day. “The market supports the sin because the sin stimulates the market”, they claim.
      
      Source: www.regions.ru

Maria Rita :
I can understand the sensation of paganism: there's something true in this, in February there were also ancient nuptial celebrations of Gods. It means the joy of life inside the marriage. The point is this, even thought we're under a massive commercialization, as Christian part of the actual society we're not called to opposite dramatically to different values: we celebrate other saints liturgically, and we suggest children or young people to say "I love you" in a sweey way to everybody they care, friends, not only boy or girl friends, avoiding expesive gifts, so to take part to the joy in a balanced way, with a flower, a card, one only heart chocolate, or only with a good word, and we remarks that true feelings must be lived in God and come from Him: in other words cathechesis. Love is God, God is Life. Thanks for reading me.

Added: 12 April 2008 13:23