miércoles, 8 de febrero de 2012

VALENTINE´S DAY

 St.  Valentine´s Day

   Do you know why we celebrate Valentine’s Day?
    Now it is mainly so thatwe can tell people that we care about them, give and receive cards, and
enjoy chocolate and candy.

    But according to one legend, St. Valentine’s Day is meant for people to remember a brave man, a martyr* whose name was Valentine.

The Story of St. Valentine
The Roman Emperor Claudius II was fighting many wars. He wanted a
strong army, but many men did not want to be soldiers. Claudius thought
the men wanted to stay home to be with their wives and children instead
of leaving to fight wars.
Claudius thought of an awful solution to his problem. He decided to cancel
all marriages! No one in all of Rome could get married. Claudius thought
that if the men couldn’t get married, the men would ignore the women
and want to be soldiers.
Valentine, who was a priest, believed that people needed to get married.
He thought that if they were not married, they would be tempted to sin by
living together without being married. So he secretly and illegally married
couples anyway! He performed the weddings in secret places, so the
Roman soldiers would not find out.
But they did find out. Valentine was arrested and brought before the
Emperor. The Emperor thought Valentine was a well spoken and wise
young man, and encouraged him to stop being a Christian and become a
loyal Roman. Valentine would not deny his beliefs, and he refused. He was
sent to prison until he could be executed. While he was in prison, he sent
out letters to his friends and asked to be prayed for by writing Remember
your Valentine.
Valentine was killed on the 14th or the 24th of February in the year 269 or
270. We celebrate Valentine’s Day on February 14th in honor of St.
Valentine.
Although it is not known whether this legend is factually true, it is a good
story anyway. It is nice to think of someone who believed in marriage and
was willing to risk death to do what he believed was right.


*martyr comes from the Greek work martus, which means “witness”. A martyr is a
person who would rather suffer, and even die, than give up the things he or she
believes in.


Answer the following:
1. Name the Emperor who ruled during Valentine’s lifetime.
a. Claudius I
b. Claudius II
c. Nero 

d. Augustus
 

2. The Emperor wanted men to:
a. live at home and work for the empire.
b. raise children and be loyal Roman citizens.
c. go to other countries and raise families.
d. go fight wars in other lands.
 

3. Valentine disobeyed the Emperor’s orders twice. What TWO things
did he refuse to do?
a. stop performing marriages
b. kneel to the Emperor
c. stop being a Christian
d. read the Bible
 

Match the words to the correct meaning.
1. ___ wedding a. a tasty treat of sugar and cocoa
2. ___ executed b. a place to keep criminals away from regular citizens
3. ___ martyr c. to take a criminal away to jail or prison
4. ___ prison d. ruler of the Roman Empire
5. ___ secretly e. the second month of the year
6. ___ chocolate f. done in hiding, privately
7. ___ Emperor g. a ceremony where two people who  love each     other join together officially
8. ___ war h. from a word meaning witness
9. ___ arrest i. to be killed for a crime or a belief
10. ___ February j. when groups of people, or countries, fight each other
.


Short Essay: Write why you think Valentine was or was not brave.
_________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________

  Find as many words as you can in this phrase: REMEMBER YOUR VALENTINE






 Aquí os cuelgo algunos poemas que han escrito el día de San Valentín. Haced click sobre más información y aparecerán más.

When Will Love Come?
by Pakenham Beatty
Some find Love late, some find him soon,
Some with the rose in May,
Some with the nightingale in June,
And some when skies are gray;
Love comes to some with smiling eyes,
And comes with tears to some;
For some Love sings, for some Love sighs,
For some Love's lips are dumb.
How will you come to me, fair Love?
Will you come late or soon?
With sad or smiling skies above,
By light of sun or moon?
Will you be sad, will you be sweet,
Sing, sigh, Love, or be dumb?
Will it be summer when we meet,
Or autumn ere you come?