Secondary: Current Assemblies
ST VALENTINE'S DAY
By Stuart Kerner
 Suitable for whole school
Aim
To consider what love really means.
Preparation and materials
Assembly
- Find out from the students how many of them either sent or received a Valentine card. Tell them that although it is traditional to send anonymous cards on St Valentine’s Day, nobody can say for sure who St Valentine was; and for that matter there is nothing to connect him to the custom of sending anonymous cards to our sweethearts – although many different theories exist. Comment that it is funny how facts and myths get confused.
- Now ask if anyone has ever been to Piccadilly Circus in London. At the very least they will probably have ‘bought’ Piccadilly while playing Monopoly. Say that in the centre of Piccadilly Circus there is a statue of a winged man wearing only a loincloth, firing a bow and arrow, standing on one leg above a bronze fountain. This figure, made of aluminium, is usually known as ‘Eros’: show the picture of the statue.
- Explain that Eros was the Greek god of love. He would shoot his arrows into the hearts of gods or mortals to arouse their desires. His arrows came in two types: golden with dove feathers, which aroused love, or leaden arrows with owl feathers, which caused lack of interest. Eros would make as much mischief as he possibly could by wounding the hearts of all. The Romans borrowed Eros from the Greeks, and named him Cupid. Pictures of Eros or Cupid often appear on Valentine cards – as the students may have seen on those they sent or received. If you have some cards, show them now to illustrate your point.
- In reality, the truth is that the statue in Piccadilly is not of a pagan god at all. It is actually called The Shaftesbury Monument and represents the angel of Christian charity. It was put up at the end of the nineteenth century as a tribute to a man called Anthony Ashley Cooper, the 7th Earl of Shaftesbury. One of the streets leading from Piccadilly Circus is also named after him. Today Shaftesbury Avenue is home to many of London’s top theatres.
- You may have heard of Lord Shaftesbury in history. As a boy he was uncared for and mistreated. His father bullied him. Bringing him to start at boarding school, his father punched his son at the door and advised the tutor to do the same. Anthony carried the mental scars of this abuse with him all his life. However, this cruelty to the sensitive boy eventually became an advantage. He was always able to sympathize with the sufferings of others.
Shaftesbury became a Member of Parliament in 1826. As a Christian he was shocked to learn of the horrors of life for the working classes in England. He personally toured the slums, workhouses and asylums to discover for himself what was going on, before taking his evidence to his fellow MPs to take action.
To list all the social causes Shaftesbury championed would fill an entire page.
- He founded schools long before the government took responsibility for education.
- He pressed for improved sewage systems to prevent diseases like cholera.
- He campaigned to bring an end to women and children being forced to haul coal for long hours in the darkness of the mines.
- Young boys were freed from work as chimney sweeps thanks to his determination.
- He fought against child prostitution.
- He did all he could to see that starving children were properly fed.
- He supported better housing for the poor.
- All of this was guided by one simple idea. Shaftesbury was fierce in his conviction that Jesus must be at the centre of people’s lives, and that through love we can all achieve our true potential. Because of this, Shaftesbury was a popular, well-loved figure. When he preached people listened with respect. At his funeral, thousands stood without hats in the pouring rain to show their love for the man who had loved them.
- In the New Testament (1 Corinthians 13) St Paul tells us what Christian love ought to be:
Love is patient and kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not selfish, it is not easily angered, and it forgets mistakes. Love does not take pleasure in evil but celebrates with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, and it never gives up.
Time For Reflection
Reflection:
Stop and think.
How do I show love towards other people?
What can I do for other people today?
Prayer:
Dear God,
Make us patient and kind,
and help us to resist envy.Prevent us from boasting,and protect us from pride.Forgive us when we are rude or selfish,and stop us if our temper gets the better of us.Help us to avoid evil,and encourage us to be truthful.That we may bring true love into our own lives,
and share it with those we meet each day.
Amen.
Song
'Love divine, all loves excelling' (Mission Praise, 149)
|
