Valentine's Day century. Popular modern sources claim links to unspecified Greco-Roman February holidays alleged to be devoted to fertility and love to St. Valentine's Day, but prior to Chaucer in the 14th century, there were no links between the saints named Valentinus and romantic love. In Ancient Rome, Lupercalia, observed February 13–15, was an archaic rite connected to fertility. Lupercalia was a festival local to the city of Rome. The more general Festival of Juno Februa, meaning "Juno the purifier" or "the chaste Juno", was celebrated on February 13–14. Pope Gelasius I (492–496) abolished Lupercalia. Some researchers have theorized that Gelasius I
The Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Roman Catholic Church (Belgique, Missouri) Sereno parishes. In 1966, Belgique and Sereno were made missions of the Vincentian priests at Perryville. The Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary was closed in 1993, and its parishioners were invited to join the faith community at Our Lady of Victory in Sereno. The Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Cemetery, also known as Belgique Catholic Cemetery, lies just south of Belgique along highway 51. The Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Roman Catholic Church (Belgique, Missouri) The Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Church was a Roman Catholic church in Belgique, Missouri. The Nativity of the Blessed Virgin