11 Feb, 2009
Red Roses Hit the Black Market as Saudis Ban Valentines Day Gifts
Tuesday , February 10, 2009
Anyone in Saudi Arabia looking to shower a loved one with Valentine's Day gifts better be ready to break the law and shell out serious cash.
Religious police in the Arab country are banning the sale of any gifts related to the romantic holiday, driving up black market prices for offerings like the ever-popular red rose, according to BBC News.
Shop workers actually said they were warned to remove all red items from their stores, BBC News reported.
Valentine's Day is one of many holidays that are considered un-Islamic holiday and thus are prohibited by Saudi authorities, the station reported. But it has an even bigger stigma than most, as it is thought to encourage relations between unwed couples, which is illegal in the conservative kingdom.
Still, Saudis seem determined to celebrate the holiday.
Many people order flowers days or weeks in advance in anticipation of the ban, BBC News reported.
"Sometimes we deliver the bouquets in the middle of the night or early morning, to avoid suspicion," one florist told the Saudi Gazette.
Others travel to neighboring countries to celebrate, BBC News reported.
(Story provided by: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,490608,00.html)
(Picture Provided by: http://spadinaflowers.com/catalog/images/D2-0012.jpg)
You Can't Outlaw Love.
22 But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!
What does God's Story scripture teach us about real love?
This segment of the bible comes from the letter Paul wrote to the church in the Galatia province. He writes the churches he started, because there are things he wants them to understand. One of those concerns was the difference between the sinful nature and life lived through the Holy Spirit.
Just before Paul lays out today's scripture he tells the Galatians what the sinful nature is like. He places the two lifestyles next to each other to make the difference abundantly clear.
At the top of Paul's Spirit-filled list is love. From the front cover to the back, love shows up a lot in the Bible.
A few items in the sinful nature list are often attached to "love" in our society. Even though Paul wasn't writing specifically to us today, he would still want us to understand that love is deeper than the physical. Real love endures all things.
How can we connect today's God's Story scripture to our live?
With the exception of my oldest brother (He's married) my siblings and I celebrate singles' awareness day instead of Valentine's Day. Ads for flowers and candy make it seem awkward at times to be a single person. You see all the couples and you feel like you're missing out on love. This season can really distort what love is truly about. Governments may pass laws against manifestations of love, but it isn't about the flowers and stuff. It's not even about just two people. Real love has a depth found only in a relationship with Jesus. Single or not, here are some suggestion for connecting God's Story with your own.
- Get a good concordance and look up all the verses you can about love. Write down what you find.
- Write a love poem to God or, if you're not much of a poet, read a Psalm to God.
- Memorize 1 Corinthians 13:4-8a
How can we connect today's story, God's Story scripture, and our story to others?
Just about every store I have been into this week has been covered in red, white, and pink. Conversations about valentines and love are bound to come up. See them as opportunities to introduce people to God's story.
- With a friend, come up with ways you could show someone you love them if our government outlawed Valentine gifts.
- When you're walking through a store full of red, ask your friend how they define love. Then share with them what you learned from memorizing 1 Corinthians 13.
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