Mistletoe is present in winter even when most other plants are dead or dying. Ancient people saw it as a miracle plant. Even its name implies the magical powers they thought it had. Mistletoe comes from the Old English mistel, which means dung, and tan, which means twig. They thought life came from the bird droppings left on the trees. The Greeks and Celts took that as a sign that God had saved and therefore made it sacred. They even went as far as to say that understanding where mistletoe comes from was the key to understanding God. Scandinavian warriors would stop mid battle if they saw mistletoe, taking it as a sign from God to cease fighting. Mistletoe was a symbol of peace.
Mistletoe moved from a symbol of peace to a symbol of protection. People hung it on the door frames of their houses to ward off enemies and wild beasts who might attack their house. They even hung it over their babies' cribs to chase away evil spirits and illness. Even though raw it was poisonous, they diluted it and used it to treat epilepsy, apoplexy, palsy, tuberculosis, and stroke.
Although many believed in its healing powers, the Norse had a different view. They believed that mistletoe was the most lethal weapon available. They made arrows out of the plant and believed that once struck by this deadly arrow, the only way you could be revived was to be fed some of the red berries that grew with the mistletoe. These believed restorative powers led to the current practice of mistletoe.
Mistletoe became a symbol of love, affection, and restoration. When couples passed under the green sprig with red berries, they kissed. If a couple met under the mistletoe and kissed, it was said to bring them everlasting love. To make sure this practice was not abused by overzealous (or desperate) young men, for every kiss shared under the mistletoe, a red berry was removed. When the berries were gone, the restorative powers were said to be gone and, in theory, the kissing was gone too.
Christianity developed much symbolism from mistletoe and its meaning of love. For Christians, mistletoe did not symbolize weak, faltering, fading and changing with the day human love. It symbolized the powerful, never weakening, undying love of Jesus. Jesus is our mistletoe because his body was nailed to a tree with no life in it, but out of that death came life for us all. He is all of the ideas and beliefs about mistletoe wrapped into one. Like the Scandinavian warriors believed about mistletoe, Jesus is the Prince of Peace. Like the people in ancient times believed about mistletoe, Jesus is life among death. Like others believed about mistletoe, he cast away our enemies and the beast that is always after us. Maybe the Greeks and Celts had it right when they said that understanding mistletoe was they key to understanding God, for Jesus is the mistletoe that brings life to a dead and dying world. The French even believed that as Jesus was dying, a single sprig of mistletoe grew on the cross symbolizing God's undying love for his people.
I today's world, mistletoe has lost its profound message. Now, mistletoe is simply about kissing, merry-making, and practical jokes played on new couples. Christmas has become less about Christ and more about us. I wonder what kind of uproar would be caused in church if the doorways were all decorated with bright green sprigs of mistletoe. Jaws would drop and heads would shake at the atrocities crowning the doorway. Maybe it would be a good idea to bring to light the powerful symbolism of mistletoe to the church and bring back the stunning idea of Jesus being our mistletoe.
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