Steve Webb: Hi and welcome to day four out of 25 of the 2022
encore of the 2009 season of the Lifespring Why Christmas show
hosted by James Cooper, creator of whychristmas.com. And yours
truly, Steve Webb, the OG Godcaster and host of over 3000
podcast episodes at Lifespringmedia.com. Every day
from now to Christmas day you will hear an episode from the
2009 season and if you're not yet subscribed or following the
show, you can do that at LifespringWhyChristmas.show. Are
you ready? Here's the show. Enjoy.
Welcome to the Lifespring Why Christmas show day four.
Remember we'll have a show today right up to and including
Christmas. I'm Steve Webb, and I'll be your host today as we
learn a bit about mistletoe, one of my favorite parts of the
Christmas season. Mistletoe is a plant that grows on other trees
commonly willow and apple trees. The practice of hanging it in
the house goes back to the times of the ancient Druids in Western
Europe. It was supposed to possess special powers which
bring good luck to the household and ward off evil spirits. It
was also used as a sign of friendship. And that's where the
custom of kissing under the mistletoe comes from. And that
custom first started in England. The original custom was that a
berry was picked from the sprig of mistletoe each time there was
a kiss. So make sure you get a bunch with lots of berries on
it. It's traditional to take decorations down on 12th night
also known as epiphany, which is the sixth of January. During the
Middle Ages greenery including mistletoe was often left hanging
up until Candlemas when Christians celebrate Jesus going
to the Jewish temple as a baby in early February. You can find
out more about some of the other Christmas plants at
whychristmas.com. Tomorrow James will be back with a very special
show. Don't miss it. Until then. I'm Steve Webb