Wednesday, December 17: “Mistletoe” by Justin Bieber
In the books of Romans, 1 and 2 Corinthians, 1 Thessalonians, and 1 Peter, Christians are encouraged to greet each other with a kiss. While our modern culture may have phased out this practice, surprisingly, we’re reminded of this “holy” (as Paul puts it) practice every Christmastime. That’s right, the kiss underneath the mistletoe is (probably) inspired by the Christian tradition of the brotherly, holy kiss.
Nowadays, the mistletoe kiss is, ahem, seen as a little creepy, but that doesn’t stop a young Justin Bieber from trying to make it seem romantic. Throughout “Mistletoe” he waits and longs for the girl he wants to kiss under the mistletoe. To Bieber, while the rest of the Christmas pageantry is something he’s sad to miss, it’s almost a temptation, a distraction from his sole focus: that mistletoe smooch.
It’s an endearing theme for a song, and while it might not fully capture the true spirit of the “holy kiss” Paul describes, it does remind us that Advent is about waiting for the better thing.
The better thing in this case is the incarnation of Jesus, not a kiss from that special person. And for sure, maybe we’re overspiritualizing a song about awkwardly kissing someone at a Christmas party, but still: the Advent season is about waiting.
Advent is about remembering that Jesus did come, but also that we long for him to return again. We live in the “already but not yet.” Jesus has already come, borne our sins, and ascended to the Father, but he has not yet returned to put to death death and evil once and for all. Christmas is a reminder that we as the bride of Christ are waiting for our bridegroom.
Conversation starter:
“What do you think of the “mistletoe” tradition?”
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