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There are a couple of answers. Take your pick.
Mistletoe is a symbol for peace and joy. The idea originated in the ancient times of the Druids: whenever enemies met under the mistletoe in the forest, they had to lay down their arms and observe a truce until the next day. From this comes the custom of hanging a ball of mistletoe from the ceiling and exchanging kisses under it as a sign of friendship and goodwill.
In the 18th Century, the exchanging of kisses between a man and a woman was adopted as a promise to marry. At Christmas a young lady standing under a ball of mistletoe cannot refuse to be kissed. The kiss could mean deep romance, lasting friendship and goodwill. It was believed that if the girl remained unkissed, she cannot expect to marry the following year.
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The Norse myth that comes to mind is that of the resurrection of Balder, the god of the summer sun. The myth states that Balder had a dream in which he dies. His mother Frigga, the goddess of beauty and love, was rather alarmed by this. Frigga went to all of the elements (air, fire, water, and earth) and asked that they spare her son. When she was satisfied that she had secured their cooperation in this matter, she informed Balder that he would live forever.
Balder had one enemy, though. Loki, the god of evil, discovered one plant that Frigga had overlooked. That plant was Mistletoe. Loki fashioned an arrow made from the branch of the Mistletoe, and dipped it in poison. He then tricked Balder’s blind brother, Hoder, into firing it and killing Balder. Each of the elements tried to bring Balder back to life, but none were successful save for his mother, Frigga. It is said that her tears turned into the berries from the Mistletoe, and when they rained upon Balder they brought him back to life.
In her joy at Balder’s resurrection, she reversed the poisonous reputation of the Mistletoe and kissed everyone who walked beneath the tree on which it grew. She also issued a decree that anyone passing under the Mistletoe must kiss, and therefore no harm would come to them.
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Just remember -
Mistletoe is poisonous!
Mistletoe contains an alkaloid, tyramine, which has been successfully used as a vasopressor (to elevate blood pressure). In Ellingwood's American Materia Medica (1919), it appears that extracts of mistletoe were used to elevate blood pressure during recovery from typhoid fever and reduce blood pressure for hypertensives.
Mistletoe berries contain toxic amines and proteins which cause gastroenteritis when ingested, unpleasant and often fatal. One of the glycoproteins found in mistletoe is classified as a lectin. Lectins can cause cells to agglutinate (adhere) or undergo mitosis and transformation. Uncontrolled lectin activity in the body is lethal, the person dying from massive antigen-antibody reaction.
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