How did this
phrase become part of the wedding ceremony?
Lots of folk lore surrounds THE KISS.
Some experts
date it back to classical Greece and the tendency of men to want to make sure
that the ladies were not drinking wine before the ceremony. A kiss on the lips helped to reassure the
groom that his wife to be was not wanton.
More likely
the tradition rose out of the medieval ceremonies in which the presiding
clergyman would give a symbolic kiss to the groom at the end of the marriage
ceremony to indicate the solemnity of the ceremony just completed. Then the groom would kiss his bride to seal
the marriage contract. The priest and
the groom would then kiss the attendants and they would all move on to the guests
who were each kissed in turn. This was
likely the source of all the kissing and hugging that goes on at weddings
today.
Many western
European cultures believed it was lucky for a bride to see a chimney sweep on
her way to church - especially if the sweep stopped to wish her well. If he chose to kiss the bride's check, she
was guaranteed a happy life. To insure a
happy life, many sweeps found themselves with lucrative part time jobs -
kissing new brides.
We know that
in the Middle Ages, many people were illiterate unable to sign their names and
instead put an X in its place. No legal
documents were considered legal without that X.
To show good faith, they would kiss the X in the same way they kissed
the Bible when taking an oath. With
time, the X became the symbol of the kiss.
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