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| Christmas in the Philippines |
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 Children in the Philippines get the feel of Christmas early. Not that pop Christmas tunes on the radio and decorations in department stores start cropping up by September already. That's just the commercial side of the holiday season. But a more significant Filipino tradition that brings one and all into the spirit of Christmas is the Simbáng Gabí or the Dawn Mass. Simbáng Gabí was adopted from the Spanish Misa de Gallo, which literally means mass of the rooster, to indicate it is celebrated at dawn when the rooster crows. Simbáng Gabí is celebrated during the nine consecutive days before Christmas, starting on December 16. In the 16th century, when the Philippines was a colony of Spain, the friars got permission from the Pope to hold this novena of dawn masses before Christmas. It was in keeping with the nine-day traditional festivals of Filipinos in celebrating auspicious occasions like harvest time. It was also meant to give farmers and fisher folk a chance to celebrate mass before heading for the fields or setting out to sea. Rural Filipinos were used to starting the day two hours before sunrise and in the Philippines the tropical sun rises almost regularly at six am. Church bells ring to call the faithful to Simbáng Gabí. In some provinces, local xylophone bands or even brass bands play traditional Christmas music whilst parading down the main streets. It's only three in the morning and hard to leave the warm comfort of your bed but then you remember the main reason for this early rise: Simbáng Gabí. Practically the entire town flocks to church to join in the celebration of mass, enlivened by lots of joyful hymns to keep one's spirits up. What also appeals to young and old is the route back home after mass. One can literally have breakfast on the streets where makeshift stands are littered everywhere selling warm coffee or cocoa and traditional pastries that are only prepared during the Christmas season. To culminate the nine-day Simbáng Gabí is the Midnight Mass of December 24 to welcome the birth of the Saviour. In some parishes, the panunuluyan, depicting the Mary and Joseph finding no place in the inn to stay the night, is re-enacted in town. The townsfolk follow Mary and Joseph in procession and song as they knock on the doors of pre-selected homes where they are 'refused' a place to stay. After a couple of houses, the procession finally leads to the church and the Midnight Mass of Christmas begins. In this mass the image of the infant Jesus first makes his appearance in the manger of the Belen, the Nativity Scene, beside the altar. True to the practice that started nine days earlier, after the Midnight Mass families look forward to sitting round the table for the noche buena meal, the meal of the good or holy night. Think of it as a more elaborate midnight snack, where aside from the cocoa and traditional pastries, cheese and ham and other delights are shared. After the meal, Christmas gifts are finally taken from under the Christmas tree and opened. What a delight especially for the children who started the spirit of Christmas nine days earlier. Edmundo Guzman |
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