'Simbang Gabi', an act of sacrifice & sharing
“More than being an inherited custom and a cherished tradition, the ‘Simbang Gabi’ is both an act of sacrifice and sharing which we do for the love of God and our neighbor,” a Catholic Church leader said as the faithful begins the observance of the traditional nine-day Misa de Aguinaldo Christmas masses today.
Hundreds of churchgoers flock to the Las Pinas Bamboo Organ for the first night of the Simbang Gabi. (ALI VICOY / MANILA BULLETIN FILE PHOTO)
“It is an act of sacrifice as mass goers forgo extra sleep and rest. We offer nine holy masses at the break of dawn. We pray more and fervently often in the company of our family and friends. ‘Simbang Gabi’ leads us to spend extra time for God with our family and sacrifice personal comforts for God. Attending the masses is a clear manifestation of the Filipinos’ strong faith in God,” said Balanga Bishop Ruperto C. Santos.
The bishop shared that overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) view ‘Simbang Gabi’ as “a time for sharing.”
“Simbang Gabi’ among our migrant workers is their solidarity with us here, their communion in spirit and prayers with their loved ones. When our OFWs attend the dawn masses, they know that they are one and united in prayers with their families back home for each other’s safety, peace, and general well-being. ‘Simbang Gabi’ is our OFWs’ reaching out to help one another as offertory gifts are intended for the victims of natural calamities or shared with those in need,” Santos said.
The prelate said, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines-Episcopal Commission on Migrants and Itinerant People reaches out to migrant Filipino workers at Christmastime.
“The CBCP-ECMI sends its executive secretary Rev. Fr. Resty Ogsimer to the Gulf regions to help and assist our Filipino chaplains there for the ‘Simbang Gabi’ holy masses that are held in our chaplaincies in Kuwait, in Manama and Awali, Bahrain, as well as in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Al Ain and Tas Al Khaiman in UAE and in Doha, Qatar,” Santos said.
The Church leader said migrant Filipino workers, likewise, observe the nine-day Misa de Aguinaldo in Paris and Nice in France; Vienna in Austria; Bonn, Frankfurt, and Cologne in Germany; and across Italy. “The ‘Simbang Gabi’ mirrors our strong Catholic faith, our deep religious devotion and profound love of the Holy Eucharist,” he stressed.
As in the past years, thousands of devout Catholics are expected to attend today the first of the nine-day ‘Simbang Gabi’ dawn masses, which will be held at dawn in all Catholic churches across the country and in many parts of the world.
Considered one of the oldest but well observed Christmas traditions in the Philippines, church bells will peal before the break of dawn for the duration of the ‘Simbang Gabi’ which are held at 4 a.m. and 5 a.m. with the final mass, the Misa de Gallo (rooster’s mass) on Dec. 24, Christmas Eve, traditionally held shortly before midnight.
In recent years, to accommodate the needs of the faithful on different work schedules, anticipated ‘Simbang Gabi’ masses are held starting last night at around 7 p.m. in many parishes as well as in chapels in shopping centers.
Also known as Misa de Aguinaldo (gift mass), churchgoers offer the gift of sacrifice in waking up before the break of dawn for nine consecutive days to attend the dawn masses for different intentions: in thanksgiving, as a form of worship, or for a petition. Others, in traditional Filipino belief, attend to obtain special graces upon completing the nine-day masses.
The ‘Simbang Gabi’ is an old tradition with deep roots in the country’s religious culture, dating back to 1565 when Spanish “conquistador” Miguel Lopez de Legazpi celebrated the first Feast of the Nativity.
The practice originated in Mexico when in 1587, Fray Diego de Soria, prior of the Convent of San Agustin Acolman, asked permission from the Holy Father to hold Christmas masses for the farmers who wake up very early to work.
During the 16th century, Pope Sixtus V decreed that the dawn masses should also be held in the Philippines every 16th of December. At that time, it gave the farmers a chance to hear mass before working in the fields.