Simbang Gabi 2016

Monday, December 19th, 2016

Wake up with the rooster at one of the most beautiful cultural events of the year! Join OLMC’s Filipino community at a Mass (in English) at dawn celebrating the coming of the Lord. The Mass begins at 5:30 a.m. on Friday, December 23, 2016! Enjoy traditional Filipino foods immediately following the celebration in our parish auditorium (Odyssey Theatre).

Simbáng Gabi means “night Mass” in Tagalog, In the Filipino version, the Misa de Gallo or Mass of the Rooster is celebrated before Dawn.

Similar to the Spanish tradition of lighting small oil lamps on Christmas Eve, Filipinos adorn their homes with paról, which are colorful star-shaped lanterns. This is believed to have originally been used by worshipers to light their way to church in the early morning, as well as to symbolize the Star of Bethlehem. Paróls continue to be popular yuletide decorations in the Philippines, as iconic and emblematic as Christmas trees are in the West.

After Mass, Filipinos buy and eat holiday delicacies for breakfast. Bibingka, rice cakes cooked above and below, and puto bumbong (steamed purple rice pastries, seasoned with butter, grated coconut, and brown sugar) are popular, often paired with tsokolate (hot chocolate from local cacao) or salabát (ginger tea).

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