The smell of roasted pig and brewing coffee permeates Sacred Heart Parish’s Nardiello Hall, a small Catholic church hall in the center of Bloomfield, N.J. A small band of Filipino men and women break into a traditional Filipino Christmas carol, one of them leading the rest on guitar, before segueing seamlessly into “Jingle Bell Rock.”
Certainly, this is one of the more festive ways to prepare spiritually for Christmas.
The Filipino people are celebrating the second night of Simbang-Gabi, a traditional nine-day novena of Masses, which began on Dec. 16 and ends on Dec. 24, in preparation for Christmas. The second night’s festivities, including Mass and a reception, were celebrated at Sacred Heart Parish in Bloomfield.
The novena of Masses dates back to 1587, when the celebration was introduced in Mexico and known as “Misas de Aguinaldo” (Gifts Masses). Spanish missionaries brought the tradition to the Philippines in the 17th century to encourage the faith of the Filipino people. In the Philippines, the Masses were held at 4 a.m. to accommodate the farmers who had to be on the fields at dawn during harvest season. In spite of the early hour, an entire town would be in attendance in some communities, with the local parish priest walking through town waking up everyone for Simbang-Gabi, which translates to “Dawn Mass.”
“In the Philippines, we start before dawn to celebrate the real Advent, with the coming of the light of Christ,” said Father P. Paul Aleria, an adjunct parochial vicar at Sacred Heart Parish, who is originally from the Philippines. “Like during Lent, when you have Holy Week before Easter, we have Simbang-Gabi before we celebrate Christmas.”
Father Aleria noted that there are certain differences between the celebration of Simbang-Gabi here and back in the Philippines. Besides the fact that the Masses are held at night here and dawn there, Simbang-Gabi is celebrated on a much larger scale there. The event brings an entire town together there as one parish community, instead of a smaller part of several towns here.
Regardless of the differences, Father Aleria feels that the celebration helps his ministry and the Filipino community “to invoke the spirit of what the Lord has given us.”
Ernesto Guzman, a parishioner of Sacred Heart also originally from the Philippines, feels the celebration gives the Filipino community here a strong cultural connection to its homeland, especially the younger generation. “As we go along, they will be more exposed to it, and they will be able to find their roots in that way.”
The celebration of the novena in Bloomfield started three years ago, to fill the desire for a deeper spiritual preparation for Christmas. Instead of one town hosting celebrations, several New Jersey parishes in Bloomfield, Belleville and Nutley will share hosting responsibilities. Each Mass is followed by a reception, where Filipino foods are served and a mix of Christmas carols and Filipino songs are played. The celebrations and receptions are not limited to Filipino families; all are invited to join the festivities for as many nights as they can.
Guzman hopes that the celebration of Simbang-Gabi can eventually encompass not just Filipinos here in Northern New Jersey, but “all our brothers” who celebrate Christmas. “After all, Christmas is the birth of Jesus, and we would like for each and every one of us to celebrate for Him together.”
David J. Proch is an Honors College student at Rutgers-Newark.
