Have Yourself a Pinoy Christmas
Ellen Joy Anastacio
December 2002

"Malamig ang simoy ng hangin…"

As early as September, radio stations have been playing Christmas songs. TV stations have started flashing Christmas countdowns, telling people to start buying their gifts for their loved ones. If there was ever any indication that us Filipinos have the longest unofficial Christmas season anywhere in the world, these two just might be it.

Filipinos have a rich Yuletide tradition. From the ever popular Simbang Gabi, to the Panunuluyan, the Noche Buena and caroling, us Filipinos really have a way of celebrating the holidays. Let me count the ways. :)

SIMBANG GABI

Ever since I can remember, the Simbang Gabi has always been a part of the Christmas celebrations. Before Christmas, starting December 16, hordes of determined souls wake up as early as 4 am in order to attend the traditional dawn masses that herald the official start of the Christmas season.

To make it more convenient, perhaps, anticipated dawn masses are also celebrated at around 8 pm the night before. So for those who simply can't wake up that early, they have a more restful alternative.

But of course, what can beat the early morning December chill as you walk over to your neighborhood church, followed by bibingka or perhaps puto bumbong and coffee or hot chocolate after the mass? Waking up early might be a small price to pay for the fellowship and nostalgia this particular Christmas tradition provides!

Trivia: Do you know that the first Christmas Mass ever celebrated in the Philippines happened around 200 years before Magellan even stepped foot in the country?

Sometime between the years 1280 to 1320, an Italian Franciscan monk named Brother Odoric visited the Philippines while searching for Nestorian Christian in the Far East. Upon their arrival in Pangasinan, they met hostile natives. But with prayers and a black crucifix, he walked onto the island and gained the confidence of the natives, who realized that Brother Odoric was not out to harm them.

He showed the natives pictures of Mary, Joseph and the Child Jesus. At the coast, the Italians affixed the black crucifix, and beside it, a Christmas tree. With that, he celebrated the first Christmas mass in the Philippines.

CHRISTMAS IN THE AIR

Despite the economic challenges, Christmas in the Philippines is as bright and colorful as ever. Houses are adorned with multi-colored twinkling Christmas lights. Inside, Christmas trees with lights, tinsel, and various decorations grace the Filipino homes as early as October and November.

Parols, or star lanterns, are made of bamboo sticks covered with brightly colored paper or cellophane. Some are even made of giant capiz shells and filled with lights inside. These are then hung outside windows and doorways to represent the Star of Bethlehem. The University of the Philippines even has a Lantern Parade on the last day before the Christmas break featuring very creatively decorated lanterns!

Although generally more austere, some homes go all out in their decorations. This results in some fantastic looking houses that people visit, particularly in more upscale portions of the metropolis. Meanwhile, the malls and roads are lit just as brightly as well. Huge candy canes, Santa Clauses, and the like, reflecting strong Western influences, are displayed prominently along major avenues and malls.

SONGS, DANCES, ATBP.

During Christmas, several plays are acted out by Filipinos to commemorate the birth of Jesus Christ.

Pastores. These are plays performed by young men, women, and children. They go from village to village to present little plays based on the life of Jesus where they sing, dance, and wear costumes.

Panunuluyan. This reenacts Mary and Joseph's desperate search for an inn at Bethlehem where Mary could give birth to the child Jesus. The procession, with two floats carrying the images of Joseph and Mary, begins and ends at the town church. While Joseph carries a lily-topped staff, Mary has a pillow tied to her stomach while wearing her traditional blue-and-white garment. They go around the village or barangay singing a request for lodgings, while they are turned away by the homeowners. When the procession returns to church before midnight, the couple is received by the churchgoers to herald the birth of Christ.

Caroling. In December, little children traditionally go around town with their homemade instruments and tiny voices, singing Christmas carols like Sa maybahay.., Pasko na Naman, etc., to be given coins prepared especially for the carolers.

CHRISTMAS DAY

While December 25 is probably one of the most awaited days in the whole calendar, Christmas Eve could probably rank as the second. After the midnight mass, families come home to partake in the Noche Buena, with the hams, cheese, ensaimadas, and various sweets. Gifts are exchanged between family members and friends, while children eagerly anticipate opening their gifts from Santa Claus.

Christmas is really a time for commemorating Jesus' birth, and is a time for being with one's family. Reunions are usually held on the 25th at grandparents' houses where traditional Christmas fare like castanas, Majestic ham, queso de bola, ensaimada, bibingka, suman, puto bumbong, fruits, and chocolates are served and heartily eaten by everyone. Kids gather around their aunts, uncles, ninongs, ninangs, lolos, and lolas to get their Aguinaldo, or small cash gifts.

At the end of the day, everyone goes home full, gift-laden (if you're young), cash-strapped (if you're not too young!), and happy, because of the joy that is the Filipino Christmas.


Sources:
The Roots of Christmas Tradition by Ambeth Ocampo
Pinoy Christmas is Worth Coming Home For by Doreen G. Fernandez
Philippines: Maligayang Pasko
The Jeepney E-Newsletter Issue Issue 28.0

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