Legend has it that the first Christmas celebrated in the Philippines took place almost 200 years even before Ferdinand Magellan set foot on the islands. In the town of Bolinao in Pangasinan, in the year 1324, Odoric of Pordenone, a Franciscan missionary, was said to have taken shelter on the shores of this part of the archipelago. It was about Christmastime, the story goes, and Odoric was faced by “hostile natives” who did not take their appearance. I think they were not hostile, though. Surprise or puzzled are more apt terms to describe them. Maybe. The European guests uttered their prayers and in an instant the locals had a change of heart and treated the Italian guest and his company on a friendlier terms. Odoric then celebrated the first Christmas mass in the archipelago. A marker was placed outside the St. James the Great Parish Church in Bolinao.
In 1565, Miguel Lopez de Legazpi reached what is now the Philippines and he initially established the first Spanish settlement in Cebu, scouring the nearby islands to search for food and exact tributes in the name of the Spanish king. In Cebu, they have had a hard time securing provisions. They were so deficient with supplies that Christmas of 1565 was sad and desperate affair. While relations in Mexico enjoyed sumptuous luncheons amidst merriment, Legazpi and his troops, on the other hand, endured their wretched situation an ocean away, amidst native resistance. They would have to compete with rats for the pittance of corn and herbs that was rationed for their consumption.
This first Christmas celebration was a stark contrast to how the Spanish and the natives would celebrate the birth of Christ in the years to come. As Spanish rule was firmly established, Christmas became a significant part of the religious activities zealously introduced to the natives as part of the evangelical missions of the Spanish preachers.
October through January were months of harvests and folks were up earlier to start their day in the field. December 16 through January 6 were dates associated with Christmas festivities. December 16 is the start of the dawn masses or misa de gallo Spanish, simbang gabi ni Tagalog, and misa dulom in Hiligaynon. For nine mornings until Christmas eve, the Catholic faithfuls would rise at 3 and head to the church for the 4am mass. The celebrations culminate on December 24 with the midnight mass, called Misa de Aguinaldo, officiated at 12 midnight of the 25th to welcome the birth of Christ.
The misa de gallo is meant as a mass of thanksgiving for a fruitful harvest and to pray for bounty in the coming year. Some say it is a form of accommodation for the farmers who wanted to be in the field at the crack of dawn. Others, however, believed that the dawn mass is a form of sacrifice. Regardless, the tradition of misa de gallo has become a Christmas tradition in the Philippines.
The early morning chilly wind is best tempered by freshly steamed kakanin (sweet native finger foods) sold at bamboo stalls outside the church. Puto bumbong, suman and bibingka are perennial favorite fares, partnered by salabat and tsokolate as the ideal choices for hot drinks.
Attending the Misa de Aguinaldo is a family affair, after which everyone returns home where a feast awaits on the dinner table. The Noche Buena, translated as night of goodness, is the traditional meal shared by the family after the midnight mass. Families usually share all-time favorite Christmas staples, like ham, lumpia, roast chicken, and quezo de bola. The more well-to-do could have lechon (roasted suckling pig), especially if the noche Buena serves as a family reunion. According to food historian Doreen G. Fernandez, it is the most important meal of the year, “not only hallowed by the birth of Christ, by Christian tradition and family customs, but by life forces earlier than anyone remembers, by stirrings of the Filipino ethos.”
While the first Christmas in the Philippines was a grim and gloomy affair, Filipinos today have embraced well this European introduce and take it as a time to gather together, give thanks and enjoy the blessings on the dinner table.
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