Christmas Greetings and Simbang Gabi 2014 - Days 7, 8 and 9

Before everything else... MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE! Hope you enjoyed your Christmas and while we're still at it, keep enjoying the holidays. Whatever you may have done and will be doing, I hope you all enjoy these days of the most wonderful time of the year. Keep the Christmas spirit alive everyone. :)

Now with this post, I will finally go on with the last days of the Misa de Gallo. With the last three days down, we finish another year's edition of the nine days of prayer and attending mass preparing for Christmas. Such a blessing to complete the nine days of Simbang Gabi...

Day 7 - Santissimo Rosario Parish, UST

Went back to the dawn mass after two days of not attending. For the seventh day, I returned (again) to UST. The gospel of the day focused on Mary's song, The Magnificat. The way the priest presided over this mass was very good. In his homily, he placed emphasis on preparing for Christ's coming and looking to Mary as good example for us. He emphasized also on Christmas as a time of remembering when Christ was born and remembering that he will come again in the future. During the mass, I met some friends from the UST Campus Ministry, where I usually hang out. After the mass, I made a quick visit to Sto. Domingo Church which is where I'd visit for the next day of the dawn masses.

Day 8 - Santo Domingo Church, Quezon Ave., QC

For this Simbang Gabi, I woke up pretty late (almost 4 AM) so I was in a hurry to get myself ready for the morning mass which was going to start at 4:30 AM. For Day 8, I went to Sto. Domingo Church. It's been a long time since I've attended a Simbang Gabi here. Last time I did was in 2009. Back then, the mass was held in English, but today the masses are officiated in Filipino. Like before, the crowds were huge, as it is for Simbang Gabi and this church has one of the biggest attendances for it that I've seen. Anyways, when I got to the church, the mass was about to begin. Good thing I wasn't late. The gospel of the day focused on the birth of St. John the Baptist. The priest in his homily preached about overcoming bitterness and what bad things it can do. During this Simbang Gabi, I know what some people mean when they say some aren't paying attention to the mass. Not to put them down, but some people were making conversations while the mass was ongoing. It's good to hang out with friends, even for church but there's a time and place for everything and mass is not a time for kwentuhan. They can always do that and hang out after the mass and besides, they can talk to each other in social media. Well, despite the irreverence of some, good thing many also paid attention to the mass. The setting overall was amazing with the altar decorated with Christmas ornaments and the choir, accompanied by the pipe organ, singing carols. All that for sure says it's Christmas. (^_^)

Day 9 - Santissimo Rosario Parish, UST

Originally, I had the thought of going to two masses for the final day. First was the anticipated mass and for that, I thought of going to SM Megamall for it since it's a great setting but heavy traffic forced me not to go through with the plan. Anyways, in spite of that, it's OK and guess its best that I only attend the dawn mass. For the final day, I was with ninang whom that morning since she wanted to go to Simbang Gabi. UST is where we were heading for the mass. I've said it already, but again, of all places for the dawn mass, UST's my fave place because it's a great setting for the mass (the best IMO) and its accessible, not to mention it's my school. For me, no Simbang Gabi would be complete without attending a mass in UST (this year alone, I had 4 out of 9 there). Only drawback though is that the mass is early, at about 4 AM and its far. For the last day, former UST rector Fr. Rolando de la Rosa, OP presided over and gave a great homily for the mass. In his homily, he talked about the importance of simplifying life and that we have to take away things that would complicate our lives. Noticeably enough at all the masses I went to, all the priests in their homilies made people laugh during at least one point, even a little bit. It was raining as the mass went on (and for a good part of Christmas eve). Good thing it wasn't held in the open field. After the mass, I met up with some friends again from the Campus Ministry. With this day, Simbang Gabi 2014 ends.

Christmas Eve Mass - Daniel Comboni Seminary, Roosevelt Ave., QC

As it has been in the previous years, I've attended the Christmas eve mass at the Daniel Comboni Seminary. The place is under the Comboni Missionaries of the Heart of Jesus or simply the Comboni Missionaries. There's a bond that our family has with the missionaries; before, we had a priest friend among the missionaries (Fr. Rocco, an Italian) who is now assigned to another country, we support some of their projects and personally, I had a spiritual adviser by the name of Fr. Victor who is now a missionary to Central America. Now, unlike the days of the Simbang Gabi where I went to grander settings (like UST, Sto. Domingo, SM Megamall, etc...), this mass was simple. While it wasn't as grand as the previous masses I went to, it still captured the joy of Christmas. Of course, the readings focused on the Birth of Christ. In his homily, the presider told the congregation to become missionaries proclaiming the joy of Christmas to other people. After hearing homilies where the priests made people laugh, the presider this time didn't but still, its a good homily. After the mass, there was a veneration of the Child Jesus in the manger. Not wanting to be late, I went ahead of ninang and ninong who got to the mass later than I did. All in all, a great way to mark Christmas and to remember why we celebrate this season. :)

After attending the nine days of the Simbang Gabi plus the Mass of Christmas Eve, there's this sense of fulfillment. For sure, I'll be attending this again next year. I admit, I'm starting to miss the experience but it's great that I was able to go and celebrate Christmas in such a meaningful way. Hope everyone who attended the nine days will get blessed as well and keep this tradition alive, since its one of the best Christmas traditions here in the country. :)

As for Christmas day, what I did was we visited our relatives and went to Christmas parties. All in all, yesterday was an awesome day, being with my relatives that I see only at this time of the year. The food yesterday was great too by the way. :)

To end this post, again, Merry Christmas to you all! May you have blessed, happy days ahead and also, a happy new year to all of you! o(^o^)o