Traditionally, Christmas Day is ushered by the nine-day dawn masses that known as the Misa de Gallo (Rooster's Mass) in the traditional Spanish, and these masses are also more popularly known in Filipino as Simbang Gabi, or "Night Mass". The Simbang Gabi is the most important Filipino Christmas tradition.
These nine dawn Masses are also considered as novena by catholic and aglipayan faithfuls. This practice of performing nine days of private or public devotion to obtain special graces. In some parishes, the Simbang gabi begins as early as four in the morning. Going to mass this early for nine consecutive days is meant to show the churchgoer's devotion to his faith and heighten anticipation for the Nativity of the Lord. In traditional Filipino belief, however, completing the novena is also supposed to mean that God would grant the devotee's special wish or favor.
After hearing Mass, Filipino families partake of traditional Philippine Christmas delicacies, either during breakfast at home or immediately outside the church, where they are sold. Vendors offer a wealth of native delicacies, including bibingka or rice flour and egg based cake, cooked using coals on top and under, puto bumbong or purple sticky rice delicacy which is steamed in bamboo tubes, with brown sugar and coconut shavings as condiments, salabat or hot ginger tea and tsokolate or what we called thick Spanish cocoa.
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