For many of the 41 per cent of Lower Mainland residents who identify as Christian, Christmas Day marks the end of one journey 鈥� the Advent journey 鈥� and marks the beginning of another: the Christmas season.听
Neither of those seasons have much to do with trees, presents, or eggnog, though most Christians happily incorporate these elements into their celebrations.
鈥淧eople think they know what Christmas is about, but they don鈥檛 really know,鈥� says Father Fernando Mignone, a Catholic priest and chaplain at Simon Fraser University.听
You could think of Advent as those last few weeks of pregnancy before a long-awaited child is born. The Christmas season, which runs from Christmas day until Jan. 8, is like those first few days after a new baby is born; time seems to be suspended and each day brings a new discovery (and challenge).
The moment when that hopeful anticipation meets joyful welcome is Christmas Day.
Catholics, Anglicans and Lutherans hold a mass on Christmas Eve that marks that precise moment when waiting and receiving meet.
Pope Sixtus III started celebrating a midnight mass on Christmas Eve at the Roman basilica of St. Mary Major sometime around the year 430. It is believed he got the idea from Christians in Jerusalem, who would gather for mass in Bethlehem at midnight and proceed to Jerusalem by torchlight, where they would have another celebration.
Why midnight?
Mignone says most of what is known about the nativity comes from the gospels of Matthew and Luke.
鈥淥ur Lord seems to have been born at night. When we meditate on the scene of the shepherds, they watched their sheep at night,鈥� Mignone says.
The mention of the shepherds is a big deal. Mignone says at that time shepherds were 鈥渢he lowest rung in terms of employment.鈥�
Some scholars say shepherds in biblical times were considered dirty, nomadic, thieves. Still, they are the first to get the news about the new baby.
Midnight mass seems to be intended to recall that mystery: A king is born and the first people to hear about it and show up to pay homage are the social outcasts.
On a practical level, midnight mass is much like any other mass you might have attended or seen on television: three Bible passages are read, the priest gives a homily or sermon, and bread and wine are blessed, or consecrated for communion.
Because it is a special night, there are a couple of extra elements: incense, for example, which symbolizes the prayers and thoughts of the congregation rising to heaven, is used at several points during the mass.
In some churches the mass begins with the priest carrying in a figure of the baby Jesus to place in the manger of the nativity scene. At the end of the mass, the priest and congregants will usually go up to the nativity scene and take a few moments to quietly contemplate the setting (or they鈥檒l take nativity scene selfies).
Now what if you are not a churchgoer or particularly religious but are curious to check out a midnight mass? Maybe you鈥檝e been asked to accompany a friend or relative. Is there any point in going?
鈥淭here is always a point in going to any mass, Christmas or otherwise,鈥� says Mignone. Whether you are spiritual or not, the mass is so rich that there is always something to connect with and something to learn, according to Mignone.
鈥淭he beauty of it from a cultural point of view [is that] people will learn more about Christmas because the image is so distorted with Santa and reindeer,鈥� he says.
He also suggests taking time before the big day to pray on your own, according to your own faith tradition or practice, and reading the first two chapters of the gospels of Matthew and Luke. Think of it as reading the book before seeing the movie.
Above all, he says, 鈥済o with an open mind. Know there are many graces and it鈥檚 a magical night as many of our carols imply.鈥�
So what do you need to know if you do decide to attend a midnight mass for the first time? If you attend a Catholic mass you need to know that only baptized Catholics who are in a 鈥渟tate of grace鈥� (i.e. they actually live what they believe and have been to confession recently) are supposed to receive communion.
Non-Catholics are welcome to receive a blessing. Just go up in the communion line with everyone else but fold your arms across your chest and bow your head so the priest knows you want a blessing.
At an Anglican mass, all baptized Christians are welcome to receive communion. In Vancouver, many Anglican churches have an 鈥渙pen table鈥� policy and welcome everyone to receive communion. The bulletin or program handed out at the beginning of the mass should explain the church鈥檚 policy about who is welcome to receive communion.
The most important thing to know about midnight mass is that it does not always happen at midnight. There is no church law stating that it must be celebrated at midnight. In fact, the Vatican starts its 鈥渕idnight mass鈥� at 10 p.m. local time.
In Vancouver, both the Catholic and Anglican cathedrals celebrate midnight mass just before midnight. Holy Rosary Cathedral鈥檚 service starts at 11:55 p.m., while Christ Church Cathedral鈥檚 is at 11:00pm. Churches across the city celebrate some time between 10 p.m. and midnight. Any mass earlier than that is known as a Christmas Eve mass.
At Holy Rosary Cathedral doors will be open by 10:55 p.m. so congregants can enjoy an hour of Christmas music. Archbishop J. Michael Miller will preside and preach at the mass that follows.
Over at Christ Church Cathedral, a carol service will be held at 4 p.m. on Christmas Eve, with doors open at 3 p.m. In the evening, two night masses will be celebrated: one at 8 p.m. and one at 11 p.m. Bishop Melissa Skelton will preside at both while Cathedral Dean Peter Elliott will preach.
Don鈥檛 worry about feeling听 out of place. Father Stanley Galvon, the rector of Holy Rosary Cathedral says: 鈥淭he shepherds were the first to hear the announcement. 鈥� If the shepherds were there, then truly all are welcome.鈥�
鈥� Want to check out a midnight mass this Christmas? The Catholic Archdiocese of 麻豆传媒映画has a听听to search for a mass by time and language. The Anglican Diocese of New Westminster鈥檚 听page can help you find a church close to you and get mass times.听
