By Dr. Ma. Concepcion R. Lagos
One of my colleagues proclaimed loudly years ago that she and her family were going to Hong Kong to spend post-Christmas until the New Year. They probably assumed that, since this city-state had been managed by the British for a hundred years ending only in 1997, its New Year’s Eve was going to be as exuberantly celebrated as that of the Western world. When she got back to work, it was quite amusing to hear her humbly confess: It was the most boring festivity ever! Turns out, the Chinese tend to play down their celebration of the “Christian” New Year as they prepare themselves for Kung Hei Fat Choi. Apparently, a century was not enough for Hong Kong to assimilate the same level of ‘seasonal hype’ as that of most Western societies. One would expect more from a civilization that lit the world’s first firecrackers.
This friend admitted, The best place for the holidays is still the Philippines. This is a phrase most Filipinos and even a handful of foreigners swear by. This November, The Guardian, a British-based mass media company, took notice of the country’s consistently advanced and prolonged observance of the season amidst national disasters and a global pandemic.
It is indeed worth pondering: What makes Christmas in the Philippines unique? Why is the Philippines the best place to celebrate the holidays?
The Simbang Gabi tradition
We know that Christmas was introduced by the Spanish through Christianity. However, our Simbang Gabi—Misa de Gallo in Spanish (which in some countries refers to the Christmas Eve Mass alone)—is a one-of-a-kind custom that Filipinos have religiously followed to this day. In fact, the nine-day dawn masses we call Simbang Gabi is not practiced in Spain and is extremely rare in South America. It is, however, practiced here across generations—from grandparents to millennials—on account of the belief that one’s wish shall be granted upon completion of the consecutive vigils. Such is the case even if its efficacy is not officially endorsed by either the Vatican or the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP).
Another reason behind the continued pilgrimage to Churches of both devout and lukewarm Catholics for nine days before Christmas is the convenient schedule changes that have been made through the years. Less than half a century ago, masses were held only in the wee hours of the morning. Now, they take place in the early evening as anticipated masses to accommodate those unable to wake up early. The Liturgy of the Eucharist has become more convenient and accessible for a larger number of churchgoers since the online streaming and recorded masses in one’s preferred parish or by one’s favorite priest have been a norm for more than half a year now. Mass schedule changes and the shift to virtual mediums will easily become key to keeping and perpetuating the simbang gabi as an authentically religious Pinoy tradition. Will we expect changes in this tradition in the wake of the current health situation?
A time to cut back
Christmas celebrations around the world have been tantamount to material extravagance and overt consumerism. The Philippines is no exception. As the year’s first “–ber month” emerge, distinctive sights and sounds signal the beginning of the season despite the tropic climate: Santa Claus designs, reindeers, snow man figures, glazed bushy pine trees, ‘White Christmas’ songs and winter wonderland themes in homes and public places. Seasonal discounts and 12.12 banners from online purchasing platforms reflect the culture of expenditure that has become part and parcel of the times.
It is no doubt, however, that extreme cutbacks in this season’s spending sprees will ensue. A survey conducted among households with a member earning below Php9,500 a month showed that 78.10% of them lost their jobs on account of the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) implemented last March. Nonetheless, even for those whose finances have become limited, the need (or pressure?) to spend, to give, and to feast a little has almost become a norm.
A Filipino décor item that can set you back by a five-digit amount but can also be crafted with recycled materials is the parol (in Spanish, farol). This ornamental lantern has gained even more popularity through a Disney animated short film that featured a typical barrio surrounded by these star-lit lanterns. Aside from the parol, various staple elements for the season have been rehashed to minimize the costs usually associated with them. For most parents who raised teenagers during the ‘80s, a Noche Buena was not complete without a homemade Christmas ham usually cured months earlier to achieve the expected tenderness and sweetness. Another traditional must-have was the choicest queso de bola ordered in advance from the local dairy/chef. Now, reasonably priced ready-to-eat hams and spherical crimson-coated cheeses have become common grocery items.
Judging from our home displays to the food we eat and the gifts we give, we nonetheless celebrate merrily like there is no tomorrow. Amidst domestic troubles and global threats, Philippine society, through time, has found a way to thrive through the season’s customs so that everyone in all walks of life are able to revel in the festivities one way or another.
Further, even after the 25th of December, just when we think our eyes have seen enough hues of reds and greens and our palates have consumed enough gastronomical delights, we then begin to sniff in the air traces of gunpowder and are assailed by initially faint but slowly turning frequent explosives.
Firecrackers and fireworks inherited from the Chinese are the icing on the cake of a truly Filipino Christmas season. It has been observed as of recent though, that fireworks and firecrackers have become less flashy and deadly. President Duterte’s Executive Order 28 signed in December 2017 limited the use of firecrackers. This directive may have resulted in a significant reduction in fireworks-related injuries that year. Despite the annual casualties reported in the news caused by the improper handling of firecrackers, there is just no stopping these pyrotechnic displays and blasting crackers whether in a large or subdued scale.
Confluence of traditions
It is not hard to assume that these varied features of a typical Filipino Christmas uniquely exemplify the assimilation of a triad of influences. It is quite comparable to the three Magi who bequeathed their gifts to the infant Jesus. These “kings” from which the spectacle of Christmas in the Philippines comes, comprise these major forces that have shaped our holiday traditions and customs: the religious, from Spain; the materialistic, from the Americans; and the explosive, from the Chinese. Such inheritances that we have refined to a tee are encompassed as well in various Filipinized cuisines and cooking practices, such as the paella with raisins, lechon turned into lechon paksiw the next day, embutido with hotdog, kinilaw na kambing, puto bumbong—one page is insufficient to list all these distinct dishes created nowhere but in the Philippines or by Filipinos wherever they live. Certainly these meals would not have evolved if it were not for the confluence of flavors and food preparation practices inherited from the Spanish, Americans, and the Chinese honed close to perfection through our own ingredients and indigenous cooking styles.
Moreover, such recipes are treated by many as their family’s best-kept secrets, meant to be passed only to their next of kin. Indeed, food and family are imperative components to any Filipino gathering, more so during the Christmas holidays. Christmas in the Philippines is meant to be spent with those one considers to be family—whether of kin or not. Even for overseas workers, creative promotional materials feed their longing to “connect” or make their presence felt by relatives back home, either virtually or by proxy. The latter has been made possible through channels of financial remittances or digital apps and websites through which presents from food to flowers are sent home.
So, what makes Christmas in the Philippines unique? It is all these: the religious, temporal, blazing, gastronomic, and at the heart of it all, akin to a Pinoy belen, spending Christmas in the midst of one’s family. There is unquestionably no other place in the world other than the Philippines where we savor a multi-sensorial and extended experience.#
Sources:
Ranada, Pia. October 31, 2018. Duterte orders stricter regulation of fireworks. Accessed December 4, 2020. https://www.rappler.com/nation/duterte-orders-stricter-fireworks-regulation-october-2018
Ratcliffe, Rebecca and Carmela Fonbuena. November 18, 2002. Philippine tradition of ‘long Christmas survives Covid and typhoons. Accessed December 4, 2020. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/nov/18/philippine-tradition-of-long-christmas-survives-covid-and-typhoons.
Sanchez, Martha Jean. May 4, 2020. Effect of ECQ on jobs due to coronavirus COVID-19 Philippines 2020, by income. Accessed December 4, 2020. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1114518/philippines-effect-of-ecq-on-jobs-due-to-coronavirus-covid-19-by-income/
Ma. Concepcion R. Lagos has been with the Asia-Pacific Studies Department for more than 15 years. She earned her PhD in Philippine Studies from the University of the Philippines, Diliman last 2018. Among her research interests are Southeast Asian, East Asian, and Australian Studies and local heritage industries such as Marikina’s footwear industry. The original version of this article was written years ago for a postgraduate essay paper, which she aptly modified to account for the drastic changes that have taken place because of the pandemic.
Banner photo by Ben White on Unsplash.
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