Christmastime

We have the longest Christmas season in the world, starting in the ‘ber months, from September to December, and ending in January.

We, Christians, celebrate December 25 as the birthday of Jesus Christ. Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, all of whom were Christ’s disciples, wrote accounts of Jesus’ times and their works forms part of the New Testament which forms part of the Bible. Their works are known as the gospel, thus: “The Gospel according to Matthew”, etc. None of them, by the way, actually specified that Jesus was born on December 25.

The gospel tells us that Jesus was born in a manger (because there was no room for Mary and Joseph at the inn) while shepherds watched over their flocks at night. Some critics opine that Jesus must not have been born on December 25 because that’s during winter time and that during winter, shepherds don’t go outdoors to watch their flock. They said Jesus must have been born around October, before the onset of winter.

Whatever, it’s the thought that counts, I suppose. And Filipinos start celebrating Christmas in September anyway.

Everybody, I suppose, looks forward to Christmas and the holidays that ensues. Workers get an additional salary (called as 13th month pay) in December; some, like bankers, even get more. Students enjoy a two-week break from classes. There are Christmas parties everywhere --in offices, schools, homes, tennis clubs, golf clubs, social clubs, civic clubs, professional clubs; you name it, they’ll have their party.

There will be merrymaking and overeating and many will gain five to 10 pounds during the Christmas holidays. Do you know that the month with the highest incidence for strokes and heart attacks is in January? This is brought about by overeating those cholesterol-laden food in all those December feasts and parties.

In the United States and other Western countries, they only light up their Christmas trees in their homes on Christmas Eve, that is, on December 24. They only go caroling on Christmas Eve.

In ours, those TV news programs have been having a countdown how many days left to go before Christmas since three months ago. Department stores and malls have been selling Christmas decors and airing those Christmas songs since then. And those “carolers” have been doing it for months already.

Officially, though, the Christmas season in our country starts with the Misa de Gallo or the Dawn Mass or the Simbang Gabi, as the Tagalogs call it, that starts at 4 a.m. every day from December 16 to December 24. Masses are also held in the evening of December 24 and on Christmas Day itself (but not at dawn anymore). I’m talking here about the Roman Catholic Church practices of which about 85% of us Filipinos are members.

The mainstream Protestant Christians like the Baptists, Methodists, Lutherans, Presbyterians, Evangelicals, and Pentecostals, among others, also celebrate Christmas. In fact, they take the Biblical narration of Christ’s birth quite faithfully and observe it with church services on Christmas Eve.

Music plays a great part on mainstream Protestant Christians’ Christmas celebration with church choirs singing Handel’s “Messiah” or those John Peterson cantatas. I miss those great cantatas, like “Love Transcending”, that tells of the story of Christ’s birth in songs, with some narration in between.

But the ones who enjoy Christmas most are the kids. Children look forward to receive gifts of clothes, toys, edibles, gift-checks, or money from their parents, godparents, uncles, aunts, grandparents and other relatives. Since Filipinos have extended families, the list of gift-givers is quite long.

Let’s forget politics in the meantime and let’s enjoy this Christmas with our families and loved ones. And let’s not forget the less fortunate ones this season. We don’t even have to look far; we have lots of them among our relatives.

Atty. Alfredo J. Sipalay