CELEBRATING THE TRADITION OF MIDNIGHT MASS

PITTSBURGH – “What time is your midnight Mass?”

It seems like a silly question, but in the diocese of Pittsburgh and many other Catholic dioceses, it is a reflection of changing times in the Church. Early in church history, there were no vigil Masses either at Christmas or at Easter. While worshippers could gather before midnight, the celebration of Mass could not begin until 12:01 a.m. on Easter Sunday or on Christmas morning. This tradition at Christmas continues to the present day with midnight Mass.

More than 30 parishes in the Diocese of Pittsburgh continue the tradition of Mass at Midnight on Christmas Eve. The list of parishes and locations is at the end of the article.

“Many parishes have moved the Mass to an earlier time in the evening, because church regulations have allowed earlier celebrations and the addition of vigil, or anticipatory Masses,” said Father Lawrence DiNardo, Vicar for Canonical Services, and pastor, Holy Wisdom Parish on the North Side. ‘I still hold the Mass at midnight and it has the largest attendance of my Christmas Masses.”

“In the diocese, there was a major shift to earlier Masses in the Jubilee Year of 1999, when Archbishop Wuerl, at the time Bishop of Pittsburgh, invited parishes to join in solidarity with him in celebrating Mass together. Because the Mass at St. Paul Cathedral was at10 p.m., all the parishes celebrated at 10,” said Father Edward Yuhas, Director for Worship. “If the Mass is held at an earlier evening hour than midnight, it is simply referred to as Mass at night. The Midnight prayers would be used for this Mass if the church had already held another Mass earlier in the day called the Vigil Mass. The Ordo provides four specific selections for scripture readings and prayers for these Christmas Masses: Vigil Mass, Midnight (or Mass at night) Mass at Dawn, and Mass during the day. The scripture readings, however, are interchangeable and may be varied according to the pastoral needs of each celebration.”

He went on to say a majority of parishes[more than 80 percent] found the earlier time was more convenient and in many cases, they had increased attendance. But a survey of the 35 responding parishes that continue to hold Mass at midnight reveals strong support of the old tradition in many of the replies we received.

“There is a long standing tradition at Good Samaritan Parish of having Midnight Mass as evidenced by the large number of people who attend. This will be my first Christmas at Good Samaritan. Furthermore, I have never attended nor celebrated Midnight Mass at midnight. So I am extremely excited to be the celebrant for our Midnight Mass.”
— Father Terrence O’Connor, Good Samaritan (also pastor, St. John the Baptist, Baden)

“Midnight Mass has been a tradition in our church for a number of years and people come from all over to celebrate. Mass is very festive and many of the visitors comment how glad they are that they attended.”
— Father Carmen D’Amico, St. Benedict the Moor

“We seek to follow tradition in all things at our parish. It is a well received and well attended service much beloved by our people.”
— Father Regis Farmer, St Catherine of Sweden, Wildwood

“The people who come to Midnight Mass are there because they want to be there and expect a grand celebration. And that’s what I always hope to share with them. If it were up to me, and I could do it, I would only celebrate Midnight Mass at Christmas!”
— Father Jim Gretz, Holy Family, New Brighton

“Here we keep the custom and it is working out well. Prior to the Midnight Mass the choir sings in Polish and English. Our parish is canonically a Polish Parish: We shall continue the custom of a Midnight mass as it is a reminder in the darkest moment that Christ the light of the world has come to fill us with hope. “
— Father Edward S. Litavec, St. Mary Czestochowa, McKeesport

“In our pragmatic and hectic world, Midnight mass may seem an archaic and impractical tradition. However, for many Catholics the Midnight Mass is a spiritual and emotional tie to the wonders of familial love, hope and comfort. For that reason, it seems like a tradition worth keeping.”
— Father Robert Connolly, Our Lady of Lourdes, Burgettstown

“Even though we have not advertised our midnight Mass, a number of visitors, unrelated to the members of our parish have called days in advance and endlessly on Christmas Eve to reassure themselves on our keeping that Mass.”
— Father Matthew Tosello, St. Christopher, Prospect

“We are still celebrating Midnight Mass at St. Valentine Parish due to the large attendance, approximately 700-800. I suspect we have that many because other parishes do not have this Mass on their schedule.
— Father Alan E. Morris, Administrator, St Valentine, Bethel Park

“So many of our families gather to spend Christmas Eve together with all the special foods, and then head for Midnight Mass to be fed even more.”
— Father John Oesterle, Holy Redeemer, Ellwood City

“People really enjoy making the spiritual sacrifice to stay up until midnight to celebrate this traditional rite of the Church. There is a certain stillness that characterizes that hour and makes it conducive to meditating upon the mystery of Christmas. At Saint Joseph’s every age group is represented at the Mass and the church is always filled to overflowing.”
— Father Michael Caridi, St Joseph, Coraopolis

“Midnight Mass, steeped in our ethnic tradition, is and remains the highlight of our Christmas celebration. The parishioners and many visitors await the once a year midnight Mass to fulfill their longing to celebrate the Mass as our ancestors had always don and still do in Poland.
— Father Joseph Swierczynski, Immaculate Heart of Mary, Polish Hill

“It is a very strong and venerable custom in Latin American countries to celebrate the “Misa de Gallo” or Mass of the Rooster as Midnight Mass is called in Spanish. It is also a custom to venerate the figure of the Nino Jesus at the conclusion of this Mass. Saint Regis Parish also has a large Italian population and the veneration of the Bambino is part of Italian custom also. Mass will begin with the Procession with the Child Jesus to the crib. Our Mass will be a multilingual celebration with carols in English, Italian, Spanish and Polish.”
— Father Daniele Vallecorsa, St. Regis Parish, Oakland

“It is important to hold onto the treasure of Midnight Mass for those who find it to be a very touching and sentimental experience of the whole Christmas event. Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve is second only to the Mass of the Lord’s Supper on Holy Thursday as my favorite Liturgy of the year.
— Father John McKenna, St. John the Baptist, Monaca

“Throughout the year several people asked me to return to the midnight Mass, so we took a parish wide vote in the bulletin, and the winner was Midnight.”
— Father Tony Gargotta, St. Edward, Blawnox

“We continue this tradition to celebrate the beginning of the Christmas season at the earliest hour of Christmas Day.”
— Father John Gallagher, St. Ferdinand, Cranberry

“For one night of the year, we gather at the darkest hour of the night to celebrate the Birth of our Lord; it is a special joy to celebrate the first Mass of Christmas Day at the hour of midnight. This solemn, joyous, beautiful Mass is a beloved tradition for our parishioners and their families."
— Father Robert Cedolia, St. Anne, Castle Shannon

“We have never stopped having a midnight Mass. It is a long standing German tradition that we hope to continue. We get the people who still want to have the candlelight procession and ushering in the new day of Christmas. Our choir sings about a half hour before Mass and always sings “Stille Nacht” (Silent Night in German).”
— Father David Schorr, Most Holy Name of Jesus, Troy Hill

“We still have Midnight Mass at one of our churches each year.”
— Father Richard Thompson, St. Alphonsus Parish, Boyers, PA (St. Alphonsus, Epiphany and St. Louis churches)