Christmas Day Mass?

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I know Christmas is 3 months away, but I am looking at my schedule and I may have a Christmas morning singing engagement.

Are there any special masses on Christmas day or is the major mass the Midnight Mass (Christmas Eve)?

How long does the midnight mass run in both the EF and OF?

Thanks.
 
TrueLight said:
I know Christmas is 3 months away, but I am looking at my schedule and I may have a Christmas morning singing engagement.

Are there any special masses on Christmas day or is the major mass the Midnight Mass (Christmas Eve)?

How long does the midnight mass run in both the EF and OF?

Thanks.
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The major one is the Mass on Christmas Eve.
 
TrueLight said:
I know Christmas is 3 months away, but I am looking at my schedule and I may have a Christmas morning singing engagement.

Are there any special masses on Christmas day or is the major mass the Midnight Mass (Christmas Eve)?

How long does the midnight mass run in both the EF and OF?

Thanks.
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depends on the parish. here there are 3-4 Masses Christmas eve, ending with Midnight Mass of course, and one on Christmas day in the morning. There used to be and I assume still are in the EF a vigil Mass in the morning, Midnight Mass being the first and primary celebration of Christmas, one Mass in the early morning, and one later in the day, each with its own Gospel and readings.

don’t know that any of these Masses runs longer than a regular Sunday Mass unless it is because of more people, but again, depends on the parish.
 
TrueLight said:
I know Christmas is 3 months away, but I am looking at my schedule and I may have a Christmas morning singing engagement.

Are there any special masses on Christmas day or is the major mass the Midnight Mass (Christmas Eve)?

How long does the midnight mass run in both the EF and OF?

Thanks.
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It depends on the parish. We have three Christmas Eve Masses and three or four Christmas Day Masses and they are all packed. (I can’t remember exactly how many Christmas Day Masses we have because the schedule is different on Christmas than for regular weekend Masses.)

Though I understand what you are asking, I think all the Masses on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day are special. 🙂 Actually, every Mass is special.
 
We usually have at least two Masses early Christmas eve (so young families can get to Mass and get the kids to bed), midnight Mass, and then at least one Mass Christmas morning. All the parishes around here have slightly staggered schedules so you can get to a Mass starting anytime between about 5pm Christmas eve through midnight.
 
Either the Christmas Eve/vigil or Christmas day Masses count for your obligation.
 
In our 6 parish OF cluster there is only ONE midnight Mass at one church and one Mass at each parish on Christmas day. The midnight Mass at this one church is a very reverent OF. Its the oldest parish in the diocese, having been first built in 1838. The church is packed beginning at about11:00pm. The choir practices for at least two months for this Mass.

The EF parish that I attend is too far away to drive to on Christmas Eve (120 miles gets a little scary considering all the drunks on the road) but they have a High Mass at midnight and a full compliment of Masses on Christmas day.
 
TrueLight said:
…How long does the midnight mass run in both the EF and OF?

Thanks.
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Sorry, I forgot to answer the above. I don’t know about EF, but Christmas Mass is a just bit longer than a Sunday Mass in the OF at our parish. Our Sunday Masses usually last an hour. Midnight Mass might be 70-75 minutes at our parish because distributing Holy Communion takes a few minutes longer because of the number of people who come to Christmas Mass. Also, if one wants to get a seat at any Christmas Mass at our parish, one must arrive about 50 minutes before Mass begins.
 
TrueLight said:
I know Christmas is 3 months away, but I am looking at my schedule and I may have a Christmas morning singing engagement.

Are there any special masses on Christmas day or is the major mass the Midnight Mass (Christmas Eve)?

How long does the midnight mass run in both the EF and OF?

Thanks.
Click to expand...
I usually arrive home around 1:30 or 2:00 in the morning after midnight Mass at Christmas. There is also a Mass at dawn, and another one later in the morning, that have different readings. Usually there is nothing on Christmas afternoon or evening, unless it’s a Saturday.
 
The readings can be (but aren’t always) different at the different Masses from Christmas Eve through Christmas day. And a Christmas Mass will normally be more festive than a “regular” Sunday Mass. Midnight Mass is usually the most “important” Mass.

But as to how long any given Mass might be… That is likely to depend more on such things as how many people attend, the length of time allotted between Masses, what kind of music there will be, and the “target congregation” for the particular Mass.

In my parish the earliest Christmas Eve Masses and the late morning Christmas Day Mass are the most heavily attended. The late evening Christmas Eve Mass, Midnight Mass, and the earlier Christmas Day Mass are also well attended but the parking lot doesn’t fill up all the way.
 
Thanks everyone. Looks like my only option will be the midnight mass and then I’ll get like 3-4 hours of sleep before I have to be up again. :eek:
 
TrueLight said:
Thanks everyone. Looks like my only option will be the midnight mass and then I’ll get like 3-4 hours of sleep before I have to be up again. :eek:
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Will you have a chance to nap for a while before you go to Midnight Mass?
 
jmcrae said:
Will you have a chance to nap for a while before you go to Midnight Mass?
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I don’t know. It’s hard for me to nap. I’ll be fine or else I’ll cancel the Sunday morning engagement.
 
TrueLight said:
Thanks everyone. Looks like my only option will be the midnight mass and then I’ll get like 3-4 hours of sleep before I have to be up again. :eek:
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Well, since you also have an interest in the Eastern Catholic Churches you could go to Great Compline on the Nativity Eve, and Divine Liturgy on the morning of the Nativity. 👍
 
SwizzleStick said:
Midnight Mass might be 70-75 minutes at our parish because distributing Holy Communion takes a few minutes longer because of the number of people who come to Christmas Mass.
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FWIW: If more priests would remind congregants that in order to receive communion one must be properly disposed and explain what that really means, Communion wouldn’t take too long.
 
Love_Divine said:
FWIW: If more priests would remind congregants that in order to receive communion one must be properly disposed and explain what that really means, Communion wouldn’t take too long.
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True, since it is the Chreasters (Catholics who only attend Mass twice a year, Christmas and Easter) who add to the time to receive Communion at those Masses.
 
SwizzleStick said:
True, since it is the Chreasters (Catholics who only attend Mass twice a year, Christmas and Easter) who add to the time to receive Communion at those Masses.
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While I’m sure it’s true that some of the people at Mass at Christmas and Easter don’t go regularly to Mass, and may well be receiving Holy Communion while not in a state of grace, it’s also true that people travel at these times of the year, and attend Mass at churches where they normally don’t attend - I wouldn’t paint everyone with the same brush.

I have (to my surprise) also seen churches that empty out at these times of the year, because the membership is traveling to visit family in other parts of the country, and filling up their parishes for Mass. Not all of the “extra” people at Easter and Christmas Mass are necessarily committing sacrilege.
 
jmcrae said:
While I’m sure it’s true that some of the people at Mass at Christmas and Easter don’t go regularly to Mass, and may well be receiving Holy Communion while not in a state of grace, it’s also true that people travel at these times of the year, and attend Mass at churches where they normally don’t attend - I wouldn’t paint everyone with the same brush.

I have (to my surprise) also seen churches that empty out at these times of the year, because the membership is traveling to visit family in other parts of the country, and filling up their parishes for Mass. Not all of the “extra” people at Easter and Christmas Mass are necessarily committing sacrilege.
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I considered that idea before posting, that people travel during holiday seasons, and that probably does account somewhat for crowds at Christmas and Easter Masses. I figured that the usual number would attend Mass somewhere, but that would not account for the huge crowds at Christmas and Easter. But, I have never heard of any Church being nearly empty due to traveling parishioners, so that is why I posted as I did. I was wrong. I stand humbly corrected.

By the way, I had never heard of the term “Chreasters” before a friend of my daughter referred to herself and her parents in that way. She matter-of-factly said that they were “Chreasters,” Catholics who only attended Mass on Christmas and Easter. My daughter was pretty upset to hear that and feared for her friend’s soul. The friend did end up going to Sunday Mass with her grandparents, but her parents remained “Chreasters.”
 
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