I do remember going to midnight Mass as a young person. There was always a magical quality to going to Mass in the dark in the days before Vatican II. A little dusting of snow was always welcome and added to the magic.
My parish has tried the Christmas Vigil Mass at several times, but we always seem to get back to 11 p.m. It’s not as late as midnight but it’s late enough to allow those who do Christmas Eve stuff to attend without having to run out on their houseful of company. I am the organist and choir director for my small church. Our choir has about 20 members, though it varies wildly from week to week. Some of my members have jobs that take them out of town overnight. Others are old enough not to want to risk driving – or walking – when the weather is bad. People have families and lives so I’m never sure who will show up for either rehearsals or Sunday Mass. It’s a volunteer choir so it's not like I can fire anyone :-) High holy days like Christmas and Easter bring out more people who want to sing and that’s OK with me. We go with whoever shows up. Even so, this choir is pretty darned good. We sing lots of things that we shouldn’t be able to do and sometimes we sound really good, too.
The choir begins to sing at 10:30 on Christmas Eve and we do several songs before the liturgy. I try to get a good mix of mostly things that no one would have heard in the mall or on the radio. I have eclectic taste and we do things from Gregorian chant to Caribbean call and response songs. That’s the singular beauty of being in charge: I get to pick what we do. (Well, I need to rephrase that. I get to pick, but I have found that I can’t make them sing it if they really hate it. "Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring" is one of my all-time favorite choir tunes but this group just won’t do it. They don’t tell me they hate it. They go through the motions but it never gets beyond the read-through stage. There is no heart in it. Finally, the last time I tried to drag it out, someone said, "The accompaniment is really pretty. Why don’t you just play that and we’ll listen?" I know when I’m beat. I gave up.) Sorry, I got off-track.
I love walking into the church with the lights dimmed, a few candles burning, all the decorations looking fresh and festive. Even at that hour, when we are all tired and our voices not in the best shape, we put on a good performance. After all the missed practices due to ice storms, we can still rise to the occasion. This Mass is inspiring. We have a new pastor who is wonderful and, after the muted watchfulness of Advent, we get to sing Glory to God again. We are using the Mass parts that I composed for the parish several years ago. We share a tradition that is 2000 years old but as recent as now. Every year, we do it again, renewing the commitment to this community.
I know there are a lot of nonbelievers here. I can’t say I buy into all the things my church teaches, but I do believe fervently that the Birthday Boy wanted us to be good to each other, to gather as a family, to celebrate with joy and work for peace. I am always glad when the holidays are over. It is a stressful time for musicians but I treasure the sense of well-being that comes from meeting in the dark to sing together.
Peace and blessings to all!