Pope Francis celebrates Aguinaldo Mass in the Vatican

Pope Francis arrives to celebrate a mass for the Filipino community on December 15, 2019 at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican. Tiziana Fabi/AFP

Pope Francis on Sunday evening celebrated Aguinaldo Mass at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican—the first time a pope has celebrated a Simbang Gabi mass.

According to a CBCP News report last week, the pope concelebrated the Mass with about 150 other priests.

“This is the fourth year that we celebrate it in the basilica but the first time that the Pope will be the one to preside,” said Fr. Ricky Gente of the Filipino Chaplaincy in Rome.

In his homily, Francis spoke about the dawn masses celebrated by Catholics around the world, noting that in the Philippines, the tradition is called "Simbang Gabi"—enunciating the syllables carefully and drawing applause from the crowd.

 — BM, GMA News