To be fair, The Pillar says that there’s no such canonical thing as a “Midnight Mass” — that’s just an informal title. And yet, our earliest records indicate that by the 4th century C.E. there was at least a precedent for nighttime Christian religious ceremonies. Taking sources at face value, the School of Mary discusses a woman named Egeria whose 381 to 384 C.E. writings describe Christian practices of the time, including an allusion to Midnight Masses under the header “Evening Offices.” Egeria, however, was describing how Christians might end celebrations that had started Good Friday, not how they might conduct themselves at times celebrating Jesus’ customary birthdate.
Egeria writes, “Those of the clergy, however, who are strong or young keep vigil there, and hymns and antiphons are said throughout the whole night until morning; a very great crowd also keep night-long watch, some from the late hour and some from midnight, as they are able.” Basically, if anyone was hale and healthy enough to continue services, particularly clergy, those people were encouraged to go above and beyond. For everyone else, “it is known that the people are tired” and they can opt out. This is especially true because up until that point during the day she describes very prescriptive and detailed sets of rituals, particularly the “emotion” and “mourning by all the people at every lesson and prayer.”
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Exactly how all this inspired Pope Sixtus III to conduct a midnight mass in 440 C.E. is unknown.
