NYC’s Filipino community revives a centuries-old Christmas tradition

Mark Libatique learned how to write Baybayin — a precolonial writing system of the Philippines — from watching internet videos as a child. “It’s a dead language,” he says, but he encourages everyone, especially Filipinos, to learn more about it.

Young Filipino Americans are putting a fresh spin on Simbang Gabi, a nine-day celebration dating back to the late 1660s, while preserving its core values. [ more › ]