6:30 am (Latin). A Rorate Caeli Mass is traditionally celebrated just before dawn in Advent as a devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary. The Mass is only lit by candles, representing Mary’s role in bringing the Light of the World into the darkness of the world. If timed correctly, by the end of Mass, the entire church is filled with light from the sun. This speaks of the general theme of Advent, a time of expectation eagerly awaiting the arrival of the Son of God, the Light of the World.

The Mass receives its name from the first words of the Entrance Antiphon, “Rorate caeli desuper, et nubes pluant iustum” (“Drop down dew, ye heavens, from above, and let the clouds rain the Just One,” Isaiah 45:8).

Rorate cæli desuper et nubes pluant iustum: aperiatur terra et germinet Salvatorem. Cæli enarrant gloriam Dei: Et opera manuum ejus annuntiat firmamentum Dei. Gloria Patri et Filio et Spiritui Sancto sicut erat in principio, et nunc et semper, et in sæcula sæculorum. Amen.

Let dew fall from the heavens above and let clouds rain down justice; let the earth open and bring forth a Savior. The heavens declare the glory of God, And the firmament shows forth his handiwork. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit as it was in the beginning, is now, and forever will be. Amen.