Fasting is an ancient practice still carried out regularly today by many faith communities. It is mentioned in the Bible, Quran, and the Hindu scriptures. Buddhism requires an ascetic lifestyle by its monks, including fasting. It was practiced by many of the ancient communities, including Native Americans and Africans. Certain lifecycle events in those communities, such as wedding, reaching puberty, and mourning are accompanied by fasting. Fasting for health reasons was practiced for thousands of years, and has well-known benefits.
Judaism
According to the Jewish tradition, fasting is total abstinence from food and drink. There are two major fasting days in the Jewish calendar, Yom Kippur and Tisha B’Av, but conservative Jews fast up to six days per year. Only Yom Kippur is biblically ordained, while the others are rabbinically ordained. Fasting on a Sabbath is prohibited unless it is Yom Kippur, in which case it is observed. Sexual relations are also prohibited on the two major fasting days.
Yom Kippur, or Day of Atonement, is the most important of the Jewish Holidays. It is the tenth and final day of the Ten Days of Repentance, starting with Rosh Hashanah. Every man and woman who is of age (above the age of bar/bat mitzvah) and whose health permits fasting, should fast on this day. The fasting lasts 25 hours, from sunset of the day to the nightfall of the other. In addition to total abstinence from food and drink, prohibited activities on this day include those prohibited on an ordinary Sabbath, such as striking fire and using tools. Additionally, leather shoes are not worn on this day, and women and men wear white garments, to remind themselves of burial shroud and the Day of Judgment. The mood is solemn, humble, and repentant, but also happy with the knowledge that repentance brings redemption. The day is spent at Synagogue services, and holds five prayers, compared to three on regular days and four on Sabbath.
Tisha B’Av is the ninth day of the month Av of the Hebrew calendar. Similar to Yom Kippur, this fast lasts 25 hours. Some Jews also observe additional prohibitions on certain daily activities. The mood is deeply sad.
In addition to those two major fasting days, there are minor fasting days, when fasting is from dawn to sunset. There are also fasts tied to certain occasions, such as fasting of the bride and groom before their wedding ceremony, fasting of firstborn, fasts of repentance of certain acts, or fasts to stave off an impending calamity. It should be noted that unlike some other traditions, the fasts in Judaism, specifically those that commemorate and mourn important events, are not ended with feasts.
Three purposes of fasting are commonly quoted by Jewish scholars.First is the atonement of previous wrongdoings: Therefore also now, saith the LORD, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning And rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the LORD your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil.14 (Joel, 2:12-13).
The second purpose of fasting is mourning, at individual and collective levels. Fasting and mourning has an implied connection .when a loved one dies, we do not feel like eating, food becomes insignificant to us. Also, we repent for the mistakes we did to that person, and seek forgiveness. The following verse is an example of individual mourning: When the people of Jabesh Gilead heard of what the Philistines had done to Saul, all their valiant men journeyed through the night to Beth Shan. They took down the bodies of Saul and his sons from the wall of Beth Shan and went to Jabesh, where they burned them. Then they took their bones and buried them under a tamarisk tree at Jabesh, and they fasted seven days. (I Samuel 31:11-14)
Collective mourning for catastrophes that befell earlier communities is also an important dimension of fasting, such as the events mentioned in the following verses: On the tenth day of the fifth month, in the nineteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, Nebuzaradan commander of the imperial guard, who served the king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem. He set fire to the temple of the LORD, the royal palace and all the houses of Jerusalem. Every important building he burned down. ( Jeremiah 52:12-13)
Mourning results in awareness in what is lost, and in rejoice when the loss is regained. It also creates a spiritual unity with earlier generations, and a renewed commitment to common goals.
The third purpose is one of gratitude. By abstinence from basic needs, one realizes his/her dependence on God, and appreciates all the sustenance provided by God to His creation.
Christianity
Fasting has different meanings in different Christian denominations. It is mostly a partial fasting, so practice widely differs.
Roman Catholics define fasting as reduction in food intake for one full meal and two small meals (morning and evening). Solid food intake between meals is not permitted. Abstinence is defined as avoiding meat for a particular day, and partial abstinence is consuming meat only once during a day. The regulations of fasting evolved several times according to the decrees of Vatican. According to today’s regulations, there a
re two obligatory fasting days for Roman Catholics: Ash Wednesday and Good Friday. The Fridays of Lent are days of abstinence. Voluntary fasting is encouraged and practiced. In addition to those, Roman Catholics also observe Eucharistic fasting, i.e. avoiding all food and drink except water for the duration of an hour before receiving the Holy Communion during the Mass, according to current regulations. Some Catholics still live by the older regulations, which prescribed fasting start time as the midnight of the previous day.
The Anglican Church follows a similar definition of fasting, but there is no distinction between fasting and abstinence, and regulations are less-specific. The Book of Common Prayer lists four periods as fasting days, which includes forty days of Lent and all the Fridays in the Year, except Christmas Day. There is no universal Anglican rule on fasting, so the provinces are free to choose what fasting days to recommend. Usually, fasting of the Lent and Fridays are observed. The measures of abstinence are left to the individuals.
In eastern Orthodox and Greek Catholicism, fasting is an important discipline to protect oneself from gluttony- indulgence and over-consumption of food, drink, or intoxicants to the point of waste. Fasting is accompanied by almsgiving and prayers, and fasting without such acts is considered worthless. There are four main seasons of fasting, including Lent, but fasting continues throughout the year, on Wednesdays and Fridays. Fasting individuals cannot consume meat, dairy products, oil and alcoholic beverages, although precise definition of these categories differs in practice. Eucharistic fasting is observed from midnight of the previous day to Holy Communion. There are also periods during which fasting is prohibited.
While early Protestants frowned upon fasting as an external practice, currently fasting is widely acknowledged and encouraged as an important spiritual experience among Protestant churches. For example, Lutherans encourage fasting during Lent, while United Methodists fast from sundown-to-sundown on Mondays-to-Tuesdays and Thursdays-to-Fridays.
The Church of the Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints defines f
asting as total abstinence from food and drink, including water. The first Sundays of each Month is called Fast Sunday, during which members fast for two consecutive meals and donate the money saved as a result of fasting. The purpose of fasting, in this tradition, is achieving mastery of spirit over body. The members who want to solicit special help, including for earthly benefits, or those who want to become closer to God, are encouraged to fast.
Jesus warned his followers against fasting only to make others admire them. He suggested practical steps should be taken to fast in private:
When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that it will not be obvious to men that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. (Matthew 6:16.18).
In this context, the overarching goal of fasting is bringing the individual closer to the Divine. According to Old Testament, Moses fasted for forty days and forty nights while he was on the mountain with God. (Exodus 34:28) and New Testament states that Jesus fasted for forty days and forty nights while in the desert, prior to the three temptations (Matthew 4:2, Luke 4:2). Hence, spiritual preparation is an important dimension of fasting.
David practiced fasting for humbling his soul (Psalm 35:13). Abstaining from food helps one realize his/her inherent helplessness, and understand one.s place vis-Ã -vis the Divine. This motivation can be seen clearly, for example, in Isaiah 58:3-13, where Prophet Isaiah admonishes the believers and calls to the real meaning of fasting.
Understanding the situation of the poor and the needy is also an important motivation for fasting. In fact, in most churches, fasting is mentioned hand-in-hand with prayer and almsgiving. Fasting is the door to show mercy, and showing mercy to others is a petition to receive mercy from God.
Islam
In Islam, fasting is defined as total abstinence from food and drink, including water. Fasting also precludes sexual intimacy. Fasting individuals are expected to abide by the highest moral values, i.e. no lying, backbiting, or physically, verbally or emotionally hurting others.
Ramadan fasting is one of the five pillars- i.e. core practices- of Islam. It continues from dawn to sunset for 29 to 30 consecutive days (a full Lunar month), and is mandatory for every Muslim man and woman above the age of puberty. Sick, elderly, pregnant and nursing women have permission to not fast, and can make up for missed fasting days later by fasting an equal number of days, or giving charity to the people in need, if fasting poses health risk. Menstruating women cannot fast, and make up for it in a similar fashion. The ritual of fasting is defined in a precise manner in the Holy Quran, hence there is virtually no difference as to what it means and how it is practiced among Muslim communities.
In addition to Ramadan fasting, devout Muslims also fast on Monday and Thursdays, as well as on the 13th, 14th and 15th days of each Lunar month. Other voluntary fasting days include the day of Ashura (tenth day of Muharram), the day of Arafat (ninth of Dhulhijja), and six days of Shawwal.
The Quran, Holy Book of Muslims, states that fasting was prescribed by God upon the earlier faith communities, and proclaims the main purpose of fasting as achieving righteousness or God-consciousness.
The first and foremost purpose of fasting is to follow God’s command of fasting. All benefits to be acquired by fasting, such as improving the health and understanding the helplessness of the poor people, cannot be the intention of the believer while fasting. Those are simply ways to understand the divine wisdom behind the command of fasting.
Many Islamic scholars have written on the subject of fasting. Bediuzzaman, one of the most prominent Islamic scholars, outlines nine purposes in .The Letters., and we will summarize some of them here, direct quotes appearing in italicized form below.
First of all, parallel to Christian and Jewish traditions, a major goal is to appreciate the bounties given by the Divine, which go unnoticed if not for fasting. Thereby, creating an atmosphere for sincere thanksgiving:
For at other times of the year, most of those who are not in difficult circumstances do not realize the value of many bounties since they do not experience real hunger. Those whose stomachs are full and especially if they are rich, do not understand the degree of bounty there is in a piece of dry bread.
A second purpose, more in line with Christian tradition, is to understand the situation of the poor through hunger and thirst, thus create compassion and facilitate giving of charity.
A third purpose is taming and humbling of the soul and protection against gluttony: The instinctual soul wants to be free and independent, and considers itself to be thus. According to the dictates of its nature, it even desires an imaginary dominicality and to act as it pleases..Thus, in the month of Ram
adan, the instinctual soul of everyone, from the richest to the poorest, may understand that it does not own itself, but is totally owned; that it is not free, but is a slave.
Indeed, Muhammad, Prophet of Islam, hints that fasting from food helps curb inclinations to sins, such as lust: Whoever among you is able to marry, should marry, and whoever is not able to marry, is recommended to fast (Bukhari, Book of Marriage, Hadith 3; partial)
Other purposes pointed out by Islamic scholars include ethical perfection, focusing on spiritual needs and sacred text (rather than corporeal needs), creating bonds in the community through fasting and feasting together, and expiation for certain sins. The latter, related to the atonement in Judaism, is directly mentioned in the Quran as expiation of sins such as accidental killing a fellow human being and breaking of oaths to God: God does not take you to task for a slip (or blunder of speech) in your oaths, but He takes you to task for what you have concluded by solemn, deliberate oaths. The expiation (for breaking such oaths) is to feed ten destitute persons (or one person for ten days) with the average of the food you serve to your families, or to clothe them, or to set free a slave. If anyone does not find (the means to do that), let him fast for three days. (Holy Quran 5/89, partial)
As a result, the three Abrahamic faiths, Judaism, Christianity and Islam, share a large common ground in terms of faith and practices. Fasting is one of the common practices in three religions. While fasting to mourn is more specific to Judaism, fasting for atonement is more pronounced in Christianity and Judaism, fasting to facilitate charity, to gain mastery of soul, to achieve humility, and protection from gluttony is more of a common goal between Islam and Christianity. Finally, using the freed-up time to focus on studying the sacred text and prayer is more underlined in Judaism and Islam. The emphasis placed on each purpose is admittedly subjective, and mistake of misdiagnoses rests with the author of this article, as traces of all benefits and purposes can be found in all three religions.
* The pictures in this article are courtesy of Reverend Sandy Clark.
References
- Fasting Spiritual Freedom Beyond Our Appetites (Lynne Baab)
- The Sacred Art of Fasting Preparing to Practice (Thomas Ryan, CSP)
- The Sacred Art of Fasting: Beginning to Practice (SkyLight Paths) (Thomas Ryan, 2005)
- Christian Fasting: A Theological Approach (Kenneth Berghuis, 2003)
- “The Letters” by Bediuzzaman
- “A Return to Fasting” by G.A. Maloney
- Online Bible, King James Version
- Fasting and Feasting in Three Traditions: Judaism Christianity Islam Interfaith Conversations Booklet #1 OF IND TY I Education for Service 1902 Edited by Kevin Corn University of Indianapolis 2006
- Online Bukhari translation
- Online Quran, Translation by Ali Unal
- Fasting Facts, Encyclopedia.com
- Fasting, Spirithome.com
- Fasting Traditions In Judaism