Washington D.C., Feb 19, 2021 / 03:02 pm ().- God commanded it, Jesus practiced it, Church Fathers have preached the importance of it – fasting is a powerful and fundamental part of the Christian life.
But for many Catholics today, it’s more of an afterthought: something we grudgingly do on Good Friday, perhaps on Ash Wednesday if we remember it. Would we fast more, especially during Lent, if we understood how helpful it is for our lives?
The answer to this, say both saints of the past and experts today, is a resounding “yes.”
“Let us take for our standard and for our example those that have run the race, and have won,” said Deacon Sabatino Carnazzo, founding executive director of the Institute of Catholic Culture and a deacon at Holy Transfiguration Melkite Greek Catholic Church in Mclean, Va., of the saints.
“And…those that have run the race and won have been men and women of prayer and fasting.”
So what, in essence, is fasting?
It’s “the deprivation of the good, in order to make a decision for a greater good,” explained Deacon Carnazzo. It is most commonly associated with abstention from food, although it can also take the form of giving up other goods like comforts and entertainment.
The current fasting obligation for Latin Catholics in the United States is this: all over the age of 14 must abstain from meat on Ash Wednesday, Good Friday, and all Fridays in Lent. On Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, adults age 18 to 59 must fast – eating no more than one full meal and two smaller meals that together do not add up in quantity to the full meal.
Catholics, “if possible,” can continue the Good Friday fast through Holy Saturday until the Easter Vigil, the U.S. Catholic Bishops Conference adds.
Other Fridays throughout the year (aside from Friday within the Octave of Easter) “are penitential days and times throughout the entire Church,” according to Canon Law 1250. Catholics once abstained from meat on all Fridays, but the U.S. bishops received permission from the Holy See for Catholics to substitute another sacrifice or perform an act of charity instead.
Eastern Rite Catholics, meanwhile, follow the fasting laws of their own particular church.
In their 1966 “Pastoral Statement on Penance and Abstinence,” the National Conference of Catholic Bishops exhorted the faithful, on other days of Lent where fasting is not required, to “participation in daily Mass and a self-imposed observance of fasting.”
Aside from the stipulations, though, what’s the point of fasting?
“The whole purpose of fasting is to put the created order and our spiritual life in a proper balance,” Deacon Carnazzo said.
As “bodily creatures in a post-fallen state,” it’s easy to let our “lower passions” for physical goods supersede our higher intellect, he explained. We take good things for granted and reach for them whenever we feel like it, “without thinking, without reference to the One Who gives us the food, and without reference to the question of whether it’s good for us or not,” he added.
Thus, fasting helps “make more room for God in our life,” Monsignor Charles Pope, pastor of Holy Comforter/St. Cyprian Catholic Church in Washington, D.C. said.
“And the Lord said at the well, with the (Samaritan) woman, He said that ‘everyone that drinks from this well is going to be thirsty again. Why don’t you let me go to work in your life and I’ll give you a fountain welling up to Eternal Life.’”
While fasting can take many forms, is abstaining from food especially important?
“The reason why 2000 years of Christianity has said food (for fasting), because food’s like air. It’s like water, it’s the most fundamental,” Deacon Carnazzo said. “And that’s where the Church says ‘stop right here, this fundamental level, and gain control there.’ It’s like the first step in the spiritual life.”
What the Bible says about it
Yet why is fasting so important in the life of the Church? And what are the roots of the practice in Scripture?
The very first fast was ordered by God to Adam in the Garden of Eden, Deacon Carnazzo noted, when God instructed Adam and Eve not to eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil (Genesis 2:16-17).
This divine prohibition was not because the tree was bad, the deacon clarified. It was “made good” like all creation, but its fruit was meant to be eaten “in the right time and the right way.” In the same way, we abstain from created goods so we may enjoy them “in the right time and the right way.”
The fast is the weapon of protection against demons – St. Basil the Great.
Fasting is also good because it is submission to God, he said. By fasting from the fruit of the tree, Adam and Eve would have become partakers in the Divine Nature through their obedience to God. Instead, they tried to take this knowledge of good and evil for themselves and ate the fruit, disobeying God and bringing Original Sin, death, and illness upon mankind.
At the beginning of His ministry, Jesus abstained from food and water for 40 days and nights in the desert and thus “reversed what happened in the Garden of Eden,” Deacon Carnazzo explained. Like Adam and Eve, Christ was tempted by the devil but instead remained obedient to God the Father, reversing the disobedience of Adam and Eve and restoring our humanity.
Following the example of Jesus, Catholics are called to fast, said Fr. Lew. And the Church Fathers preached the importance of fasting.
Why fasting is so powerful
“The fast is the weapon of protection against demons,” taught St. Basil the Great. “Our Guardian Angels more really stay with those who have cleansed our souls through fasting.”
Why is fasting so powerful? “By setting aside this (created) realm where the devil works, we put ourselves into communion with another realm where the devil does not work, he cannot touch us,” Deacon Carnazzo explained.
It better disposes us for prayer, noted Monsignor Pope. Because we feel greater hunger or thirst when we fast from food and water, “it reminds us of our frailty and helps us be more humble,” he said. “Without humility, prayer and then our experience of God really can’t be unlocked.”
Thus, the practice is “clearly linked by St. Thomas Aquinas, writing within the Tradition, to chastity, to purity, and to clarity of mind,” noted Fr. Lew.
“You can kind of postulate from that that our modern-day struggles with the virtue of chastity, and perhaps a lack of clarity in theological knowledge, might be linked to an abandonment of fasting as well.”
A brief history of fasting
The current fasting obligations were set in the 1983 Code of Canon Law, but in previous centuries, the common fasts among Catholics were stricter and more regularly observed.
Catholics abstained from meat on all Fridays of the year, Easter Friday excluded. During Lent, they had to fast – one main meal and two smaller meatless meals – on all days excluding Sunday, the day of the Resurrection. They abstained from meat on Fridays and Saturdays in Lent – the days of Christ’s death and lying in the tomb – but were allowed meat during the main meal on the other Lenten weekdays.
The obligations extended to other days of the liturgical year. Catholics fasted and abstained on the vigils of Christmas and Pentecost Sunday, and on Ember Days – the Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday after the Feast of St. Lucy on Dec. 13, after Ash Wednesday, after Pentecost Sunday, and after the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross in September – corresponding with the four seasons.
In centuries past, the Lenten abstention was more austere. Catholics gave up not only meat but also animal products like milk and butter, as well as oil and even fish at times.
Why are today’s obligations in the Latin Rite so minimal? The Church is setting clear boundaries outside of which one cannot be considered to be practicing the Christian life, Deacon Carnazzo explained. That is why intentionally violating the Lenten obligations is a mortal sin.
But should Catholics perform more than the minimum penance that is demanded? Yes, said Fr. Lawrence Lew, O.P., who is currently studying for a Pontifical License in Sacred Theology at the Dominican House of Studies in Washington, D.C.
The minimum may be “what is due to God out of justice,” he explained, but we are “called not only to be just to God,” but also “to love God and to love our neighbor.” Charity, he added, “would call us to do more than just the minimum that is applied to us by the Code of Canon Law today, I think.”
In Jeremiah 31: 31-33, God promises to write His law upon our hearts, Deacon Carnazzo noted. We must go beyond following a set of rules and love God with our hearts, and this involves doing more than what we are obliged to do, he added.
Be wary of your motivation
However, Fr. Lew noted, fasting “must be stirred up by charity.” A Catholic should not fast out of dieting or pride, but out of love of God.
“It’s always dangerous in the spiritual life to compare yourself to other people,” he said, citing the Gospel of John where Jesus instructed St. Peter not to be concerned about the mission of St. John the Apostle but rather to “follow Me.” (John 21: 20-23).
In like manner, we should be focused on God during Lent and not on the sacrifices of others, he said.
Lent (is referred to) as a joyful season…It’s the joy of loving Him more.
“We will often fail, I think. And that’s not a bad thing. Because if we do fail, this is the opportunity to realize our utter dependence on God and His grace, to seek His mercy and forgiveness, and to seek His strength so that we can grow in virtue and do better,” he added.
And by realizing our weakness and dependence on God, we can “discover anew the depths of God’s mercy for us” and can be more merciful to others, he added.
Giving up good things may seem onerous and burdensome, but can – and should – a Catholic fast with joy?
“It’s referred to in the preface of Lent as a joyful season,” Fr. Lew said. “And it’s the joy of deepening our relationship with Christ, and therefore coming closer to Him. It’s the joy of loving Him more, and the more we love God the closer we draw to Him.”
“Lent is all about the Cross, and eventually the resurrection,” said Deacon Carnazzo. If we “make an authentic, real sacrifice for Christ” during Lent, “we can come to that day of the crucifixion and say ‘Yes Lord, I willingly with you accept the cross. And when we do that, then we will behold the third day of resurrection.’”
This article was originally published on CNA Feb. 20, 2016.
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This woke notion that a pastoral decision to have Pelosi refrain from receiving the Eucharist because of her support of killing defenseless human persons in their mothers’ womb is a “politicization of the Eucharist” is nothing more than the “Ghost of McCarrick” rearing its ugly head in the Church.
The Archbishop’s purpose was Pastoral, not political – that is obvious, no matter what his detractors say.
The person involved is a prominent politician, and – outside of repenting – she and her defenders really have no other way of responding other than on political grounds.
So yes – it has unavoidably become a political AND pastoral issue, but that is NOT the fault of the Archbishop.
Her earnest position advocating abortion on demand is highly disturbing, as it is with her cronies. She should be disciplined, and if I remember correctly, the New Testament instructs us to confront those who persist in sin.
Also, she’s not allowed to rewrite the Catechism.
Her earnest position advocating abortion on demand is highly disturbing, as it is with her cronies. She should be disciplined, and if I remember correctly, the New Testament instructs us to confront those who persist in sin.
Also, she’s not allowed to rewrite the Catechism.
Of course the left would reject the excommunication of Pelosi as exercised as the politics of power. More importantly, the announcement revealed the balkanization, the internal politics, of the American Roman Catholic Church as the preponderance of bishops are simply sitting on the hands. Nancy will simply take her clues from Rome by never responding to the letter while taking communion within other dioceses.
Pity poor Nancy Pelosi that she is up against such a kind, articulate and infinitely patient sparring partner.
Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone thank you for your sincere saving of the soul of Pelosi. Even though I have another opinion of her remaining Speaker of the House, I do agree that she should NOT be allowed the Holy Eucharist, she goes against the beliefs of the Catholic Church, plus she is a public figure and that her actions have been saying to other catholic’s that it’s ok. No it’s not. Perhaps now the Pope will do the same…. He needs to speak up on this to be a sheppard of his flock– after all he is pope to save souls as well.
Nancy Pelosi (and Joe Biden, along with other pro-abortion Catholics) has denied herself Communion by declaring her “devout Catholic” status (her claim) while supporting the murders of millions of babies before birth (and sometimes after). The “Women’s Health” bill is so misnomered as to make it laughable, because statistically half of those killed are females. Having made many attempts to talk with Pelosi, Archbishop Cordileone has simply agreed with her decision to deny herself the Sacrament.
Pelosi won’t back down, retract or change her stance because she knows that when she passes, she will get full catholic honors at her funeral and whoever does her mass will tell everyone that she is in heaven and all the people will nod in agreement and comment what a great person she was……..guaranteed!
Passes what??? Doesn’t anybody DIE anymore?
The Archbishop is not a politician. Does any government pay his living expense? No.
The People of God, the Mystical Body of Christ, employ him. No Protestant, atheist, Muslim, Hindu, None, or Shamanist pagan has any part to play in the Archbishop’s religion. Pelosi claims to represent the same religion while acting in opposition to its laws. This is a falsehood which harms Christ’s Church, His Body, and Nancy is harmed most of all, jeopardizing her eternal happiness.
The People of God, acting on behalf of God’s Law, accept and support the teaching of God, His Law, and the Laws of His Catholic Church. The Archbishop has every right and duty to act in accord with the Lawful and Just Mission of God’s Church. The Archbishop acts totally within the right, duty, mission, and just operation of God, His Church, His People, and His Body.
The man saying otherwise unlawfully and unjustly opposes the Body of Christ. Nancy P., and others who believe as she does, have besmirched their once-beautiful souls which God’s power cleansed at Baptism. That is not politics. That is sin. Simple ghastly and ugly SIN. Nancy is called to come clean.
He’s being a true Soldier of Christ. It takes bravery (particularly in these times) and always did. Thank you Archbishop Cordileone.
So what if it IS political? Pelosi’s stance needed to be addressed in a public way. Time for Joe Biden to be called out too.
Of course it’s political if it were not he would deny communion to supporters of the death penalty or the second amendment. He’s sided with the white supremacy party which is his right. It’s my right not to continue to attend or support a church that supports republikkkans.
Oh, right, Nancy.
The Demokkkrats who actually founded the KKK, and who initiated and for a hundred years enforced Jim Crow laws through the threat of lunching, and who in recent decades have supported the murders of nearly half of the African-American babies born in America, is the diversity party.
And the Republicans, who don’t want any babies of any race murdered, are the racists and killers.
Amazing. What you say makes about as much sense as everything the other Nancy says.
I had little respect for Pelosi. Now that she has been told she was barred from Communion by a Bishop, she did it ANYWAY at another diocese. Its clear by that action how little respect she has for her church or for God. What absolute nerve and disrespect. She made a statement that the church bars contraception, etc,”Its all the same to them”a statement she made in the sense of the church being a negative for women. . Its not up to Pelosi to decide what is fit or not in church doctrine. I have not heard she was a theologian. The Bishop of the DC diocese where she took communion is another person who has made his liberal stance known.I would not count on him to discipline this priest in any way, nor to support the archbishop of San Francisco. In the absence of any action or statement by the pope supporting the Archbishop of San Fran, I think there is little hope this ban can be effective discipline, which is a sad state of affairs. It shows how weak and what a mess the church is in right now. No leadership and few true to basic church principles. Jesus spoke of sin and punishment more than once. The church hierarchy is not doing the people any favor by pretending all is sweetness and light. Penance and confession is a long running theme in the Catholic church for a reason. I pity the Bishops too week to go along with Cordileone. They too will have to account for themselves some day.
Now. if only our cardinals (where are they?) and other bishops would
follow Archbishop Cordileone in upholding church teaching, despite the
rich and powerful. Other clergy claim to “dialogue” with pro-abortion
“Catholics.” And how many pro abortion politicians have become pro-life
because of a dialogue with their bishop?
It is not Archbishop Cordileone who has politicized the abortion/communion issue, it is Pelosi herself and the progressives who believe as she does. They politicize everything; as the party of government, confirmed statists, they can do nothing else.