Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI
Friday, 22 August 2025
Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) – To implore from God the gift of an “unarmed and disarming peace” that will heal our planet, wounded “by wars in the Holy Land, in Ukraine, and in many other regions of the world,” Pope Leo XIV has called for a day of prayer and fasting (see Fides, 20/8/2025). Pope Francis also repeatedly called for this in recent years: prayer and fasting to achieve peace.To better understand the meaning of the gestures proposed by the Pope, the following are some suggestions from the 1994 pastoral letter of the Italian Bishops’ Conference (CEI) “The Christian Sense of Fasting”.From the Bible to the Church FathersThe roots of Christian fasting can be found in the Bible, as the Italian bishops point out: Moses and Elijah prepared for their encounter with God by abstaining from food; the people of Israel practiced it in times of crisis to ask for forgiveness or implore help. Jesus gives fasting a new meaning: His forty days of fasting in the desert are not a test of perseverance, but a sign of complete trust in the Father.Christ does not impose strict rules on his disciples and urges them not to practice fasting as an external gesture to demonstrate their religious “fervor” to others. Jesus presents fasting as an act of hidden love, performed “in secret” for God. For the Christian, “abstinence therefore does not arise from the rejection of certain foods: they accept the teaching of Jesus, for whom there are neither forbidden foods nor precepts of mere legal purity: “Nothing that goes into a person from outside can defile him, but what comes out of him defiles him” (Mark 7:15).The doctrine and practice of fasting and abstinence, the document from the Italian Bishops’ Conference continues, “took a clearer form in monastic circles of the fourth century, both through the customary emphasis on frugality and through the abstinence from food at certain times of the liturgical year. During the same period, ecclesial communities, under the influence of monastic customs, established the concrete forms of penitential practice.””The ancient practice of fasting usually consists of eating only one meal a day after Vespers, which is usually followed by the evening assembly for listening to the Word of God and for common prayer. Over the centuries, the custom of using what Christians save through fasting to support the poor and sick became established. “How religious fasting would be if you sent to the poor what you spend on your banquet!” exhorted Saint Ambrose; and Saint Augustine echoed him: “Let us give as alms what we receive through fasting and abstinence.” Thus, abstinence from food is always connected with listening to and meditating on the Word of God, with prayer, and with generous love for the needy.The same concept is also found in the Second Vatican Council and in Paul VI’s Apostolic Constitution “Paenitemini” of February 17, 1966. It particularly emphasizes the value of penance as an inner attitude, as “a personal religious act whose goal is love and dedication to the Lord: fasting for God, not for oneself. The authenticity of every form of penance depends on this fundamental value.”Thus, Christians do not abstain from certain foods because they are “bad,” but rather to free themselves from excess and the superfluous. The goal is always to grow in inner freedom, in the ability to choose, and in dedication to others.Fasting and the signs of the timesIn today’s society, fasting and abstinence risk appearing as anachronistic practices, even if fasting is occasionally practiced in secular circles as a means of protest or for health reasons.Therefore, the Church invites us to rediscover the originality of Christian fasting: not as an end in itself, but as part of a journey of faith, accompanied by prayer and commitment to justice and solidarity. In a world characterized by waste and inequalities, abstaining from something also becomes a statement against indifference: one fasts not only for oneself, but also to remember that others lack the bare necessities.When and how to fastChristian tradition has established specific times for fasting: Ash Wednesday and Good Friday are the days of fasting par excellence, on which meat is also abstained. Furthermore, all Fridays of the year are “days of repentance,” even when abstinence can take various forms: from prayer to a gesture of charity, from a community commitment to a personal act of abstinence.Fasting on the above-mentioned days is mandatory for all baptized Catholics between the ages of 18 and 60, and abstinence from meat is mandatory for those aged 14 and over. Today, it is emphasized that abstinence does not only concern food. One can also abstain from television or cell phones or avoid unnecessary expenses.Fasting and SolidarityThere is a close connection between fasting and charity. Even the earliest Christians emphasized that the economic gains from abstinence must not be kept for oneself, but must be made available to those in need. This connection can be practiced on a personal or communal level. For example, some parishes collect donations on fasting days, which they then use for families in need, single elderly people, victims of war, or victims of natural disasters.Fasting for Christians, the document continues, “must become a concrete sign of communion with the hungry and a form of sharing and assistance for those who strive to build a more just and humane society […] The Church feels called, in the spirit of the Gospel of charity, to revive the practice of penance as a sign and concrete stimulus to address those in need and to help individuals, families, and communities cope with the everyday problems of life. Thus, fasting actions that accompany certain public events, such as prayer gatherings and solidarity marches, can inspire individuals and families, as well as communities and institutions, to find resources to make available to organizations committed to relief and social projects. In this way, assistance initiatives for the poorest, such as reception centers or home support for the elderly, can be realized, while at the same time, communities can be sensitized to the needs of peace by showing openness and solidarity with the victims of violence and war.””With the penitential practice of fasting and abstinence,” the Italian bishops conclude, “the Church accepts Jesus’ invitation to his disciples to abandon themselves trustingly to God’s providence, without worrying about food […] Christ desires his Church to be a vigilant and faithful guardian of the gift of salvation: she proclaims this gift in the profession of faith, communicates it through the celebration of the sacraments, and manifests it through the witness of her life. Christians can and must make an original and decisive contribution not only to the building up of the Body of Christ, but also to the spiritual and social well-being of the human community. This contribution is also made by their sober and sometimes austere lifestyle: thus, they become builders of a more hospitable and supportive society, allowing that ‘civilization of love’ to grow in history, which has its origin in the truth proclaimed by the Council: ‘The value of man lies more in himself than in what he possesses’ (Gaudium et Spes, 35). (F.B.) (Agenzia Fides, 22/8/2025)
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