tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-833547834321864748.post2237482357504194219..comments2023-10-31T01:42:26.102+11:00Comments on Fringe Faith: What's the point of fasting?Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03059054907843482358noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-833547834321864748.post-42156255079571895672012-02-25T04:41:21.446+11:002012-02-25T04:41:21.446+11:00Really interesting thoughts, thanks so much for po...Really interesting thoughts, thanks so much for posting them.<br /><br />We'd love to hear your thoughts on this article about Fasting that's been written on the Bible Reflections site.<br /><br />http://www.bible-reflections.net/articles/whats-the-point-of-fasting/2283/Joel Menniehttp://www.bible-reflections.netnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-833547834321864748.post-12685216225093276282010-03-02T22:33:02.759+11:002010-03-02T22:33:02.759+11:00Hi David,
I wouldn’t say I was ‘trying to be deli...Hi David,<br /><br />I wouldn’t say I was ‘trying to be deliberately amusing’. Things just come out the way they come out. But if you were amused, then I’m happy with that. If I can’t be informative, at least be amusing.<br /><br />I think the more serious I am about something, the less serious I sound. I remember many conversations with my Pentecostal friends, where I’d be saying ‘I’m serious’. And they’d just be laughing at me, convinced that I wasn’t serious at all. It probably didn’t help that I was laughing right along with them. Because I know how ridiculous I sound sometimes. And when someone sounds ridiculous, that’s pretty amusing. Even if it is myself. <br /><br />I learnt some time ago that if you are quitting something, never tell the people who work at the place you buy it from. I made the mistake of telling the workers at my local service station that I was giving up diet coke and cigarettes. Big mistake. For about a month, every time I went in there, they felt free to comment on what I was buying - because it was pretty obvious I hadn’t stuck with my resolution. <br /><br />The thing I saw in the parish bulletin described the difference between fasting and abstinence. It also talked about some of the old rules for fasting and abstinence during Lent and urged people to fast on Fridays and Wednesdays. But it didn’t really talk about the reasons. Which is understandable in a way, because there’s only so much room in a parish bulletin. Also, it was part 2. And I missed out on seeing part 1, because I wasn’t there the Sunday before. Until I read the bulletin, I was going without meat on Fridays but had not even thought about fasting.<br /><br />Something I read (somewhere on the internet, but I can’t remember where) said that the rules for fasting did not apply for the feast of St Joseph. So I’m deciding (because it suits my purposes) that the information I received off the internet (probably from a very dodgy source) is completely true and correct. So on the feast day of St Joseph, I will still abstain from meat, but not fast. <br /><br />My chocoholic son was given a chocolate bar by my grandmother the other day. He had said he was giving up chocolate for Lent, but I told him it was up to him whether he ate it now or waited until the end of Lent. This was two days ago. It is still sitting in the fridge, unopened. I'm very impressed with him. The only problem is I'm tempted to eat it. And I kind of wish he'd just eaten it so temptation wasn't staring me in the face every time I opened the fridge door. <br /><br />I don't think I've reached the part of the catechism that talks about fasting. Or maybe I did, but it just didn't sink in. Which is quite possible. <br /><br />LizAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03059054907843482358noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-833547834321864748.post-42015148791759235882010-03-02T20:36:11.511+11:002010-03-02T20:36:11.511+11:00Dear Liz,
I'm not sure if you're trying t...Dear Liz,<br /><br />I'm not sure if you're trying to be deliberately amusing in this post or not, but it certainly amused me. <br /><br />The way you talk about getting to some point, and how you hope you'll discover what it is, just amuses me. <br /><br />The more honest a person is, the funnier they are. <br /><br />I told the blokes at the local bottle shop I was giving up alcohol for Lent. I'm pretty sure I bought a carton of beer on Ash Wednesday. One of the blokes said, "I thought you said you were giving up beer for Lent?" I thought about it, and said, "Oh I must have been drunk when I said that." And he burst out laughing. <br /><br />The real point of fasting is to conquer our concupiscence. It is to practice self-denial, and strengthen our spirit. Fasting is not without its spiritual rewards. It is usually accompanied by an infusion of grace. It is meant to have spiritual rewards. They motivate us to do it. To do something in order to increase grace is your soul is a holy and wholesome thing to do.<br /><br />And, anything done for supernatural reasons far outweighs things done for merely natural reasons. To forgo some pleasure purely for the love of God, pleases Him immensely. <br /><br />It is also a great weapon against the attacks and temptations of the devil. <br /><br />As Our Lord Himself said, "Certain demons are only cast out by prayer and fasting."<br /><br />There are two things Catholics are supposed to do during Lent. Fast, and abstain. Going without meat on Friday is not fasting. It is abstaining. But it has the same effect. It is an act of self denial. <br /><br />I'm going to have chilli-garlic prawns and baked snapper on Fridays. No meat for this penitential duck. <br /><br />As Our Lord said, "He who wants to follow me must deny himself." <br /><br />Most of the questions you pose in relation to matters such as the subject of this post, are all explained in the Cathechism in a very simple way. <br /><br />It is a tragedy that people are not taught the simple truths from the old Penny Catechism. <br /><br />Anyway, I enjoyed this post. <br /><br />David ...Davidhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03147136231746103831noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-833547834321864748.post-21311454839567360812010-03-01T14:44:37.794+11:002010-03-01T14:44:37.794+11:00Hi Teresa,
I was talking more about fasting as a ...Hi Teresa,<br /><br />I was talking more about fasting as a spiritual discpline within Christianity. Whereas I think the idea of receiving energy from God is something that would belong to other religions. <br /><br />I think the kind of fasting you've mentioned sounds quite good from a health perspective. It seems like a good idea to remove toxins from your body in such a way. And I think possibly God would be pleased at going on a fast for health reasons. <br /><br />But I also think that fasting for health reasons is a very different thing to fasting for spiritual reasons. But as you may have guessed from reading my post, I'm hardly an expert.<br /><br />I do need to give up diet coke. It's very bad for me, especially with how much I drink. But it's very addictive. I find it extremely hard to go even a day without drinking diet coke. And the end of last year, I tried giving up both diet coke and smoking and it's hard to say what was the most difficult. <br /><br />LizAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03059054907843482358noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-833547834321864748.post-68841593253439870152010-03-01T14:16:23.101+11:002010-03-01T14:16:23.101+11:00Hi Liz
I thought that the point of fasting was to ...Hi Liz<br />I thought that the point of fasting was to purify the body in order to receive the the pure energy that pours down from God. And with it, the clear and calm state of mind that allows you to see the truth. <br /><br />I haven't done it for years - tho i keep thinking i should - so now i am thinking about it some more. <br /><br />If you want to fast really successfully you should have a pre-fast diet of pure food - no diet coke - then go to juices then go to water because your body first of all has to throw off toxins. And the western diet makes this a big task. I'm feeling more and more unhealthy as i write this. <br /><br />One thing i discovered, when i fasted, was that if you aren't in the right frame of mind when you attempt it, it can be very disturbing. You should be okay though - with all that time spent thinking of God. Once you get beyond the intense longing for food, it just gets easier. I'm sure you would have heard this.<br /><br />You might think I am focusing on the physical benefits here and not the suffering but it really is quite an effort - tho the suffering is in order to gain something. And if it's good for the body - why wouldn't that make God happy?teresahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13924110292246296366noreply@blogger.com