People who have willingly chosen to become Jesus disciples are required to partake in the fellowship of Christs sufferings. While we are not meant to nail ourselves on the cross and re-live the suffering by Jesus at Calvary, yet we are asked by God to deny ourselves, take up our cross, and follow Him. Fasting, from many years even before Christ, was a symbol of a person humbling him or her self to show God that he or she is sincere in seeking Gods blessings. Fasting is serious business, but it can be approached with the wrong motives.
The Holy Bible tells us what false fasting is all about. The Israelites made fasting a ritual and often announced that they were fasting before God. Even though they had done much penance, God was not impressed, as if he didn't even notice it! God replied through the prophet Isaiah in chapter fifty eight, that He hasn't noticed them because they were living for themselves even while they were fasting. They kept right on oppressing their workers, even while they were fasting. God asks, what good is fasting when you keep fighting and quarreling? This kind of fasting will never get us anywhere with God. They humbled themselves by going through the motions of penance, bowing their heads like a blade of grass in the wind. They dressed in sackcloth and covered themselves with ashes, but all this is unacceptable to God.
God tells them what true fasting is, that is fasting in order to share with the poor and hungry; to stop oppressing workers and start treating them fairly, giving them what they earn; to cover with sackcloth and ashes so that the needy may be given clothes and not to hide from relatives who need help; to stop fighting with one another and free those who are wrongly imprisoned.
The reasons for fasting still remain, as mentioned by God. We fast with only one motive and that is to seek God. If we are fasting to impress people or as a ritual or a test of will-power this has been and will always remain unacceptable to God. He just wont listen to your pleas and requests.
Different Kinds of Fasts
There are various kinds of fasts:
* the absolute fast, which is without water or food and needs to be approached with careful consideration as you are led by the Holy Spirit;
Because they were already starving, to pass up the meager ration of soup and bread would mean that the prisoners would be that much closer to dying of starvation. However, eating on Yom Kippur would be a symbol of rebellion against their religion. Ultimately, some very devout Jews fast, but Eliezer, someone who worked so hard studying the Jewish religion and believed wholly in God in the beginning of the novel, did not fast. Partly because his father requested that he eat, but internally he wanted nothing to do with a God who could leave his people in such deplorable conditions. This refusal to fast on Yom Kippur shows that even the most devoted of people can fail to find meaning or justification in religion when their situation gets too
The severe malnutrition of the prisoners of Auschwitz meant that they should not have fasted for Yom Kippur. Although Eliezer Wiesel, a prisoner at the Auschwitz camp, refused to fast in his memoir, Night, since he “no longer accepted God’s silence”, his defiance against God was decisive in his survival of the camp (Wiesel, pg. 69). With the captives of Auschwitz receiving such a limited amount of food, prisoners that chose to fast for Yom Kippur would most likely die of starvation. Even if a fasting Jew did survive, he or she would be dangerously malnourished, numbering their chances of survival. Wiesel’s block leader advised him before his selection to “move your limbs, give yourself some color. Don’t walk slowly, run! Run as if you had the devil at your heels” if he wanted to survive the
Why Jesus' Last Meal was Important for Him and His Disciples and How Christians Might Interpret and Celebrate this Meal in the Church Today
Throughout time, food has always played a large role in every day life. One aspect of life that food really plays a large role in is religious life. It is important to recognize that the first commandment that God gave to us was a restriction on eating. Many religions have dietary laws or restrictions that explain to the people of their religion what they can and cannot eat. The first commandments that God gave to us were related to eating. In the Bible, we see the Mosaic dietary laws. These laws were set and regulated by Moses, as explained by God’s law. The Old Testament is full of restrictions regarding food consumption and what types of foods should not be consumed. I will be further examining the Mosaic dietary laws and the role they continue to play in the modern-day and in many people lives.
In understanding the Mosaic dietary laws maintained in the books of the Old Testament, it is necessary to consider the early restrictions placed on certain types of food consumption, the restrictions outlined by Moses for the people of God, and the implications of these eating restrictions both then and in the modern era. What must be recognized is that “To this day, these rules—with variations, but always guided by Mosaic laws—are followed by many orthodox Jews” (2). Jewish religious practices, then, are based not only in their ancestral ordinances, but in the specificity of Mosaic law in terms of dietary limitations and circumcision (3). Relating the significance, then, of early restrictions and their application to Mosaic law, as well as an understanding of the role of Moses, are elements important in understanding Mosaic dietary laws.
Cesar admired heroes like Mahatma Gandhi and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr for their nonviolent methods. He followed Gandhi and Dr. King’s practice of nonviolence for the protest against grapes. Some young male strikers started talking about acts of violence. They wanted to fight back at the owners who have treated them poorly. They wanted to fight back to show that they were tough and manly. Some of the strikers viewed nonviolence as very inactive and even cowardly. However, Cesar did not believe in violence at all. He believed nonviolence showed more manliness than violence and that it supports you if you’re doing it for the right reason. He thought nonviolence made you to be creative and that it lets you keep the offensive, which is important in any contest. Following his role model Ghandi, “Chavez would go on hunger strikes” (Cesar Chavez 2). This showed that he would starve for his cause and that he was very motivated. It also showed that he was a very peaceful and nonviolent protester. Chavez was fasting to rededicate the movement to nonviolence. He fasted for 25 days, drinking only water and eating no food. This act was an act of penitence for those who wanted violence and also a way of taking responsibility as leader of his movement. This fast split up the UFW staff. Some of the people could not understand why Cesar was doing the fast. Others worried for his health and safety. However the farmworkers
Both the man and woman fast on the day of the wedding, like at Yom
To eat, to nourish one’s self is an act that is essential for human life. What could cause more pain in this life than to deny one’s self sustenance? The practice of fasting, as one form of self-denial, can serve to bring one closer to identifying with the sacrifice of Christ. This is especially evident when fasting is examined in relation to the Eucharist in the Catholic tradition.
Many people believe that fasting is not recommended. That is a false notion to many because they believe that fasting will affect the concentration of a person when one is hungry. This might be true at the beginning but in long run it does not. It has been proven that those people who adopt a serious program of fasting improve their attention, concentration span, focusness and alertness.
How can it be that one could lose weight if he/she binge eats all of the calories back with three whoppers from McDonalds? The quantity as well as quality of the food must absolutely be taken into consideration. Abbott mentions the importance of overall food intake when it comes to weight loss, and along with another diet book, discretely advises against overindulging in the periods between fasting, but does not specifically account for this significant detail in her description of the weight loss method, making it rather unconvincing (James, S.
Although I am not super active within my social medias, I am constantly checking them. I have begun to see the way that this creates an unspoken comparison of my life and the lives of people I am connected with. There is a certain amount of energy and attention that I am putting into my social media accounts that could be better used in different areas of my life. It is difficult to find a balance of what is the right way to fast electronics and social media when it feels like it is such a prominent part of society. So my plan of fasting is going to look little bit different than a normal fast. I plan to only use social media on the week days after 12pm. I feel like this will allow me to spend the first part of my day focused on my time with God and starting my day directing my attention towards Him rather then the world. I also want to completely fast all social media on Sundays to keep this day sacred before the Lord and not put social media before
Christian fasting is more than denying he or herself food or something else of the flesh – it’s a sacrificial lifestyle before God. In Isaiah 58, a “true fast� is not just a one-time act of humility and denial before God; it is a lifestyle of servant ministry to others. Isaiah tells us, fasting encourages humility, loosens the chains of injustice, unties the chords of the yoke, frees the oppressed, feeds the hungry, provides for the poor, and clothes the naked. (Isaiah 58: 1-9). The concept of Christian fasting isn’t a one-day thing – it’s a lifestyle of servant living for God and others.
...ons believe in fasting as stated in the holy books. Both Holy books state that followers should pray to God and Allah for it is considered holy and right (Jaoudi, 7).
The people fell into religiously giving of their sacrifices. Not out of a heart of love and devotion but out of duty and obligation. God knew their heart and knew their sacrifices weren’t offered out of a contrite heart. They thought they could buy God’s forgiveness with their wealth, or they could offer sacrifices that weren’t acceptable in Gods sight. They just didn’t get it! God would rather have their love then have them pleased with themselves for following some religious rules or good deeds. God expresses through the Prophet Micah what pleases Him “What can we bring to the LORD? Should we bring him burnt offerings? Should we bow before God Most High with offerings of yearling calves? Should we offer him thousands of rams and ten thousand rivers of olive oil? Should we sacrifice our firstborn children to pay for our sins? No, O people, the LORD has told you what is good, and this is what he requires of you to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.”
I believe it’s critical to maintain good health. I believe we are to keep the temple of the Holy Spirit (our bodies) pure not only from what people would consider worldly temptations but also we need to keep our temples pure by the foods we eat. We are called to eat fruits and vegetables,