20150220 THE KIND OF FASTING THAT PLEASES GOD
Readings at Mass
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First reading
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Isaiah 58:1-9 ©
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Thus says the Lord:
Shout for all you are
worth,
raise your
voice like a trumpet.
Proclaim their faults to
my people,
their sins to
the House of Jacob.
They seek me day after
day,
they long to
know my ways,
like a nation that wants
to act with integrity
and not ignore
the law of its God.
They ask me for laws that
are just,
they long for
God to draw near:
‘Why should we fast if you
never see it,
why do penance
if you never notice?’
Look, you do business on
your fast-days,
you oppress
all your workmen;
look, you quarrel and
squabble when you fast
and strike the
poor man with your fist.
Fasting like yours today
will never
make your voice heard on high.
Is that the sort of fast
that pleases me,
a truly
penitential day for men?
Hanging your head like a
reed,
lying down on
sackcloth and ashes?
Is that what you call
fasting,
a day
acceptable to the Lord?
Is not this the sort of
fast that pleases me
– it is the Lord who
speaks –
to break unjust fetters
and
undo the
thongs of the yoke,
to let the oppressed go
free,
and break
every yoke,
to share your bread with
the hungry,
and shelter
the homeless poor,
to clothe the man you see
to be naked
and not turn
from your own kin?
Then will your light shine
like the dawn
and your wound
be quickly healed over.
Your integrity will go
before you
and the glory
of the Lord behind you.
Cry, and the Lord will
answer;
call, and he
will say, ‘I am here.’
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Psalm
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Psalm 50:3-6,18-19 ©
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A humbled, contrite
heart, O God, you will not spurn.
Have mercy on me, God, in
your kindness.
In your
compassion blot out my offence.
O wash me more and more
from my guilt
and cleanse me
from my sin.
A humbled, contrite
heart, O God, you will not spurn.
My offences truly I know
them;
my sin is
always before me
Against you, you alone,
have I sinned;
what is evil
in your sight I have done.
A humbled, contrite
heart, O God, you will not spurn.
For in sacrifice you take
no delight,
burnt offering
from me you would refuse,
my sacrifice, a contrite
spirit.
A humbled,
contrite heart you will not spurn.
A humbled, contrite
heart, O God, you will not spurn.
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Gospel Acclamation
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cf.Ps129:5,7
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Glory and praise to you, O
Christ!
My soul is waiting for the
Lord,
I count on his word,
because with the Lord
there is mercy
and fullness of
redemption.
Glory and praise to you, O
Christ!
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Or
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cf.Amos5:14
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Glory and praise to you, O
Christ!
Seek good and not evil so
that you may live,
and that the Lord God of
hosts may really be with you,
because with the Lord
there is mercy
and fullness of
redemption.
Glory and praise to you, O
Christ!
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Gospel
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Matthew 9:14-15 ©
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John’s disciples came to
Jesus and said, ‘Why is it that we and the Pharisees fast, but your disciples
do not?’ Jesus replied, ‘Surely the bridegroom’s attendants would never think
of mourning as long as the bridegroom is still with them? But the time will
come for the bridegroom to be taken away from them, and then they will fast.’
THE KIND
OF FASTING THAT PLEASES GOD
SCRIPTURE
READINGS: ISAIAH 58:1-9; MATTHEW 9:14-15
Fasting does not seem to fit in the modern
world, especially in this age of sensuality, materialism and instant
gratification. There are of course those who fast, but unfortunately for all
the wrong reasons. Many Catholics fast for vanity reasons, so that they
can be slimmer and look more attractive. Others, like the scribes and
Pharisees, seek recognition and praise. They fasted so that they could
impress others, look holy or even to make God indebted to them. Of course, the
majority fast for the sake of fasting, because it is Church law that we fast on
certain days. No wonder we never grow closer to God and our prayers are
not answered. Hence, like the Israelites, we complain that God never helps
us.
The Israelites questioned the
futility of fasting: “Why should we fast if you never see it, why do
penance if you never notice?” The answer is simple, because they did not
fast for the right reasons! Because their fasting was hypocritical; such
religious acts had no value since it was not done for the love of God but for
themselves. It only led to spiritual pride, thinking that they were
spiritually more superior to others, or for their reputation. Yes, some
of us, too, fast so that we can feel that we are holier than others, or more
worthy before God. When fasting is done in a legalistic and routine
manner, it does not change God, nor us. “Hanging your head like a reed,
lying down on sackcloth and ashes” is good for show but does not result in
interior transformation.
So what kind of fasting is pleasing
to God? In the words of the prophets, fasting must come from a loving
heart for God and for those who are suffering. Unless fasting leads us to
live a life of obedience to God’s commandments and is accompanied by a genuine
love and compassion for the poor, such fasting has no value except to boost our
ego. Thus, those who fast and act contrary to a life of love are not
truly fasting in the right spirit. God reprimanded His people saying, “Look,
you do business on your fast days, you oppress all your workmen; look, you
quarrel and squabble when you fast and strike the poor man with your fist.”
When we fast in the right spirit of
love, it draws us nearer to God. The purpose of fasting is to enable us to yearn for the
Lord by increasing our capacity to receive Him through desire. So if we
truly seek God, as the Lord says of Israel, “They seek me day after day, they
long to know my ways, like a nation that wants to act with integrity and not
ignore the law of its God” from the depth of our hearts, we will fast and
mortify ourselves to show and strengthen our earnestness of desiring the love
of God in us. In the same vein, Jesus remarked, “Surely the bridegroom’s
attendants would never think of mourning as long as the bridegroom is still
with them? But the time will come for the bridegroom to be taken away
from them and then they will fast.” We fast only because God is absent in our
lives, and to reinforce that absence, the hunger of the body will remind us of
our hunger of the spirit for God in us.
Secondly, fasting is necessary to
bring us into union with Christ, our bridegroom, who is taken away from us
because of sin. We fast because of our sins, since they hinder us from
coming near to the Lord. So fasting leads to a greater awareness of our
sins. God commanded Isaiah to bring the people to repentance. He
said, “Shout for all you are worth, raise your voice like a trumpet.
Proclaim their faults to my people, their sins to the House of Jacob.”
When we fast, we become more conscious of the presence of God throughout the
day because of the hunger pangs we experience. Such consciousness of
God’s presence will also reinforce our consciousness of our lack of integrity
in life. By fasting, we seek to demonstrate our sincerity of wanting Him
to forgive our sins. A recollected presence of God is a necessary
requirement to come to self-awareness. Only then, can we share the joy of
the psalmist who sought the Lord’s mercy when he prayed, “A heart contrite and
humbled, O God, you will not spurn. For I acknowledge my offense, and my sin is
before me always: Against you only have I sinned, and done what is evil in your
sight.’” Fasting leads to real repentance and contrition of heart.
Thirdly, fasting brings about a
contrite heart because it is also an invitation to share in the passion of
Christ, as implied in today’s gospel. Many of us are not brought to
conversion in life because we never grasp the depth of God’s love for us in the
passion and death of Christ. We are so removed from the historical event
of Christ’s passion and death that the suffering of Christ is reduced to an
image of the crucifix. Few are able to enter into the suffering of
Christ, His physical and spiritual suffering for us. As it is said, if we
do not know how much a person suffers for the love of us, lesser is the
gratitude and therefore the conversion. By fasting, it helps to bring to
consciousness not only in our mind but in our body, what the love of Christ
entails. If we cannot suffer the pain of eating less, or simply of
tolerating some pain that comes from mortification, like kneeling before the
Blessed Sacrament, or serving the poor by depriving ourselves of some luxury
and financial security, or being caregivers to those who are immobile, just
think how much more pain Jesus had suffered on our account. It is to aid
us to come to such a realization of Christ’s love for us that the Church
recommends that we meditate on the Stations of the Cross and His Divine Mercy.
Fourthly, as a consequence of this
realization of His love for us, sinners, unworthy and undeserving as we are, we
can, with His love and mercy given to us, extend our forgiveness and compassion
to those who have offended us, or are in need of assistance. Charity
is also the manifestation of true fasting, since the fasting desired by God
is one that is as an act of love for Him and our fellowmen. True fasting
entails a life of justice in our relationship with others, whether it is with
regard to money, a just day of work for a just remuneration, respect for our
workers and the dignity of every human person. The Lord says through the
prophet, “Is not this the sort of fast that pleases me – to break unjust
fetters and undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and
break every yoke, to share your bread with the hungry, and shelter the homeless
poor, to clothe the man you see to be naked and not turn from your own
kin?” Fasting should bring about compassion for the poor and justice for
those oppressed. Charity is not restricted to giving our resources to the
poor. It means that we first must live a just and honest life and then
share our things with the needy. However, we might have to find the
courage also to defend the weak and the values of the Church, especially with
regard to the dignity of the human person. In this way, God said, “Then
will your light shine like the dawn and your wound be quickly healed over.”
Finally the reward of true fasting
is that God will hear our prayer. Unlike those who fasted for the
wrong reasons, God will say to those who fast rightly, “Your integrity will go
before you and the glory of the Lord behind you. Cry, and the Lord will answer;
call, and he will say, ‘I am here.’” Truly, when we fast with the motive
of coming closer to the Lord and to be moved to share His heart of compassion
and love, we can be sure that we will find peace in our conscience and with our
fellowmen. No greater joy or peace can one find except when we live
a life of integrity. When we live a righteous life, God will certainly hear our
prayer, since whatever we ask is for the advancement of His kingdom and the
extension of His reign of love.
WRITTEN BY THE MOST REV WILLIAM GOH
ARCHBISHOP
OF SINGAPORE
© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
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