20160212 THE KPIs OF FASTING
Readings at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: Violet.
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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 KPIs OF
FASTING
SCRIPTURE
READINGS: Isiah 58:1-9; Matthew 9:14-15
One of
the most important means of discipline and spiritual growth during the season
of Lent is fasting.
This is the third pillar of the spiritual exercises recommended by the
Lord. Fasting itself is perhaps the most difficult among all the
spiritual exercises because it requires perseverance and endurance. Yet,
for any serious spiritual growth or effectiveness in the mission, fasting must
accompany our prayers. Even Jesus went to the desert to pray and fast
before He was ready for His mission. In our preparation to enter into the
paschal mystery of our Lord, His passion, death and resurrection, fasting is a
necessity.
Unfortunately,
most Catholics fast or abstain more out of routine, obligation and custom than
a spiritual motive. Some of course fast with an ulterior motive. Some fast
just to lose weight or save money. Others fast to appease God and seek
His blessings or because of a subtle spiritual pride like the Pharisees.
Jesus is against such hypocrisy. So, too, the prophet is very much
against the way the Israelites fasted. They said, “Why should we fast if
you never see it, why do penance if you never notice?” And the reply of
the Lord was swift, “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?”
So when or
why do we fast? The Lord Jesus makes it clear that the purpose of
fasting is to find God and be present to Him. He said, “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 when the Lord
is absent. That is why, we do not fast on Sundays and solemnities because
it is the Day of the Lord. We rejoice when He is with us.
That
being the case, we fast only because we want to return to the Lord and feel His
presence. The
truth is that because of the life that we live, we tend to be distracted by the
world and its pursuits. Soon our hearts are so soiled by the attractions
of the world that we lose touch with the Lord. Our work and our daily
involvements can take away from us our personal relationship with Him. We
often lose our intimacy with the Lord because Christ is no more our
beloved. So when our relationship with Him is superficial, mediocre,
functional, perfunctory and cold, it means that the bridegroom is no longer
with us.
The other
reason why the Lord is absent from our hearts is because we live a life of sin,
like the Israelites in the first reading. We chase after false gods, making these other
things more important than Christ. The world becomes more important and
Jesus is no longer the most important and essential person and reality in our
life. When the bridegroom is dead in our life, it is because of sin, especially
mortal and grave sins. Indeed, the purpose of fasting is to seek a
conversion of life by recognizing our sins. With the psalmist, it is
hoped that through fasting and prayer, we can also say sincerely, “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.” What the Lord is
seeking, as the psalmist says, is a contrite heart. “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.” If
fasting does not bring about a real conversion of life, it clearly shows that
our purpose and objective in fasting is wrong or that we did not fast correctly
and sincerely.
So, what
outcomes do we seek in fasting? These outcomes are mentioned in the first reading. Fasting
is intended to bring about a deeper relationship with God through an interior
and contemplative prayer life. It serves to give us time to enter into
ourselves and grow in self-awareness. But most of all, it helps us to
identify with the pains of others and thereby helps us to enter into their
suffering. We become more sensitive to them and that helps us to grow in
empathy and compassion.
Through
fasting and discipline, we hope to attain a greater integrity of life. We hope to be freed from slavery of all
sorts, whether spiritual oppression or injustices. Through self-discipline and
strengthening of will, we can better overcome our sensual needs. We
also become more just in dealing with people, especially with colleagues and
loved ones because we feel with the poor and Christ’s love for them. Most
of all, we are identified with Christ in His mission for the poor and
oppressed.
At the
end of the day, our fasting must help us to be more charitable, just,
compassionate and forgiving like Jesus. Our charity and compassion towards others, which
includes forgiveness, is the consequence of our solidarity with Christ’s pain
and the result of the experience of His love and mercy. This is
what the Lord is asking of us when we fast. The Lord said, “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?” Charity, ultimately, is the fruit of fasting.
When we
fast in the right manner, we will bear the fruits of a life of integrity. The Lord says, “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.’” Let us therefore purify our
desire and motives in fasting. So these are the KPIs of
fasting. We must always check our motives by focusing on the outcomes
that we desire, or rather, what the Church intends for us. Otherwise we
are wasting our time fasting. Fasting for the wrong reasons will do us no
good but make us more vain, proud and self-righteous. Fasting is only a
means, not the end itself. The day when the Lord is with us, and we are
with Him in intimacy and love, then fasting is no longer necessary.
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved
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