20220304 INTEGRITY OF FASTING
04 March, 2022, Friday after Ash Wednesday
First reading | Isaiah 58:1-9 © |
The sort of fast that pleases me
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.’
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 50(51):3-6,18-19 © |
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.
Gospel Acclamation | cf.Ps129:5,7 |
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!
Or: | cf.Amos5:14 |
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.
Glory and praise to you, O Christ!
Gospel | Matthew 9:14-15 © |
When the bridegroom is taken from them, then they will fast
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.’
INTEGRITY OF FASTING
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ISAIAH 58:1-9; PS 51:3-6,18-19; MATTHEW 9:14-15]
Today, being Friday after Ash Wednesday, it is appropriate for the liturgy to provide the right perspective to one of the three pillars of spiritual exercises during the Season of Lent, namely, fasting. It must be noted that the spiritual value of fasting is not just confined to Christianity, or even Judaism, but in most religions as well. Even those promoting healthy lifestyle recommend periodical fast. Often, we are called to fast from some kind of food and drinks as these are not good for the body. Many without religion fast for vanity reasons. This explains why different people fast for different reasons.
Many of us try to circumvent the law of fasting. We can become legalistic, more concerned about fulfilling the law than the actual spirit of fasting. Catholics particularly, at one time when abstinence from meat was a universal law, would squabble over what kind of meat one may not consume. For instance, may we eat frog meat as they are amphibious creatures, or turtle meat, as they live on both land and water even though they are reptiles? What about condiments that come from animals? Or for that matter, the one hour of Eucharistic fast before receiving communion – when do we count the hour, from the time Mass begins or from the time of reception of the Eucharist? Then again, if we cannot take meat, we can indulge in seafood. So even though the fast is observed, the spirit of the fast might not be observed. The law is not broken but it does not mean that we have truly observed the spirit of the law.
Consequently, to reap the spiritual benefits of fasting, it is important that we fast with the right motive. Otherwise, we can be fasting as the Church law requires of us or encourages to do, but with worldly motives, more for our physical health and image rather than for our spiritual growth. This is only apparent fasting. This was what the Israelites were doing. Their fasting was merely an external show. The prophet Isaiah reprimanded them, “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?”
In reply to John’s disciples who “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?” From this text, it seems that Jesus was telling us there is no need to fast. In some aspects it is true because we do not fast out of a habit that we have developed over the years, for example, not eating meat on Fridays, or because we can prove to others how very disciplined we are, and how much self-control we have.
So when do we fast? We fast, as the Lord tells us, when “the bridegroom (is) to be taken away from them and then they will fast.” What is the symbol of the bridegroom? It is a symbol of joy, love and celebration. In the time of the Jews, many were very poor. And for once in their life, they were treated like kings and queens on their wedding day. The bridegroom was to provide food and wine for their guests. There would be fun and laughter, singing and rejoicing for a week. So the Lord was saying that when it is a time of joy and celebration, fasting is not appropriate. It lacks integrity and consistency. When it is a time to celebrate, we celebrate. It is for this reason that many Bishops conferences dispensed Catholics from abstaining from meat on Fridays of the Year except Ash Wednesday and Good Friday so that they could still observe some other forms of penance and continue with their celebration when the food includes meat.
Fasting becomes a necessity when we have lost the bridegroom in our lives. In this case, the bridegroom could be the Lord Himself. When we have lost our Lord by our sins or negligence in our relationship with Him, then indeed, the bridegroom has been taken away from us. In such a situation, it would be right to begin a fast so that we can enter into a disposition of prayer and reflection. We can search our hearts deeply and listen more attentively when we keep ourselves from noisy celebrations and distractions in the world. By fasting, we prepare ourselves interiorly to yearn for the Lord. This is why the Church encourages us to fast during this Season of Lent so that we can renew our relationship with the Lord, as over the year, our hearts could have grown cold, indifferent or lukewarm. So in the season of Lent, fasting together with prayers help us to engage the Lord once again.
Fasting is also necessary when we have lost the joy of living. When the bridegroom is taken away, it means we have no joy, passion or enthusiasm for life. This happens when we live a life of sin and guilt. Sin always takes away our joy, happiness and peace. Those who live in sin cannot find real peace in their lives. They might look happy externally, but they know that their hearts are not at rest. They try to suppress their conscience but their conscience keeps haunting them. Indeed, those who have become rich through ill-gotten gains, those who have betrayed their loved ones for other relationships, those who are vindictive, cannot forgive those who have hurt them, cannot find peace. Some demand that their enemies be punished so that they can find closure when justice is done. In truth, real closure requires forgiveness and not revenge.
Fasting is necessary also when we are alienated from the poor and the suffering. It means that we have lost our empathy for the suffering. A person without compassion is no longer human. God is all compassion and mercy. He feels with us and for us. Compassion is the manifestation of love and when acted out, we call it mercy. When we are absorbed in ourselves, in our pleasures and ambition, lacking compassion for those who are suffering, life becomes empty. This is why those who are compassionate feel great joy when they reach out to those who are deprived or suffering. No amount of money can bring the personal joy of touching the heart of someone in need, whether through material assistance or just bringing a smile and giving a word of encouragement. It is when we fast, that we learn to identity with the poor and the suffering. When we know what hunger is like or what it is to be without accommodation, we would not waste food and we would want to assist that those who have no food or accommodation. Indeed, one of the things that the Church has done is to provide shelter for the homeless. If you go for a walk in the early morning hours, it is sad to see so many are sleeping in the park, on the benches, in the field, HDB void decks or wherever they can find a place. Many have no homes to live in, or are driven out of their homes because they cannot get along with each other.
How should we observe the Lenten fast? We must fast with integrity. This means the objectives must be clear. The prophet Isaiah exposed the Jews’ hypocrisy of fasting when he said, “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.” That kind of fasting will not draw us closer to God or to our fellowmen. That kind of fast without integrity, continuing to ignore the law of God will not bring us peace. So what kind of fast will pleased the Lord? “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?”
When we fast with integrity, observing the spirit of the fast, the Prophet 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.'” Truly, fasting in the right spirit should make us humble, more conscious of our sins, sincerely repentant for the injury we have caused to others, especially our loved ones, more earnest in wanting to correct our faults, and greater compassion to reach out to those who are suffering. By healing and tending to the wounds of others, we heal our own wounds, by filling the lives of the poor and lonely with love, we find love ourselves.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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