If it is important not to overlook the physical requirements of fasting, it is even more important not to overlook its inward significance. Fasting is not a mere matter of diet. It is moral as well as physical. True fasting is to be converted in heart and will; it is to return to God, to come home like the Prodigal to our Father's house. In the words of St. John Chrysostom, it means 'abstinence not only from food but from sins'. 'The fast', he insists, 'should be kept not by the mouth alone but also by the eye, the ear, the feet, the hands and all the members of the body': the eye must abstain from impure sights, the ear from malicious gossip, the hands from acts of injustice. It is useless to fast from food, protests St. Basil, and yet to indulge in cruel criticism and slander: 'You do not eat meat, but you devour your brother' . Metropolitan Kallistos Ware.
During Lent, the time period which precedes Easter, a lot of people "give something up." It might be soda, or candy, or swearing, even. Do you know why? Do you think about it?
In the Eastern Orthodox Christian tradition, this mindset is a small portion of how we fast. You aren't just giving one item up, as though it were a game. You are doing it in order to gain something. We are to abstain from sinning (or try to) during this period to prepare ourselves for Easter, the most blessed event in the ecclesiastical calendar.
My fasting isn't as hard core as others, but that is between me and God. Some folks are older, or younger or have dietary restrictions so they can't abstain from the same foods as others. It is about more than food, or material items. The key is to be mindful of WHY we are taking action. If you slip up, its ok. It happens. We all slip up from time to time. The point is to acknowledge it and ask for forgiveness There was only one who didn't, and He is the reason for our attempt to honor His love in this way during the lenten season.
Stay strong people. Keep fighting the good fight!
