Sunday Musings: On Fasting & Turning the Other Cheek
Today is the last Sunday before Lent. On Tuesday, we (over)indulge in all the things we love, and on Wednesday we receive our ashes and turn toward fasting and abstinence.
It is an abrupt turn, to go from eating and drinking in excess to stopping cold turkey. The jump from Fat Tuesday to Ash Wednesday would be less severe if we didn’t overdo it the day before Lent. We’re just “getting it out of our systems,” we tell ourselves, so that when we wake up the next day, we’re too bloated and/or hungover to even consider indulging again for quite some time.
What is it that God wants out of us during Lent? Catholics are told that the three pillars for this 40-day event are almsgiving, prayer and fasting. The first two pillars are easy enough to understand. Offer a little extra to your parish and those in need, often by depriving yourself of something and putting the money saved towards your donation. Pick up the Bible, listen to a religious podcast or say the rosary every chance you get.
Fasting, though, is a bit more complex. In the Bible, Jesus is said to have gone into the desert and “fasted for 40 days and 40 nights and afterwards was hungry” (Matthew 4:1-11). The last part is almost comical. Of course He was hungry! It was the fact that, while He was famished and likely weakened, He was still mentally strong and refused to be lured into sin by the devil.
So is this what fasting is all about, giving up all sustenance and emerging strong enough to not fall into temptation? It’s important to realize that Christians are called to be “like” Jesus, but not called to “be” Jesus. Most people should not refrain from food or water for four days, let alone 40. While it may seem noble, it can actually be deadly.
Just this month, Francisco Barajah, 39, founder of the Santa Trindade Evangelical Church in Mozambique, died after trying to emulate Christ by fasting for 40 days. He made it 25 days, before being rushed to the hospital and being diagnosed with organ failure. Doctors were unable to save him.
Fasting is not unusual, especially in religious traditions, and done in moderation it can even have health benefits. But depriving oneself of all food and liquid for 40 days is not something we mortals are built for. The idea of the biblical fasting was to grow closer to God, but not by dropping dead!
We learn from the US Council of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) that “the norms on fasting are obligatory from age 18 until age 59. When fasting, a person is permitted to eat one full meal, as well as two smaller meals that together are not equal to a full meal.” Also, at least in the Catholic Church, fasting is only done on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, not throughout Lent.
Some people also choose to “give up” something during Lent, like candy or pizza (or, for some of us, Starbucks) and do that for the whole 40 days. Whatever you give up, it’s supposed to be a bit painful for you, with the hopes that you come out of Lent stronger in your resolve and your faith.
Even within the rules of giving up something for Lent, though, confusion exists. The time between Ash Wednesday and Easter Sunday equals more than 40 days. Some people use Sundays during Lent as a time to indulge in what they gave up; otherwise, they argue, you would be observing Lent for more than 40 days. On the other side, you have people who find it quite ridiculous to give up something for six days, only to toss it back in for one day. Also, it’s hard to imagine Jesus leaving the desert on the Sabbath to enjoy a sandwich and some water, and then heading back in for fasting right after midnight.
No matter which side we land on, we should know that the whole point of Lent is to spend more time thinking about our faith and less time about when we’re having our next meal.
On another Sunday note, I was today years old when I learned what “turn the other cheek” actually means. This directive from Jesus always threw me for a loop. How were people supposed to go from “an eye for an eye,” as was said in the Old Testament, to “offer no resistance to one who is evil”?
Even in my advanced years, I imagined this meant neutrality, even passivity. And I assumed it meant that when someone is mean to you, you shouldn’t be mean back. But thanks to Fr. Joe’s message in our Sunday bulletin, I finally got the full story.
It’s not completely staying calm when someone calls you fat or dumb or steels your lunch money. It’s about standing firm in what you believe without resorting to anger or violence. It’s what martyrs do when they refuse to cave in and instead accept their fate. It’s what Christians are supposed to do when someone rejects our beliefs or tries to turn us away from them.
Wow, this definition of “turn the other cheek” is even harder than what I thought it meant! How many times have I been somewhat embarrassed by my Catholic values and dismissed them to others? Instead of enduring the possible insults and standing firm, I have in the past stayed quiet or, worse yet, twisted what I believe until it fit what the world preferred.
What a wake up call this morning, and just in time to go out into the proverbial desert and repent. Of course, I will be eating and drinking water in moderation as I ponder this over the next six weeks.
Excellent