A GOOD FASTING

Matthew 9:14-15

It is in the mind of many young people that they should be slim.  Many young people are desperate in losing weight and keeping in shape. They try all possible means like dieting, playing their favorite sports and lifting weights in order to be in good shape. It is a fashion to be “slim.” And fasting from certain meals or food is in vogue.

Today’s gospel presents to us the aspect of fasting in the Jewish culture. We know that fasting is valued by most religions. It is understood as a way of expiating sin, purifying the spirit and offering up something to the divinity. For the Jewish people, fasting is listed as one of the cornerstones of their spirituality. And probably that is why John’s disciples came to Jesus to question him. Why is it that your disciples do not fast? Jesus says that they do not fast because He is with them.

To satisfy their inquiry Jesus gives a simple explanation that there’s a time for fasting. He does not condemn their fasting, but rather He makes it clear that the center of attention must be the Lord, the bridegroom and not the legality of the law. Christ must be the center of our lives; of our Christian practices. He is the reason why we fast.

Jesus is underlining a deeper aspect of our Christian life: “Can the wedding guests mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them?” He wants to clarify that fasting or Christian practices are not mere legal demands. During lent, the Church does not ask us to fast because it is a law to be obeyed. Instead our fasting or our Christian practices, are and should be the way of becoming closer and closer to the bridegroom; closer to God. 

In other words, Jesus puts things in their proper perspective. He gives meaning to our fasting. And our first reading form the prophet Isaiah is clear on that: This is rather the fasting that I wish: releasing those bound unjustly, untying the thongs of the yoke, setting free the oppressed, sharing your bread, sheltering the homeless, and clothing the naked. In all of this, the message is that the purpose of all devotions is to express our love to God and to our neighbor. God is more pleased when we go beyond the self-deprivation to reach out to the less privileged.

Today, and during this whole period of lent we are called to ask ourselves: Why do I fast or why do I follow all these Christian practices?