Puasa

Tradisi Kristiani

Background
Fasting is meant to encourage believers
to respond positively to Gods
commands. As they deprive themselves
of certain physical needs food, sleep, or
sexual relations, for example they are
better able to see the weakness of their
flesh and to hear Gods voice. Fasting
should result in self-denial, not selfindulgence. When believers share with
others it serves as a reminder that all
they own ultimately belongs to God.
Fasting in the Old Testament normally
lasts from sunrise to sunset
In the days of Jesus, the Pharisees fast
each Monday and Thursday (Luke
18:12). Jesus appears to have fasted
often, including the 40 days before His
public ministry (Luke 4:1-2).

Objectives

It is religious in purpose and is

undertaken for a variety of reasons:
to express grief (1 Sam. 31:13),
to demonstrate ones seriousness
when appealing to God (Ezra 8:23),
to indicate repentance (Jonah 3:5-10),
and
to honor the solemnity of the Day of
Atonement (Lev. 16:29-31).

Methods
fasting meant cutting down on the total
amount of food eaten (meals included two
small meals, typically defined as one
quarter size of the normal meal, and one
full meal)
abstinence meant not eating meat.
.

Time
In the medieval Christian Church every
Friday was considered a fast day and it
commemorated the death of Jesus.
On the principle of fast before a feast the
eve (vigil) of a holiday or Church festival
was often a day of fasting and penitence:
the Vigil of Christmas, the vigil of Epiphany,
the Vigil of Pentecost, etc.
There were also four seasonal fasts: the
weeks following the Feast of the Exaltation
of the Cross (September 14), the Feast of
Saint Lucy (December 13), the first Sunday
in Lent, and Pentecost. Fasting would take
place on Wednesday, Friday and Saturday.
Two other periods, Advent, comprising the
four weeks before Christmas, and Lent, the
forty days that prepare the way for Easter,
also included fasting periods.
Since it was not possible to go without food
for such an extended time, this fasting
came to mean eating less food. In the early
Church one meal a day was eaten. This
was an evening meal that took place after
the Vespers service. Meat, fish, eggs, and
butter were forbidden on fast days.
Sundays were not part of the fasting day
and

Foods in Fasting days

The following foods are avoided:
Meat, including poultry, and any meat
products such as lard and meat broth.
Fish (meaning fish with backbones; shellfish
are permitted).
Eggs and dairy products (milk, butter,
cheese, etc.)
Olive oil. A literal interpretation of the rule
forbids only olive oil. Especially where olive
oil is not a major part of the diet, the rule is
sometimes taken to include all vegetable
oils, as well as oil products such as
margarine.
Wine and other alcoholic drink. In the Slavic
tradition, beer is often permitted on fast
days.

Mental Attitude
Fasting must be combined with a lifestyle
of self-denial. The Christian can not take
part in the sacrament of the fast if he is
denying his flesh in order to fuel his own
pride. A fast which glorifies the strength of
the flesh is not a fast that allows the
participation with Christ. It is a fast which
beats down the ones with a right spirit
before God.
Not only must one be generous as he
fasts, but he must also be joyful instead of
putting on a somber face. He must wash
himself of unrighteousness,. as told in the
Sermon on the Mount so that he can gain
the benefit of a true fast.

Exemption

The Church has always exempted small

children, the sick, the very old, and pregnant
and nursing mothers from strict fasting.
While people in these groups should not
seriously restrict the amount that they eat,
no harm will come from doing without some
foods on two days out of the week simply
eat enough of the permitted foods.

References

Exceptions to the fast based on medical

necessity (as with diabetes) are always
allowed.

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