Fasting while praying

[john78]

I have seen and heard plenty of times in scripture about people who fasted and prayed to our Lord for help in times of difficulty / in general / and in times of religious or personal discernment.

my question is , has anyone here ever tried this , if so for how long, and i take it one can fast from any food in general or is one supposed to fast from food altogether ? perhaps something else other than food ? Then how long does one fast and pray for in any given situation ?

 

[thistle]

I have seen and heard plenty of times in scripture about people who fasted and prayed to our Lord for help in times of difficulty / in general / and in times of religious or personal discernment.

my question is , has anyone here ever tried this , if so for how long, and i take it one can fast from any food in general or is one supposed to fast from food altogether ? perhaps something else other than food ? Then how long does one fast and pray for in any given situation ?

Leaving aside the one hour fast before Communion the Church requires fasting on only 2 days a year (Ash Wednesday and Good Friday), and that entails having at most one normal meal plus two smaller meals that together do not exceed one normal meal. Fasting applies to quantity of food and not specific food. Giving up specific food like meat is abstinence and not fasting.

Apart from that all other fasting is voluntary and has no rules. However, before engaging in voluntary fasting it would be wise to talk to a priest first and also your doctor.

 

[MtnDwellar]

As stated, there are no rules. Fasting is a virtue and should be practiced by anyone who is able.

I fast from all food for 24 hours at a time. That means I miss two meals and delay the third.

 

[HolyRosaryChild]

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
I do John weekly; sometimes twice weekly on water and bread (tea) abstaining from coffee while praying The Holy Rosaries twice or three times daily with or without Fasting.

The way of course is to do without food and drink loads of water however I need a piece of toast in which Jesus and Mother Mary know I have tried; however continuing to try and do without all food as my objective twice weekly.

The primary thing is to cut out the junk food/rubbish in all aspects of our lives when Fasting ie television, newspapers, to fully focus on The Holy Rosaries reflecting on The Stations of The Cross and of course reading The Bible regularly!

These steps bring us closer and closer to God Our Heavenly Father and Our Lady Mary Mother of Jesus.

Love and best wishes

 

[john78]

ty for the responses thus far,

perhaps my next question is after reading holyrosarychilds’ response is ,

how does fasting help those who can, to grow closer to Christ / God / Mary or the Saints ?

Versus just regular steadfast praying.

and if one is unable to physically fast from food, could it be appropriate or suitable to give up something else instead ?

 

[MtnDwellar]

One aspect of fasting is that we utilize our higher selves to subdue our lower needs. It makes us stronger. The saints have shared with us that subduing our lower desires quiets us and leaves us more receptive to God’s will, especially during prayer.