Why did the Latin Rite church do away with strict fasting?

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johnridgway said:
Before 1956 The Latin Rite Church held the same fasting periods as the Eastern Orthodox.

books.google.co.uk/books?id=giA8iihQAT8C&lpg=PA10&dq=eucharistic%20fast%20catholic&pg=PA9#v=onepage&q=eucharistic%20fast%20catholic&f=false

Why was it changed to the Anglican style of virtually none existence?
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What is this “Anglican style” of which you speak? According to the 1662 Book of Common Prayer, fasting or abstinence is to be observed on
  • The Forty Days of Lent,
  • The Ember-Days at the Four Seasons, being the Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday after the First Sunday in Lent, the Feast of Pentecost, September 14, and December 13,
  • The Three Rogation Days, being the Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, before Holy Thursday, or the Ascension of our Lord.
  • All the Fridays in the Year, except Christmas Day.
  • The Evens or Vigils before: The Nativity of our Lord. The Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin. Easter Day. Ascension Day. Pentecost. St. Matthias. St. John Baptist. St. Peter. St. James. St. Bartholomew. St. Matthew. St. Simon and St. Jude. St. Andrew. St. Thomas. All Saints.
All that looks pretty “existent” to me. 🤷
 
Bran_Stark said:
What is this “Anglican style” of which you speak? According to the 1662 Book of Common Prayer, fasting or abstinence is to be observed on
  • The Forty Days of Lent,
  • The Ember-Days at the Four Seasons, being the Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday after the First Sunday in Lent, the Feast of Pentecost, September 14, and December 13,
  • The Three Rogation Days, being the Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, before Holy Thursday, or the Ascension of our Lord.
  • All the Fridays in the Year, except Christmas Day.
  • The Evens or Vigils before: The Nativity of our Lord. The Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin. Easter Day. Ascension Day. Pentecost. St. Matthias. St. John Baptist. St. Peter. St. James. St. Bartholomew. St. Matthew. St. Simon and St. Jude. St. Andrew. St. Thomas. All Saints.
All that looks pretty “existent” to me. 🤷
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I was talking with an Anglican priest and he told me it is not a requirement any-more, just as confession is not a requirement any-more.

In fact most things are not followed that are written down in the 1662 Book of Common Prayer 🙂
 
Not having reviewed the published reasons, I would have to guess that strict fasting was perceived to be too burdensome a discipline for neophytes and in certain cultures.
 
I suspect it has to do with a general lack of understanding on the part of the laity about why you fast. Fasting is a spiritual exercise, and if you don’t understand the purpose of it you are just fulfilling a requirement - where is the benefit? By reducing the number of days of fasting required it increases the significance of the practice (it is now very out of the ordinary).

If you are so inclined, there is no restriction on fasting more than required…
 
johnridgway said:
Before 1956 The Latin Rite Church held the same fasting periods as the Eastern Orthodox.

books.google.co.uk/books?id=giA8iihQAT8C&lpg=PA10&dq=eucharistic%20fast%20catholic&pg=PA9#v=onepage&q=eucharistic%20fast%20catholic&f=false

Why was it changed to the Anglican style of virtually none existence?

I know in England there has been a call to bring fasting back to Fridays, but it has mainly been ignored.

Thanks

Shalom
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Apostolic Constitution Paenitemini Of The Supreme Pontiff Paul Vi On Fast And Abstinence (Given at Rome, at St. Peter’s, February 17, 1966.)
In the first place, Holy Mother Church, although it has always observed in a special way abstinence from meat and fasting, nevertheless wants to indicate in the traditional triad of “prayer—fasting—charity” the fundamental means of complying with the divine precepts of penitence. These means were the same throughout the centuries, but in our time there are special reasons whereby, according to the demands of various localities, it is necessary to inculcate some special form of penitence in preference to others.(60) Therefore, where economic well-being is greater, so much more will the witness of asceticism have to be given in order that the sons of the Church may not be involved in the spirit of the “world,”(61) and at the same time the witness of charity will have to be given to the brethren who suffer poverty and hunger beyond any barrier of nation or continent.(62) On the other hand, in countries where the standard of living is lower, it will be more pleasing to God the Father and more useful to the members of the Body of Christ if Christians—while they seek in every way to promote better social justice—offer their suffering in prayer to the Lord in close union with the Cross of Christ.

Therefore, the Church, while preserving—where it can be more readily observed—the custom (observed for many centuries with canonical norms) of practicing penitence also through abstinence from meat and fasting, intends to ratify with its prescriptions other forms of penitence as well, provided that it seems opportune to episcopal conferences to replace the observance of fast and abstinence with exercises of prayer and works of charity.

In order that all the faithful, however, may be united in a common celebration of penitence, the Apostolic See intends to establish certain penitential days and seasons(63) chosen among those which in the course of the liturgical year are closer to the paschal mystery of Christ(64) or might be required by the special needs of the ecclesial community.(65)
vatican.va/holy_father/paul_vi/apost_constitutions/documents/hf_p-vi_apc_19660217_paenitemini_en.html
 
johnridgway said:
Before 1956 The Latin Rite Church held the same fasting periods as the Eastern Orthodox.

books.google.co.uk/books?id=giA8iihQAT8C&lpg=PA10&dq=eucharistic%20fast%20catholic&pg=PA9#v=onepage&q=eucharistic%20fast%20catholic&f=false
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Considering that the Eastern Orthodox have a variety of fasting practices that vary from one church to another, I don’t think it’s useful to say “the” Eastern Orthodox, and I doubt the Latin Church had a regimen identical to any of them. The ones that come to my mind were Slavic (Russian?), and were definitely more rigorous than I have ever heard of for the Latin Church (of any year).
 
There was talk about bringing back stricter fasting in the UK, are they going to do this in the US and other countries?
 
johnridgway said:
There was talk about bringing back stricter fasting in the UK, are they going to do this in the US and other countries?
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The UK has already returned to mandatory abstinence from meat of Fridays throughout the year. Other conferences of Bishops may require that in other areas as well - I don’t know.

In the US some form of penance is required every Friday, but currently abstinence is only required during Lent. There is some discussion among the bishops to return to other older rule, but that hasn’t been announced yet (either way).

I don’t believe though that the Latin church has ever had the levels of abstinence (from meat, dairy, oils, etc.) that some Eastern churches have followed - during Lent or at any other time of year.

On the other hand, times like Christmas Eve have always been a day of abstinence and I doubt that very many people know that. Even in places where a seafood dinner is traditional on Christmas Eve, I bet that most people assume it is cultural rather than religious.
 
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