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Fasting

aidanaidan
edited December 1969 in Coptic Orthodox Church
Judging by previous experience this topic does not seem a popular one.

However, I would dearly like to understand the rules of fasting and especially how we conduct ourselves on Saturdays, Sundays and on great feasts during Great Lent. Is fish peimitted for the healthy during Great Lent on these occasions or are we still strictly vegan?

I have done some research but without having a clear idea of the nuts and bolts.

May God bless you

Comments

  • jydeaconjydeacon
    What most people do not understand specifically with great lent, is that during weekdays, monday-fri, we are not to eat until sunset(the muslim month of ramadan is fashioned from our true Traditions of great lent). This is why during great lent our liturgies are held in the afternoon. When you break this "fast" on weekdays it is totally vegan food that should be eaten. On weekends, there is no fasting from food all day, but the meals you eat must be vegan. Its not as common to hear people are fasting all day during the week in the Diaspora but the correct way to fast is as mentioned.
  • minatasgeelminatasgeel
    [quote author=aidan link=topic=10751.msg130972#msg130972 date=1297967044]
    Judging by previous experience this topic does not seem a popular one.

    However, I would dearly like to understand the rules of fasting and especially how we conduct ourselves on Saturdays, Sundays and on great feasts during Great Lent. Is fish peimitted for the healthy during Great Lent on these occasions or are we still strictly vegan?

    I have done some research but without having a clear idea of the nuts and bolts.

    May God bless you

    the Great Lent is a 1st degree fast. No dairy, no meat and no seafood. to add to it, there is abstaining from food during weekdays (not weekends)....except if there is a lordly feast (like the Annunciation which always comes during lent), there would be no abstaining from food but the fast itself will keep going. last tuesday was the best example, The Feast of the Entry to the Temple. it broke the abstaining from food rule (in the tuesday of jonah's fast) but not the fast itself.
    weekdays and weekends; both have their own rites within the liturgy and hymns.
  • PaulSamirPaulSamir
    heres a sermons to help focus on the spiritual side of fasting.
    http://orthodoxsermons.org/sermons/fasting-part-1
  • mabsootamabsoota
    yea!
    the great fast is coming  :) this is what we call it in arabic.

    i have also been researching and it seems like the food customs are a bit different in the eastern and oriental orthodox churches.
    so i would love it if you could tell me more about eastern orthodox fasting. i know there are some days you guys can eat prawns during lent, and also that in some churches, they have days when they don't eat any oil.
    i can't imagine that, i can't think how you can eat vegan food without oil, i imagine i would get very thin!

    so, here in the oriental churches, all of lent (8 weeks, as the week before pascha is counted separately, so we start on 28th feb) is 100% vegan, from 00.01 on monday 28th to after the midnight liturgy of saturday night/sunday morning 24th april. we are allowed to use oil to cook our food, but we are not suppose to overindulge and get fat.
    we don't take any alcohol, that is unthinkable during lent! i heard some greek churches allow beer during some fasts (i suppose from the days 100s years ago when beer was very weak and water was often unsafe to drink because of pollution) but that would be really shocking during a coptic fast. many copts (and ethiopians/ eritreans) don't drink at all. does your church allow any alcohol?

    we are supposed to abstain from eating and drinking until at least 3pm (some say sunset) on week days. lots of people don't do this last part, as it is quite hard if you are in a sweaty manual job, or a job that requires lots of standing and immense concentration. i suppose some special people could do it, but generally, people take annual leave on good friday (as much as they can without leaving the country without transport, police and hospitals) and fast until the end of the service on good friday. our good friday service is so lovely, and at one part we do 400 matanias (prostrating into kneeling position with head on floor and then getting back up again). you have to be an athlete to do all 400, usually only the young manage it, and the elderly bow deeply and reverently.
    but soon it is lent and we can pray with many prostrations in preparation for this  :)

    the thing that is the same is that lent is a time of repentance and 'fasting' from pride, rebellion, a judgemental attitude and a time to give to the poor and come close to God in much Bible study and prayer. i love lent! i have been looking forward to it since last year and am very excited  :)
    i have never kept the fast brilliantly, but i love trying again each time, as God's love and forgiveness is overwhelming.
  • aidanaidan
    Mabsoota

    I actually don't lose any weight during fasting periods (well, not enough). In one way this is good since I could have the added incentive of slimming when I fast.

    The Lenten Triodion gives the rules of fasting and long and intimidating they are. There is a lot of xerophagy or dry eating. You can boil onions, garlic and other veg to make a stew to go with rice that is perfectly acceptable to the digestive enzymes. In fact it's tastier without oil. I don't know how you make bread without some kind of fat.

    Fasting until Nones is the aim but not many achieve that and yes, we have wine-acceptable days. I shall give these a miss this year. It makes it easier to know what you are doing.

    I am interested to know if the Copts' fast is easier to follow. In the Eastern Orthodox churches it differs according to the week you are in as to the strictness and you have anomalies like eating shellfish, not considered luxuries in Greece but are here.

    As an aside. In the Domesday book (1081) a woman has an allotment of lenten beans. I would love to know how they fasted in England in those days.

    May God grant you a blessed fast
  • mabsootamabsoota
    very interesting.
    do you have any links to recipes without oil?
    do you have any links to the lenten triodian? what does the word mean?
    i will email my catholic friend and see if he knows about historic lentern fasting.
    it may be a while before i get back to you as i shall be away from the computer for a few days.
    may God bless your fast too!
  • peterfarringtonpeterfarrington
    I must admit to being surprised that Copts fast with olive oil. I imagine that this is the oil that EO do not use.

    Aidan, are you taught no oils at all, or no olive oil?

    Father Peter
  • mabsootamabsoota
    i don't usually use olive oil as it's expensive.
    i think some people don't use it during fasts. in my church we definitely use some oils, as i have been in tasoni's kitchen during lent.
  • aidanaidan
    [quote author=Father Peter link=topic=10751.msg131123#msg131123 date=1298116381]
    I must admit to being surprised that Copts fast with olive oil. I imagine that this is the oil that EO do not use.

    Aidan, are you taught no oils at all, or no olive oil?

    Father Peter


    Yes, Father, it is olive oil that is the one particularly all oil by extension although I think some monks I know grease the pan with vegetable oil to stop things sticking. There are 'no wine or oil days' and fast days when oil and wine is 'permitted'.

    And Mabsoota, you can boil quite tastily and add soy sauce etc and of course rice and potatoes are boiled. Also I remembered that my family like the soda bread I make which has no oil and is easier than using yeast leavening.


    Ask me for some recipes ;D
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