Fr. Ed Broom: Ten Ways We Can Practice Fasting

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Photo by Sangia on Unsplash

By Fr. Ed Broom, OM, Catholic Exchange, February 25, 2020

Father Ed Broom is an Oblate of the Virgin Mary and the author of Total Consecration Through the Mysteries of the Rosary and From Humdrum to Holy. He blogs regularly at Fr. Broom’s Blog.

Jesus said: “Unless you do penance you will all perish,” (Lk. 13:3). In the first preaching of His Public ministry Jesus exhorts us to conversion: “Be converted for the Kingdom of God is at hand,”(Mk. 1:15). The Mystical Body of Christ generously offers us a season of grace which has, as its purpose, conversion every year. This is the forty days of Lent.

Moses fasted forty days on the Mountain and Jesus spent forty days in the desert fasting. The Church encourages us in the Season of Lent to dig deep into the inner recesses of our hearts and beg for conversion of heart.

This conversion can become a reality by undertaking three traditional practices: prayer, almsgiving, and fasting. (Mt. 6: 1-18) In prayer we lift our minds to God; in almsgiving we go out to meet the needs of our suffering brothers and sisters; in fasting we dig deep into our hearts and beg the Lord for the grace to relinquish our attachment to sin!

This being the case, what might be some concrete ways that we can practice fasting? An important note is the following: fasting is not a mere diet, with the simple desire to lose a few extra pounds. Rather, the purpose of fasting is to please God, convert our hearts as well as to beg for the conversion of others. In other words, fasting must have a horizontal or supernatural intention! ….

Read more here catholicexchange.com/ten-ways-we-can-practice-fasting