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Thread: Fasting
Rev Fr Athanasios Haros
#2
outsider wrote:
Fasting is one of the most difficult parts of Orthodoxy for me. I know there are good ways to do it, I just haven't found it yet. When I fast I constantly feel sick and hungry. I understand the hunger is part of the point of fasting though I suspect the feeling sick part isn't.
My problems with this are exasperated in that my wife is pregnant and it simply is not a good idea for her to fast so that we may have a healthy child. Her being pregnant is a tremendous blessing. Making two meals so that I would fast while she doesn't is wasteful of food.
I feel like on the one hand I'm trying to justify it even though I know it's not the case.
Does anyone else have similar problems?
Have you increased your prayers? Fasting without increased prayer is just a diet. Also try keeping in mind the purpose for Fasting...to defeat the passions. Fasting assists us in combating the physical passions. Are you suffering with these as well? I find, when I struggle with fasting, that I have more \'success\' when I keep these things in mind and increase my prayers. Sometimes, really just sometimes, our feeling ill during fasting \'can\' be a temptation to stop fasting rather than real illness. Evaluate your diet and make sure you get enough proteins etc. and stay the course. If you don\'t want to waste food, try making dishes you can eat for a couple of days like bean soup etc.
All this is presuming you are in contact with your Spiritual Father about this issue....
Good strength...and Merry Christmas.
Father Athanasios
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