13
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Accepted
What are the first references to a tradition of fasting before partaking of the Lord's Supper?
This practice is attested as early as the first half of the third century, by Tertullian and particularly Hippolytus.
Tertullian addresses the topic tangentially while addressing the dangers of women ...
12
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Who are the hypocrites associated with fasting in the Didache?
It is indeed about the Pharisees. Here's what Shmuel Safrai's paper “Religion in Everyday Life" says:
Mondays and Thursdays, which were synagogue days, when country-folk came to town and the courts ...
8
votes
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What are the reasons for the Catholic Church's law regarding the Communion fast?
Fr. William P. Saunders of Catholic Straight Answers gives the following reasons for fasting before Communion:
The most important point regarding this question concerns why we ought to [ever] fast. ...
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8
votes
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Is there a medical dispensation formally allowed from Lenten fasting in Catholicism?
The USCCB website has several questions and answers about Lenten observances.
The last one of these is:
Q. Are there exemptions other than for age from the requirement to fast on Ash Wednesday and ...
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7
votes
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Are those who have a history of eating disorders excused from obligatory Roman Catholic fasts?
From a Question and answer page from the United States conference of Catholic Bishops:
Q. Are there exemptions other than for age from the requirement to fast on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday?
A. ...
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7
votes
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What kinds of liquids can Catholics have while fasting?
What kinds of liquids can Catholics have while fasting?
First of all let us look at the rules for fasting and abstinence in the Roman Catholic Church. Here is what Pope St. Paul VI has to say in his ...
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6
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When did the Latin Catholic Church begin to generally require fasting only one hour prior to the Eucharist?
I attend the older Latin Rite and we still fast from the midnight before. It should be noted that, as a disciplinary measure, to humble the spirit and body, it does not comprise any intrinsic doctrine ...
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6
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According to Roman Catholicism, is a person required to fast?
Yes. "Binding" and "obligatory" mean exactly what it looks like: "are binding upon" means "apply to", and "obligatory" means "mandatory" or &...
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How does washing your face and anointing your head hide that you are fasting?
It wouldn't, except that people might expect you to be like "The hypocrites":
They neglect their appearance, so that they may appear to others to be fasting.
(Matthew 6:16)
You might ...
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5
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When Did Catholics Cease to Fast as the Orthodox Do?
When Did Catholics Cease to Fast as the Orthodox Do?
There are three general phases on how, when and why the Catholic Church changed her way of fasting. it seems all three stages must be seen in the ...
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4
votes
What are the reasons for the Catholic Church's law regarding the Communion fast?
From your question:
since [...], there isn't a readily apparent scriptural basis for it[.]
Interesting comment...
And Jesus said to them: Can the children of the bridegroom mourn, as long as ...
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4
votes
What did the early Christian twice weekly fasts consist of?
The Encyclopedia of Ancient Christianity on this topic points us to The Shepherd of Hermas. This work is dated to about the same time as the Didache (last first or early second century) and bears ...
4
votes
Accepted
When did the Latin Catholic Church begin to generally require fasting only one hour prior to the Eucharist?
To understand the full reason of when and why the Catholic Church changed the Eucharistic fast we must look into the whole history of receiving Holy Communion.
Pope St. Pius X (1903 to 1914) in his ...
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4
votes
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Are Catholics allowed to drink coconut water during the hour before they take communion?
Have you heard of any catechism lesson FORBIDDING ...
I think your whole question is based on some massive misconception:
As I already wrote in a comment, your question seems to based on the ...
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4
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When did the Early Church begin and end their twice weekly fasts?
The Wikipedia article on the Didache states (under the heading 'Fasting'), the following :
Chapter 8 suggests that fasts are not to be on Monday and Thursday "with the hypocrites" — presumably non-...
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4
votes
How is Lent observance reconciled with Matthew 6:16-18?
There is nothing about Lent observance that requires it to be public.
My experience is very different from yours, and most people keep their Lent observances very private. I don't know what anyone is ...
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4
votes
How is Lent observance reconciled with Matthew 6:16-18?
How is Lent observance reconciled with Matthew 6:16-18?
Lent can be as private as on wishes. The public nature of Lent observance is generally limited the liturgical days of Ash Wednesday and other ...
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4
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Can I drink water to which trace minerals drops had been added before receiving Communion?
It's OK to take medicine before receiving communion.
Canon law states, “One who is to receive the most Holy Eucharist is to abstain from any food or drink, with the exception only of water and ...
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3
votes
What are the reasons for fasting from midnight before Eucharist?
Prior to the Council decision in 417 CE, Augustine opined in letter 54 in 400 CE that "for the honour of so great a sacrament, that the body of the Lord should take the precedence of all other food ...
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3
votes
I am fasting for 40 days
I assume this is for lent?
Wikipedia indicates your mother is correct. In part it says:
In the Roman Rite Lent starts on Ash Wednesday and finishes on Holy Saturday. This comprises a period of 46 ...
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According to Roman Catholicism, is a person required to fast?
To add to the answer given by Wtrmute, I would point out that it is not the Church that demands it but Christ himself. The Catholic Church Confirms and conforms to the teachings of Christ in it's ...
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3
votes
Accepted
Which is a greater sin - to eat meat on Good Friday or to spoil it
Regarding whether the Church can impose fasting as a matter of precept, St. Thomas Aquinas writes (Summa Theologica II-II q. 147 a. 3 ad 2):
It will be a mortal sin to disobey a commandment through ...
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3
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How common is it to fast for 40+ days among Christians?
To his disciples, regarding fasting, Jesus says :
But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face; That thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret: and ...
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3
votes
Accepted
Early Christian Lent Fasting Practices
Early Christian Lent Fasting Practices?
In the Early Church, there was no set rule for fasting during Lent. Some fasted for one day, while others fasts for many days. The 40 day tradition of Lent that ...
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3
votes
Accepted
What other customary Catholic fasting periods are there aside from Lent?
What other customary Catholic fasting periods are there aside from Lent?
There are several historical fasts that have now disappeared, just like the dodo bird. But every once in awhile they seems to ...
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3
votes
Does "fasting" bring a Christian closer to God?
Fasting that is done for self-serving purposes is just that; self-serving. One should not fast primarily to get closer to God or to better oneself spiritually or to derive some physical or spiritual ...
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2
votes
Why does any Archbishop get to decide if alligator is okay for Lent?
Why does any Archbishop get to decide if alligator is okay for Lent?
When he officially gets the go ahead for the conference of Bishops in a particular region or country to do so, the USCCB in this ...
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2
votes
How long, and in what cases did Catholics participate in the Black Fast?
How long, and in what cases did Catholics participate in the Black Fast?
First of all let us start with a general Catholic definition of a black fast.
Black Fast
A rigorous form of fasting which, in ...
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2
votes
Should one avoid fasting during Easter?
Should one avoid fasting during Easter?
The short answer is: Absolutely no fasting is permitted during the Easter Season.
The fifty days between Easter and Pentecost have ever been considered by ...
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2
votes
What are common ways for contemporary Christians to fast?
In the Catholic Church there are only two days of fasting in modern times:
Ash Wednesday and Good Friday are obligatory days of fasting and abstinence for Catholics. In addition, Fridays during ...
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