وجبـــــــة روحيـــــ(†)ــــــــــة يوميـــــــــة

[Mary Naeem]

* يتمنطق الناس لكي يتهيأوا بالأكثر للعمل دون أن تعوقهم ثيابهم.
فهو يمنطق نفسه باللعنات، ويخطط للشر ليمارسه بكل حرصٍ،
وليس كدافع مفاجئ له، وإنه يتعلم أن يفعل الشر بهذه الطريقة،

فيكون دومًا مستعدًا لارتكابه.

القديس أغسطينوس

[Mary Naeem]

* "لتكن له كثوبٍ يتعطف به، وكمنطقة يتنطق بها دائمًا" [19]... ما يعنيه هو هذا: يمسك الشر بهم (بالأشرار)
فلا يستطيعون إحداث أي تغيير، وإنما على العكس يثبت

فيهم بقوةٍ ولا يتحرك.



القديس يوحنا الذهبي الفم

[Mary Naeem]

يرى القديس أغسطينوس

أن هذا هو "عمل"، وليس "هذه أجرة"،
فإنه بقوله يلبس اللعنة، ويفيض ماءً وزيتًا
ويتمنطق بمنطقة، هذه كلها أعمال تنتج لعنات أبدية.

[Mary Naeem]

* لقد أضاف هذا ليُظهِر أنه يعاقب الشر ويُصلِح الأشرار،
وأن هذا الحُكْم لا يخُص (شرير مُعَيَّن) بل كل الذين يرتكبون
ما سبق الإشارة إليه... هذه العقوبة تحلُّ على الذين يقاومونني،

المولعين بتدبير المكائد، والمحاربين لي، والمتكلمين بالشر عليّ .

القديس يوحنا الذهبي الفم

[Mary Naeem]

Pope Shenouda III







The disagreements between us Orthodox and the Protestants regarding Fasting

It is quite obvious that fasting was not a symbol but a commandment in the Old Testament and New Testament. Our Protestant brethren do not utterly deny fasting but they have practically cancelled it. Here, I will not discuss the subject of fasting in general with its importance, benefits and spirituality because all these can be read about in our book entitled The Spirituality of Fasting.
Points of variance:
(1) Our Protestant brethren say that fasting should be practised secretly between man and God, following the Lord's commandment in the Sermon on the Mount (Matt.6: 17,18).
(2) Our Protestant brethren do not have fixed fasts for all the believers at set times and on certain occasions, but most of their fasts are individual practices. The individual fasts whenever he likes, in the manner he likes, and the Church has no authority over him and does not interfere in his fast.
(3) Our Protestant brethren depend on a misinterpretation of the verse: "Therefore let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths, which are a
shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ" (Col.2: 16,17).
(4) Our Protestant brethren disagree with vegetarian fasting and with abstaining from foods of animal produce. They accuse us that in doing so, at least the second part of the following verse applies to us: "…. in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons... forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from foods which God created to be received with thanksgiving" (ITim.4: 1,3).

[Mary Naeem]

Pope Shenouda III




Reply to the objection concerning fasting in secret

There are two kinds of worship: individual and communal.
(a) In prayer for example, there is individual prayer; you pray in your room, to your Father who sees in secret. This does not cancel the existence of communal prayer for all the groups of believers to pray in one spirit, in one soul and in one voice. Examples of such prayers are numerous in the New Testament. One of these examples is the prayer of the believers after the release of Peter and John from prison: "So when they heard that, they raised their voice to God with one accord and said..." (Acts 4: 24).
Of course the Lord's commandment regarding praying in secret (Matt.6: 6) does not apply to such prayer.
(b) Likewise in charity, there is a charitable deed done in secret as an individual act in which you do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing (Matt.6: 3). But this does not cancel the general charity collected from everyone, as when
King David collected donations to build the Temple. He mentioned in detail how much he contributed, and how much was contributed by the leaders of the fathers' houses, the leaders of the tribes of Israel, the captains of thousands and of hundreds, and the officers over the king's work (1Chr.29: 3-9). Another example is when the rich people put their gifts in the Temple treasury and the poor widow put in two very small copper coins (Lk.21: 1,2).

(c) Likewise in fasting, there is individual fasting practised in secret that does not cancel the general fast shared by the whole community of believers.

Reply to the objection: Is communal fasting a Biblical doctrine or not?

[Mary Naeem]

Pope Shenouda III

In prayer for example, there is individual prayer; you pray in your room, to your Father who sees in secret. This does not cancel the existence of communal prayer for all the groups of believers to pray in one spirit, in one soul and in one voice. Examples of such prayers are numerous in the New Testament. One of these examples is the prayer of the believers after the release of Peter and John from prison: "So when they heard that, they raised their voice to God with one accord and said..." (Acts 4: 24).
Of course the Lord's commandment regarding praying in secret (Matt.6: 6) does not apply to such prayer.

[Mary Naeem]

Pope Shenouda III

Likewise in charity, there is a charitable deed done in secret as an individual act in which you do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing (Matt.6: 3). But this does not cancel the general charity collected from everyone, as when
King David collected donations to build the Temple. He mentioned in detail how much he contributed, and how much was contributed by the leaders of the fathers' houses, the leaders of the tribes of Israel, the captains of thousands and of hundreds, and the officers over the king's work (1Chr.29: 3-9). Another example is when the rich people put their gifts in the Temple treasury and the poor widow put in two very small copper coins (Lk.21: 1,2)

[Mary Naeem]

Pope Shenouda III

Likewise in fasting, there is individual
fasting practised in secret
that does not cancel the general fast
shared by the whole community of believers.

[Mary Naeem]

Pope Shenouda III

Reply to the objection: Is communal fasting a Biblical doctrine or not?


There are numerous examples of communal fasts in the Holy Bible, such as:
(a) The people's fast at the time of Esther

All the people fasted together at the same time for one purpose, praying for one request of the Lord, and the Lord accepted their fast and granted them their request (Esth. 4).
(b) The fast of the people of Nineveh

They all fasted together and not in secret, and the Lord accepted their fast and forgave them their sins (Jon.3).

(c) The people's fast at the time of Nehemiah and Ezra

Nehemiah says: "Now on the twenty-fourth day of this month the children of Israel were assembled with fasting, in sackcloth, and with dust on their heads" (Neh.9: 1). And Ezra
says: "Then I proclaimed a fast there at the river of Ahava, that we might humble ourselves before our God, to seek from Him the right way for us and our little ones and all our possessions" (Ezra 8:21).
(d) The fast at the time of Joel

The Bible says: " 'Now, therefore,’ says the Lord, 'Turn to Me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning.’... consecrate a fast, call a sacred assembly; gather the people, sanctify the congregation, assemble the elders, gather the children and nursing babes; let the bridegroom go out from his chamber, and the bride from her dressing room" (Joel 2: 12-17).

(e) The Apostles' fast in the New Testament

When the Lord Jesus Christ was asked why His disciples did not fast, He replied: "But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast" (Matt.9: 15). The Apostles did fast together and not in secret, and the Lord accepted their fast.
Some examples of the Apostles' fasts: "As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, 'Now separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.' Then, having fasted and prayed, and laid hands on them... " (Acts 13: 2,3).

(f) St. Paul fasted for a long time together with all the people on the ship (Acts 27:21)

Therefore communal fasting is acceptable and is a Biblical doctrine. It is proof of the oneness of soul in worship and in approaching God, especially if the purpose of the fast is a matter that concerns the whole community, or if the whole community partakes in the fast, as they do in prayer, in one soul.
There is no hypocrisy in communal fasting
In communal fasting there is no distinction between one person and the other. The level and depth of the fast of each individual remains ‘in secret’. In the New Testament there is not one single verse that prevents communal fasting.