I feel sick, weak, and light-headed after six hours without food. At eight hours I will get cold sweats and then pass out. It doesn’t seem that this is a good thing. Can God really want this?
Of course not! Fasting and abstinence are personal choices. The Church asks us to give it a try on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday ... only 2 days out of the year!
Abstaining from meat, of course, has no significance to a vegetarian. Hence, the purpose behind this request is that of eliminating something we enjoy, on those two days. As for fasting, anyone can physically survive without their morning coffee or cup of tea for two days. It is question of self discipline.
I was a young teen when VCII ended. To this day, I still recall how the news media covered Friday Abstinence. My family was seated around the kitchen table, watching the news, when they announced the VCII had abandoned Friday abstinence and Catholics could now enjoy meat on Fridays. What was NOT SAID, was that the council approved this on condition that Catholics make some other form of personal sacrifice on Fridays. It wasn't until 40 years later that someone pointed this out to me. Still unwilling to believe I had been duped, I now, as an adult, revisited the documents from VCII and realized what the bishops had actually said. It was a humbling experience.
Essentially, ottbmare, choosing to fast and abstain, MUST come from the heart, not from an authoritarian decree. This is between you and your Savior. Consider what He endured for you on the cross then reflect on how much discomfort you experience by abstaining from coffee for one day or fasting from food from midnight until noon. As a Roman Catholic practicing my faith in a Maronite (Eastern) Catholic Church, Lent began today. A growling stomach and no coffee reminded me of that June morning 3 years ago when I was scheduled for surgery and could not eat anything after midnight. I was only allowed to drink water. The difference was that NOW, I had personally chosen to make this fast for the Love of my life, not a surgeon.
Wishing you a Blessed Lent!