During Lent many Christians use the time to fast something. This is the story ...
Fasting in the Old Testament
Fasting is biblical and there are many accounts of people fasting in the Bible. Moses fasted when he was meeting with God on Mount Sinai (Exodus 34:28). When Hannah was desperate for a child, she went to God in prayer and fasting, before Samuel was born (1 Samuel 1:1–20). When King Jehoshaphat was warned of an advancing army coming to attack Judah, he proclaimed a fast throughout the land (2 Chronicles 20:3). Ezra and Nehemiah proclaimed fasts among the Jewish exiles before their return to Jerusalem. David humbled himself with fasting (Psalm 35:13). Daniel fasted for three weeks as part of mourning (Daniel 10:2). Queen Esther called upon Jews to fast for three days before she approached the king (Esther 4:16). After Jonah preached in Nineveh the people fasted and put on sackcloth in penitence (Jonah 3:5). Fasting was combined with prayer, and sometimes wearing sackcloth, for urgent and important matters.
Jesus’s teaching on fasting
In the New Testament, fasting continues to be important. Luke’s Gospel starts telling us that the prophetess Anna was in the habit of fasting and praying (Luke 2:37). In the Gospel according to Matthew, Jesus gives teaching about fasting (Matthew 6:16-18). Jesus seems to have assumed that his followers would fast. He said to his disciples “When you fast...” (Matthew 6:16), not if you fast, but he gave no rules about for how long or how frequently to do it. He explained that fasting was a matter for private religion, not for religious showing off. Jesus’s disciples were not known for fasting like the Pharisees were (Matthew 9:14). Jesus said that some demons can only be exorcised with prayer and fasting (Matthew 17:21).
Fasting in the Early Church
Fasting was kept as a practice in the Early Church which we can read in the book of Acts. Many of the first Christians were from a Jewish background, and early Christians observed Jewish fast days. After being blinded on the road to Damascus, Saul of Tarsus fasted for three days (Acts 9:9). At Antioch, Saul and Barnabas fasted as they sought what to do (Acts 13:1–2). When Saul and Barnabas established new churches, they appointed leaders with prayer and fasting (Acts 14:23).
Fasting in Preparation for Easter
The Early Church established a tradition of fasting in preparation leading up to Easter. It was a forty day period focused on prayer, repentance and fasting. By the fourth century, Lent had become established as a normal tradition. The idea of forty days of preparation is very biblical. God sent rain upon the earth for forty days and nights when Noah and his family were in the ark (Genesis 7:4). Later Moses sat on Mount Sinai for forty days when he received the Ten Commandments (Exodus 24:18). Later Elijah walked forty days and forty nights to Mount Horeb when he fled Jezebel (1 Kings 19:8). The forty days of Lent, are inspired by the forty days of fasting which Jesus spent in the wilderness (Matthew 4:1–11; Mark 1:13 and Luke 4:1–13), in preparation for his ministry. The term for Lent in Latin is ‘Quadragesima’, which is from the Latin word ‘quadraginta’ which means forty.
Fasting in the Protestant tradition
After the Reformation, Lent was maintained as a practice among Lutherans and Anglicans, but was rejected by John Calvin, and it is not commonly part of the tradition among evangelical churches. However, many individuals value it as a useful discipline, as a matter of personal choice. John Wesley wrote: “Let us beware of fancying that we merit anything of God by our fasting ... Fasting is only a way which God hath ordained, wherein we wait for His unmerited mercy; and wherein without any desert of ours, He hath promised freely to give us His blessing.” On February 6, 1756, King George III called a National Day of Prayer and fasting for the UK, in response to a threatened invasion by France. Churches were full as people pleaded with God to deliver Britain, and the expected invasion did not happen. In his “Studies in the Sermon on the Mount”, Martin Lloyd-Jones wrote that, “Fasting should really be made to include abstinence from anything which is legitimate in and of itself for the sake of some special spiritual purpose.” In his book “A Problem of Pain”, CS Lewis wrote that “fasting asserts the will against the appetite”.
When does Lent start and finish?
Lent precedes Easter, which usually falls on a different Sunday in the eastern and western Christian calendars. Most years eastern and western Lent do not coincide, although they may overlap. However, in 2025, Easter Sunday is April 20 for both the eastern and western parts of the Church. When Lent starts and finishes also varies according to tradition. For some people Lent is forty continuous days. However, in the Catholic tradition, the six Sundays of Lent are not considered fast days, which means Lent is forty days over a 46-day period. In the Catholic and Protestant tradition Lent starts on Ash Wednesday, which in 2025 falls on March 5, and ends on Holy Thursday, April 19. In the Orthodox tradition Lent includes Sundays and ends before Holy Week, so Orthodox Lent starts two days earlier than Ash Wednesday on Clean Monday, which in 2025 is on March 3.
Giving up
Fasting does not necessarily mean eating absolutely nothing. Originally Lent was forty days of fasting, when only one full meal was eaten a day, and no meat or animal products were to be eaten. This led to the tradition of using leftover eggs, and fat, which were commonly forbidden during Lent. These were made into pancakes before Lent started, hence Pancake Day or Shrove Tuesday, the day before Lent starts on Ash Wednesday. Lent has entered our culture. Not all Christians observe Lent, yet many people, even non-Christians, give up something for Lent. Some people give up chocolate, biscuits or alcohol. Rather than fasting from food, people may fast or give up a luxury, or an addictive habit such as smoking, watching television, using social media, clothes shopping, playing video games or using their mobile phone. Some people have a complete media or digital fast. If something is bad then we should not be doing it anyway and should really give it up completely not just for Lent - although Lent may be a good time to start.
Taking up
Instead of giving something up, some people prefer to take something up, to do forty acts of kindness, or read a Bible series. Some Christians take up a new spiritual discipline, such as reading a daily devotional, or following forty days of prayer for an issue. Some churches do a special Bible study series during Lent. In some places local congregations may get together and do mixed Bible study groups or have a series of lectures from eminent speakers. For some people Lent is like a New Year's resolution. Some people use Lent to sort out their house, or start an exercise routine or diet, or give up using their car and take up public transport. Some people use Lent to start learning a new language. For Christians being on a lenten fast is often about putting a stop to something selfish, or starting to do something good, in order to help refocus our lives on God.
Conclusion
The true spirit of fasting is as a spiritual discipline. St Paul said that whatever we do, whether we eat or drink, or not, we should do it to the glory of God (1 Cor 10:31). While Lent is not mentioned or commanded in the Bible, nonetheless the principle of fasting is biblical, and many people find Lent a helpful practice. For those who prefer not to observe Lent they should respect those who consider it a sacred duty or practice (Romans 14:5-13).
