Benefits of Spiritual Fasting : Lent and Ramadan

The Catholic Church and Anglican Communion Faiths annually observe a season of fasting called the Lenten season, commencing after Ash Wednesday. While the Catholic Faith marks their heads with ashes placed by a priest, indicating the sign of the cross, the Anglican Communion does not necessarily observe this rite. For both Faiths, the Lenten season features forty days of abstinence, fasting, stations of the cross prayers, and other religious activities. 

On the other hand, Muslim devotees also have their own annual abstinence rite called Ramadan, lasting for 30 days. Devotees are expected to fast from dawn till dusk, only permitted to eat two types of meals known as Iftar (evening meal) and Suhoor (pre-dawn meal). Similar to the Lenten tradition, the Ramadan season urges Muslims to abstain from worldly pleasures, forgo vices, embrace discipline, and intensify prayers.

This year (2024), the Lenten season officially kicked off on February 14th and concludes with Good Friday, followed by the Easter Celebration signifying the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, while the Ramadan season began on the eve of March 10th and concludes with Eid al-Fitr.

This implies that the two most popular Christian faiths (Catholic & Anglican) and Muslim devotees are undergoing a season of spiritual growth. Apart from eating less and saving costs from food budgets during fasting, there are many valuable spiritual benefits of fasting:

1. It instills discipline: Denial of food and worldly pleasures enhances one’s discipline over secular needs that one may feel unable to live without.

2. It deepens understanding of the spiritual realms: Both Lent and Ramadan offer worshippers opportunities to build intimacy with their spiritual maker through constant prayer, reading of the Bible or Quran, and participation in church or mosque activities.

3. It promotes charity acts in society: During Lent and Ramadan, many charity visitations and almsgiving are performed, providing assistance to the underprivileged, destitute, and orphans in society. This charity could be in the form of monetary or material assistance. 

4. It can help break old habits: Consistent denial of one’s pleasures can lead to the relinquishment of bad habits. Imagine having to forgo using curse words for 40 or 30 days? Such disciplinary or denial act can transform the individual to refrain from such habits permanently. 

5. It teaches the vanity of our human existence: Both seasons serve as a subtle reminder of the vanity and futility of human existence, prompting a heightened discernment of what truly matters and the realization of being held accountable for how we live our lives.

The Lenten season and Ramadan offer profound opportunities for spiritual growth, discipline, and reflection. Through fasting, individuals from diverse faith backgrounds can deepen their connection with the divine, cultivate virtues such as charity and self-control, and break free from harmful habits. As Christians and Muslims embark on their respective fasting journeys, may they find strength, renewal, and enlightenment in their devotion, ultimately drawing closer to the essence of their faith and the values it espouses.