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StudyingIslamUK
UNITED KINGDOM
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 Topic initiated on Tuesday, September 4, 2007 - 7:35 PM 
Fasting in All Religions
Fasting is a part of every religion in various forms. Some info is posted here.
would be nice to have info from other faiths as well.
Yom Kippur
Level: Basic
Yom Kippur atones only for sins between man and G-d, not for sins against
another person. To atone for sins against another person, you must first
seek reconciliation with that person, righting the wrongs you committed
against them if possible. That must all be done before Yom Kippur.
Yom Kippur is a complete Sabbath; no work can be performed on that day. It
is well-known that you are supposed to refrain from eating and drinking
(even water) on Yom Kippur. It is a complete, 25-hour fast beginning before
sunset on the evening before Yom Kippur and ending after nightfall on the
day of Yom Kippur. The Talmud also specifies additional restrictions that
are less well-known: washing and bathing, anointing one's body (with
cosmetics, deodorants, etc.), wearing leather shoes (Orthodox Jews routinely
wear canvas sneakers under their dress clothes on Yom Kippur), and engaging
in sexual relations are all prohibited on Yom Kippur.
For details visit http://www.jewfaq.org/holiday4.htm
In the Book of Esther (4:16), Esther agreed to see the King uninvited, and
asked the Jewish people to fast for three days beforehand. Esther called for
a fast, knowing that through soul- searching the Jews would forge a
spiritual connection necessary to make her mission successful. And it paid
off, for indeed the Almighty sees and hears everyone at their time of need.
http://judaism.about.com/library/3_askrabbi_o/bl_simmons_fasting.htm |
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StudyingIslamUK
UNITED KINGDOM
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Posted - Tuesday, September 4, 2007 - 7:46 PM 
July 2007
Dear Friend,
Invitation to join FASTING TO REMEMBER – 18th October 2007
I am writing to invite you and your school to participate in Fasting to Remember 2007.
Fasting to Remember is an initiative aimed at uniting people of different faiths and
backgrounds through a National Day of Fasting to raise money for charity. It is an effort to
show that diverse communities can get together in an atmosphere of mutual understanding and
for a good cause.
Pupils, teachers, head teachers and the whole school community are invited to join in the fast
and raise money for charity. All the money raised will benefit the following charitable causes:
• Barnardo’s [45%]
Barnardo's is one of the leading UK children's charities – offering a wide range of support
services for children, young people and their families, helping children who are young
carers, for example, looking after a sick or disabled relative.
Registered charity no. 216250 and SC037605
• Action for Africa [45%]
An emergency appeal to help the 4.5 million people affected by ongoing conflict in the
regions of Darfur, Chad and the Central African Republic.
Coordinated by Islamic Relief as part of the Disasters Emergency Committee.
Registered charity no. 1112111
• A local charitable cause of your school’s choice [10%]
Past examples have included Rainbows Children's Hospice in Leicester and Christies
Hospital in Manchester, where much needed medical equipment was sought.
Participation in the event will be a wonderful opportunity for schools to provide practical and
interactive learning in the areas of citizenship, religious education, geography and extracurricular
activities. A starter pack will be available complete with background information
and guidelines, lesson plans, ideas for activities and sponsorship forms. We will also be
producing leaflets, posters and other support material for you to use.
Taking part is simple – just register your school/group via the form on our website:
http://www.isb.org.uk/fasting2remember/ and we will send you all the relevant information.
Yours sincerely,
Khadijah Elshayyal
Vice President (ISB)
Islamic Society of Britain |
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StudyingIslamUK
UNITED KINGDOM
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Posted - Friday, September 7, 2007 - 4:11 AM
Thanks for your query about fasting in other traditions. I found this page on our Methodist website. Christians do fast, but they tend to be quite flexible in understanding what a fast may involve.
John Newton
john@jcn.me.uk
The Methodist Church of Great Britain | Living a holy life
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.
Mark 12.30-31
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What is distinctive about Methodism?
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Living a holy life
The longing for holiness is not about wanting to be 'holier than thou'. It is about wanting the love of God to permeate all of our life, and for that love to be shown through our lives to other people.
God gives us the Holy Spirit, and when we respond, there is no limit to what the grace of God is able to do in a human life. John Wesley taught about 'Christian perfection.' He believed that a mature Christian can reach a state where the love of God reigns supreme in our heart. We can't be perfect in an absolute way, as God is. But we can be made perfect in love.
However we do not become holy all on our own. Methodists believe in what John Wesley called 'social holiness'. It is vital to meet and worship with other Christians in order to grow in the Christian life and to understand what is God's will for us and for our community.
The Methodist movement began in the eighteenth century when John and Charles Wesley got together with like-minded friends in Oxford to meet regularly for prayer, Bible study and Holy Communion, and to visit prisons and workhouses. It was called the Holy Club.
Holiness is not just about personal spirituality and prayer. It will also be expressed through a commitment to social justice and to enabling other people to become followers of Jesus.
A different way of observing Lent
Christians traditionally spend the 40 days before Easter fasting or observing some other discipline to prepare our minds and hearts. This year some of us are making a special effort to counteract the 'I shop therefore I am' culture and give up buying anything except essentials.
See our blog No new shoes
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hkhan
UNITED KINGDOM
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Posted - Wednesday, September 19, 2007 - 10:30 AM
it was a pleasure to hear from one of our interfaith senior friends robert packer during a discussion about fasting on a recent faith show on a local bbc progrme that fasting is mentioned in mathews and jesus advised to fast but in secret saying that only you or your father in the heavens should know about it. and he said therefore perhaps there are christians who fast behid the churches but never let the public know in order to keep their rewards. robert also told us that these fasts are usually observed when one has to ask God for something i.e. for praying;
however islam encourages to observe the obligatory fasts together in a particular month and Qur'an tells us that fasting has been prescribed for us muslims as it was prescribed for the ones before us-
but the optional fasts can be observed anytime of the year preferably without disclosing-and they can be observed for thanks giving or for praying for something-or merely just to attain more and more purification as the basic purpose of any religion, worship and the purpose of the prophets was nothing but to help people attain purification of the body, mind and soul(tazkyyah) |
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