Fasting on Fridays

This is the First Friday of June when many make a special effort to attend Mass as requested by Jesus to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque in the 17th century. A week from today the Church will be celebrating the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart, where the liturgy will focus on the great love Jesus has for us, symbolized by his exposed heart. The observance of First Fridays is an extension of this devotion throughout the remaining months of the year. The Entrance Antiphon reads: "The thoughts of his heart last through every generation, that he will rescue them from death and feed them in time of famine." (Ps 32: 11,19).
One of the messages of Mary at Medjugorje is a request that Fridays be a day of fast, a "going without", in order to be filled. The fast can range from simply bread and water instead of regular meals, or going without deserts, salt and pepper, water instead of coffee, or passing up a favorite dish. Why fast? To imitate Jesus who fasted; to thus draw closer to him; to learn his ways, to open our eyes to his many gifts, to open our hearts to our neighbor, to grow in understanding of the hungry and deprived, and above all, to grow in the confidence that indeed God will feed us in time of famine. We need a physical reminder that all comes from God, and that we need a healthy sense of dependence on God in order to become more sensitive and compassionate to others. The little pangs of hunger we feel throughout a fast day are tangible reminders and triggers of desire to be more open to RECEIVE from God rather than operate on a false sense of self-sufficiency and "non-need" of God. Fasting is a way to reach out to the immense love that God offers daily, but which we fail to acknowledge because "we can take care of ourselves." Fasting is freeing. May our faces radiate the joy of this freedom as we fast today.
Bro. Rene