The Theological and Spiritual Significance of Fasting

Fasting is a vital spiritual discipline in the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church. It goes beyond abstaining from food, serving as a path to draw closer to God through prayer, repentance, and charity. The Church teaches that true fasting transforms the soul, disciplines the body, and deepens one's relationship with Christ.

This study explores the role of fasting in spiritual growth, its link to repentance and purification, and the teachings of the Church Fathers on the subject.

The Role of Fasting in Spiritual Growth

A. Fasting as a Path to Spiritual Freedom

The Prophet Isaiah declares:

“እኔስ የመረጥሁት ጾም ይህ አይደለምን? የበደልን እስራት ትፈቱ ዘንድ፥ የቀንበርንስ ጠፍር ትለቅቁ ዘንድ፥ የተገፉትንስ አርነት ትሰድዱ ዘንድ፥ ቀንበሩንስ ሁሉ ትሰብሩ ዘንድ አይደለምን? እንጀራህንስ ለተራበ ትቈርስ ዘንድ፥ ስደተኞቹን ድሆች ወደ ቤትህ ታገባ ዘንድ፥ የተራቈተውንስ ብታይ ታለብሰው ዘንድ፥ ከሥጋ ዘምድህ እንዳትሸሽግ አይደለምን?” (Isaiah 58:6-7)

This passage emphasizes that fasting is more than abstaining from food—it is a call to break free from sin, extend compassion, and transform the heart. True fasting cultivates humility, strengthens the soul, and leads to acts of love and justice.

In the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church tradition, fasting is a powerful tool for overcoming sinful desires and attaining spiritual discipline. Just as Christ fasted for forty days to triumph over temptation in the wilderness (Matthew 4:1-11), believers fast to enhance their spirits against worldly distractions and draw closer to God.

B. Overcoming the Desires of the Flesh

Galatians 5:16-17, 19-22 states:

"ነገር ግን እላለሁ፥ በመንፈስ ተመላለሱ፥ የሥጋንም ምኞት ከቶ አትፈጽሙ። ሥጋ በመንፈስ ላይ መንፈስም በሥጋ ላይ ይመኛልና፥ እነዚህም እርስ በርሳቸው ይቀዋወማሉ፤ ስለዚህም የምትወዱትን ልታደርጉ አትችሉም። የሥጋ ሥራም የተገለጠ ነው እርሱም ዝሙት፥ ርኵሰት፥ መዳራት፥ ጣዖትን ማምለክ፥ ምዋርት፥ ጥል፥ ክርክር፥ ቅንዓት፥ ቁጣ፥ አድመኛነት፥ መለያየት፥ መናፍቅነት፥ ምቀኝነት፥ መግደል፥ ስካር፥ ዘፋኝነት፥ ይህንም የሚመስል ነው። አስቀድሜም እንዳልሁ፥ እንደዚህ ያሉትን የሚያደርጉ የእግዚአብሔርን መንግሥት አይወርሱም። የመንፈስ ፍሬ ግን ፍቅር፥ ደስታ፥ ሰላም፥ ትዕግሥት፥ ቸርነት፥ በጎነት፥ እምነት፥ የውሃት፥ ራስን መግዛት ነው።"

Fasting plays a vital role in overcoming the desires of the flesh. Sin entered the world when Adam and Eve disobeyed God by eating (Genesis 3:6). Through fasting, believers discipline their bodies, submit to God's will, and shift control from the works of the flesh—described in the verse above—to the works of the Spirit."

St. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 9:27: "ነገር ግን ለሌሎች ከሰበክሁ በኋላ ራሴ የተጣልሁ እንዳልሆን ሥጋዬን እየጎሰምሁ አስገዛዋለሁ::"

Spiritual growth requires self-control and obedience to God's commandments, both of which fasting cultivates. By controlling the flesh, one gains inner strength and aligns more closely with the will of God.

2. Fasting as a Means of Repentance and Purification

A. Fasting Leads to True Repentance (ንስሐ)

 Joel 2:12 – "አሁንስ፥ ይላል እግዚአብሔር፥ በፍጹም ልባችሁ፥ በጾምም፥ በልቅሶና በዋይታ ወደ እኔ ተመለሱ።"

In the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, fasting is a vital means of repentance, deeply rooted in biblical tradition. Throughout history, sincere repentance has been accompanied by fasting and confession (መናዘዝ) of sins.

·       The People of Nineveh (Jonah 3:5-10) – When Jonah preached the coming destruction of Nineveh, the entire city repented through fasting, and God spared them.

·       King David (Psalm 35:13-14) – King David demonstrated deep humility and repentance through fasting, seeking God's mercy for his sins. He declared: “እኔስ እነርሱ በታመሙ ጊዜ ማቅ ለበስሁ፥ ነፍሴንም በጾም አደከምኋት፤ ጸሎቴም ወደ ብብቴ ተመለሰ ለወዳጄና ለወንድሜ እንደማደርግ አደረግሁ፤ ለእናቱም እንደሚያለቅስ ራሴን ዝቅ ዝቅ አደረግሁ።” (Psalm 35:13-14)

In the Ethiopian Orthodox tradition, fasting is inseparable from repentance, confession, and the spiritual renewal of the soul.

B. Purification of the Body and Soul

2 Corinthians 7:1 state: "እንግዲህ፥ ወዳጆች ሆይ፥ የዚህ ተስፋ ቃል ካለን፥ በእግዚአብሔር ፍርሃት ቅድስናን ፍጹም እያደረግን ሥጋንና መንፈስን ከሚያረክስ ሁሉ ራሳችንን እናንጻ።"

Fasting is a process of spiritual purification (መንጻት) that cleanses both body and soul, freeing the believer from the corruption of sin and refocusing the heart on Christ.

For example, during Great Lent, the faithful:

• Dedicate more time to prayer
• Confess their sins and seek God’s mercy
• Reconcile with others
• Purify their thoughts, words, and actions

Through fasting, the body and soul are purified, transforming the believer into a living temple of the Holy Spirit. St. Paul wrote, “ወይስ ሥጋችሁ ከእግዚአብሔር የተቀበላችሁት በእናንተ የሚኖረው የመንፈስ ቅዱስ ቤተ መቅደስ እንደ ሆነ አታውቁምን? በዋጋ ተገዝታችኋልና ለራሳችሁ አይደላችሁም፤ ስለዚህ በሥጋችሁ እግዚአብሔርን አክብሩ።” (1 Corinthians 6:19). Devoted fasting disciplines the body, purifies the heart, and renews the soul, transforming believers into a living temple of the Holy Spirit.

3. The Connection Between Fasting, Prayer, and Almsgiving

The Church teaches that fasting is incomplete without prayer and charity. These following spiritual disciplines are interconnected and strengthen one another:

1. Fasting (ፆም) – Detachment from worldly desires, cultivating self-discipline.
2. Prayer (ጸሎት) – Deepening communion with God.
3. Almsgiving (ምጽዋት) – Demonstrating love and compassion for others.

A. Fasting Without Prayer is Empty

Fasting without prayer is merely physical abstinence and lacks spiritual value. When combined with prayer, fasting opens the heart to God and strengthens one’s spiritual life.

Matthew 17:21 records “ይህ ዓይነት ግን ከጸሎትና ከጦም በቀር አይወጣም አላቸው።"

Jesus teaches that certain spiritual struggles can only be overcome through both prayer and fasting. The two must go hand in hand for true transformation and divine strength.

B. Fasting Must Be Accompanied by Almsgiving

Isaiah 58:6-8 – “እኔስ የመረጥሁት ጾም ይህ አይደለምን?... እንጀራህን ለተራበ ትቈርስ ዘንድ፥ ስደተኞቹን ድሆች ወደ ቤትህ ታገባ ዘንድ... የዚያን ጊዜ ብርሃንህ እንደ ንጋት ይበራል፥ ፈውስህም ፈጥኖ ይበቅላል...”

The Church teaches that fasting must be accompanied by acts of love—helping the poor, forgiving others, and showing compassion. A fast without love and (charity, according to one’s capacity) is incomplete.

The Early Christians practiced almsgiving during prayer and fasting:
"ያመኑትም ሁሉ አብረው ነበሩ፤ ያላቸውንም ሁሉ አንድነት አደረጉ። መሬታቸውንና ጥሪታቸውንም እየሸጡ፥ ማንኛውም እንደሚፈልግ ለሁሉ ያካፍሉት ነበር።" (Acts 2:44-45)

The Ethiopian Orthodox Tradition encourages believers to feed the hungry and give to charity, especially during Great Lent, as a way of purifying the soul and living out Christ’s teachings.

4. Teachings of the Church Fathers on Fasting

The early Church Fathers taught that fasting is more than merely abstaining from food; it is a powerful act of spiritual warfare, self-discipline, and deep devotion to God.

St. Basil the Great (c. 330–379 AD):
"Fasting is the weapon of the righteous… Through fasting, Moses received the Law; through fasting, Elijah saw God." (Exodus 34:28, 1 Kings 19:8)

St. John Chrysostom (c. 347–407 AD):
"Do you fast? Give proof by your works! If you see a poor man, make kindness to him. If you see an enemy, be reconciled to him."

St. Ephrem the Syrian (c. 306–373 AD):
"Fasting is the healing of the soul… It subdues the desires of the flesh and strengthens the soul for virtue."

In the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church tradition, the teachings of the Church Fathers guide believers on how to fast properly—with humility, love, and devotion to God.

Conclusion

In the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, fasting is far more than abstaining from food—it is a sacred discipline that purifies the soul, strengthens the spirit, and deepens one’s relationship with God. Rooted in Scripture and supported by the teachings of the Church Fathers, fasting fosters true repentance, disciplines the desires of the flesh, and leads to spiritual renewal. Through fasting, believers break free from sin, cultivate humility, and grow in love and righteousness. Ultimately, it is a path to holiness, drawing the faithful ever closer to God and the life of the Kingdom.