Fasting on Wednesday and Friday - how to fast correctly for the laity

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In addition to the usual traditional fasts, in the Orthodox Church believers fast for one day on Wednesday and Friday. Do they have to be followed? - one of the most frequently asked questions to priests from ordinary laity. Mostly these are people who have just begun to join the church and church life.

But really, why is this one-day fast necessary? And if a person constantly follows multi-day fasts, does he need to strictly adhere to one-day fasts? How to fast on Wednesday and Friday? Why isn't traditional enough? To answer all these questions, let's look into the depths of history.

Fasting on Wednesday and Friday - why is it necessary?

People have been following a two-day fast since ancient times. Even before the advent of Christianity. The first enlighteners understood perfectly well that it would not be possible to eradicate this habit from the lives of new people who had just accepted the Christian faith. That is why the church decided not to fight Jewish traditions, but simply to modify them to fit the Orthodox faith.

This is how fasting on Wednesday and Friday for the laity appeared. It was timed to coincide with very tragic days in the history of Christianity.

People who fast on Wednesday pay tribute to the day when Saint Jesus was betrayed by Judas. But by fasting on Friday, believers pay tribute to the day when Jesus was crucified and sentenced to death on the cross. But many people still have the question: “why fast so often”? In addition to its mourning purpose, the fasting day carries with it year-round protection of the soul of a believer.

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This is the only way a peasant can show the devil that he never loses his vigilance, always follows all the rules, remembers God and is ready at any time for a spiritual struggle with evil spirits. The holy fathers constantly talk about this. Also, people who constantly fast keep themselves and their bodies in constant tone, because it can be compared to regular training.

MONDAY

Breakfast: oatmeal with tomatoes and onions

Lunch: cabbage salad with cucumber; lean lentil soup

Afternoon snack: Lenten bread with olive paste

Dinner: green beans

Fasting on Friday and Wednesday: nutrition for the Orthodox

If you follow church canons, every believer is obliged to fast on Wednesday and Friday. These one-day fasts are considered very strict. On these days you must refuse:

• from eggs;
• from meat;
• from fish;
• from milk and fermented milk products.

Such a fast day may also involve dry eating, when a person does not eat food that was cooked in a hot way. In the modern world there is a similar way of eating. It's called a raw food diet. During dry eating, believers are allowed to eat only nuts, honey, fruits and vegetables.

How can you determine the severity of abstinence during a one-day fast? It is determined by your confessor (any Orthodox priest) and directly by you. The degree of severity must be taken into account with the lifestyle of the believer and his state of health.

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Fasting is very strict, not recommended, and sometimes prohibited:

• nursing women;
• pregnant women;
• athletes during preparation for competitions;
• workers who work very hard and hazardous work (they are usually allowed fish and dairy products);
• children under 7 years old.

In addition, there are weeks throughout the year when you do not need to fast on Wednesday and Friday. This:

• Christmastide (the period from Christmas to Epiphany);
• The week after Easter;
• Week after Trinity;
• Two weeks before Lent;
• Week during Maslenitsa.

Multi-day posts

Lent lasts 7 weeks from Forgiveness Sunday to Easter;

Peter's Fast can last from 1 to 5 weeks depending on the day of Holy Easter. It begins a week after the day of the Holy Trinity and continues until July 12 - the day of remembrance of the holy supreme apostles Peter and Paul;

Dormition Fast - from August 14 to August 27 (two weeks) before the Feast of the Dormition of the Mother of God;

Nativity Fast - from November 28 to January 6 (40 days) before Christmas.

On days of fasting (days of fasting), the Church Charter prohibits modest food, that is, food of animal origin (meat and dairy products, eggs). It is allowed to eat only products of plant origin (vegetables, fruits, berries, mushrooms, honey, cereals), and at certain times - fish and vegetable oil.

On days of strict fasting, not only fish is not allowed, but also food cooked in vegetable oil. Only dry eating is allowed. For weak and sick people, these requirements, with the blessing of the confessor, can be relaxed.

Today in Orthodox homes you can find such “Lenten delicacies” as Brussels sprouts, octopus, squid, oysters... Everything is truly Lenten. However, the Fathers of the Church strictly rebuked those who, during Lent, ate food, although lean, but refined. “There are such guardians of Pentecost,” writes Blessed Augustine, “who spend it more whimsically than piously. They seek new pleasures rather than curb the old flesh. With a rich and expensive selection of different fruits, they want to surpass the variety of the most delicious table. They fear the vessels in which the meat was cooked, but do not fear the lust of their belly and throat.”

Saint John Chrysostom instructs: “Calculate how much money your small meal costs when you eat meat. Then calculate how much your lunch will cost if you eat without meat, and give the difference to the poor.” That is, rather than eating delicious food yourself and thereby stealing the fast, it is better to spend the money on works of mercy.

Lent Wednesday and Friday, what can you eat? Best Recipes

Today, questions are often heard: how to fast on Wednesday and Friday, whether you can eat fish, what and how you can cook, what you can’t eat, and all sorts of other things about fast days. In order to give complete answers to these questions, it is best to turn to authoritative Orthodox sources.

People also often wonder when to start fasting. Many say that since the evening. But this is far from true. The fasting day begins, like a regular day, after 24:00.

We will try to reveal all the secrets and provide the best Lenten recipes so that you can always eat nourishingly and tasty. We have prepared two recipes for Lenten Wednesday or Friday for you. They are very simple, but filling and nutritious.

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Lenten gingerbread

• To prepare you need: a glass of sugar, jam, water, 1 tsp. soda, quenched with vinegar, and 2.5 tbsp. flour.
• All ingredients need to be mixed.
• Grease the mold and place the dough on it. Let's bake.
• You can sprinkle a little powder on top or make some kind of glaze.
• It is recommended to eat Lenten Rug on the Friday before the Assumption Fast.

Lenten salad

• The following ingredients are required for preparation: lean mayonnaise, nuts, dried apricots, prunes, beets.
• You can take the amount of ingredients as you want or as you like.
• Boil the beets and chop them on a grater.
• Pour boiling water over the prunes and dried apricots to soak them a little.
• Next, drain the liquid and cut the fruit into strips.
• We crush the nuts. Mix all ingredients and season with mayonnaise.

Lenten dinner is ready! As you can see, you can eat delicious food while observing the traditions of Orthodoxy.

The Lord is always with you!

March

The first month of spring begins with Cheese Week. It is called pre-purification. The laity gradually begins to prepare the body for the beginning of Lent. In the first week of March, you should completely limit your consumption of meat and animal products.

Lent

An important date for the laity: Lent begins in 2022 - March 7. From this date until the end of the month during Easter Lent, believers will adhere to strict food restrictions.

What can you eat according to the Orthodox calendar, if there are no serious contraindications regarding human health:

• 7.03 – it is recommended to completely abstain from eating;
• dates when you need to stick to dry eating: 8, 9, 10, 11, 14, 16, 18, 21, 23, 25, 28, 30;
• food that has undergone heat treatment, but without adding oil, can be eaten on Tuesdays and Thursdays on the following dates: 15, 17, 22, 24, 29, 31;
• The laity eat food that has undergone heat treatment with the addition of oil on weekends: 12, 13, 19, 20, 26, 27.

WEDNESDAY

Breakfast: Turkish wheat porridge

Lunch: soup with tomato paste and noodles; lean beet cutlets

Afternoon snack: salad with beets, carrots and orange

Dinner: aromatic lentils with vegetables

THURSDAY

Breakfast: sweet pilaf with dried fruits and nuts

Lunch: soup with tomato paste and noodles; lean beet cutlets

Afternoon snack: vertuta with pumpkin

Dinner: aromatic lentils with vegetables

FRIDAY

Breakfast: sweet pilaf with dried fruits and nuts

Lunch: radish and cucumber salad; carrot soup with crispy chickpeas

Afternoon snack: vertuta with pumpkin

Dinner: cauliflower in the oven

TUESDAY

Breakfast: Turkish wheat porridge

Lunch: fresh cabbage salad with apple; lean lentil soup

Afternoon snack: Lenten bread with olive paste

Dinner: green beans

SUNDAY

Breakfast: lentil pate on sandwiches

Lunch: gazpacho; lean carrot cutlets

Afternoon snack: baked apples with raisins, nuts and honey

Dinner: lahanorizo

This Lenten menu was compiled taking into account the principles of the “Menu of the Week” system.