Everyone, Catholic or Not, Should Fast for Lent

COMMENTARY | Mardi Gras is a Catholic festival season that culminates on Fat Tuesday and takes the faithful into Ash Wednesday and the penitential season of Lent, explains the Washington Post.

Everyone, Catholic or not, should quit feasting on Fat Tuesday and fast for Lent. Are you thinking, how dare she push her religion on me? Don’t worry, I’m not suggesting everyone should have to fast. I’m just sharing from personal experience how beneficial a Lenten fast can be.

You don’t have to fast for religious reasons but a spiritual fast can be very healing. When I say spiritual fast, I don’t always mean faith-based; I’m referring to a mind-body connection, an examination of conscience, a personal reflection.

Fasting is a very Zen experience. As the Huffington Post reminds us, Lent, Ramadan and Yom Kippur are ritual purgative fasts. Fasts such as the Buddhist nyungne bring the elements of the self into focus and unity. Abstaining from mindless indulgences and addictions, at least for a time, helps me to align my thoughts, actions, words and feelings more fully. When I emerge from Lent, I find those addictions have less hold on me.

Fasting brings me inner cleansing, too. I am “shriven” and readied for meditation and almsgiving. Lent fasting helps me concentrate on essentials. I feel good knowing I’m stronger than my cravings. As I offer my fasts for particular intentions, this puts me in touch with others and helps me show solidarity with them.

Fasting is positive for health reasons. Abstaining from meat, alcohol, fats, sugar, sodium, junk food, candy and excessive dairy for awhile can do the body a world of good. In times past, people refrained from eating all of these things during Lent. Now, we generally choose one thing to fast from. If you’re picking only one, bishops in the U.K. recommend meat, says another Huffington Post article.

I was able to get my bad cholesterol down without medication just by eating more fish and less meat and dairy. Drinking less helped cleanse my liver. When I did bread and water fasts twice a week, I shed about 40 pounds, making no other lifestyle changes. Refraining from eating sweets and caffeine, plus doing emotional health exercises has helped me to wean from an antidepressant. I highly recommend a Lent fast to heal physical and emotional issues.