The Freedom of Discipline
I don’t know if anyone has noticed this pattern but the minute we enter summer, we begin a fast period. After Pascha we celebrate and greet each other with “Christ is Risen!”, acknowledging and sharing the good news that “Death has been conquered”. We are even allowed oil and wine on Wednesdays and Friday throughout the post Pascha celebration, right through the feast of Pentecost. And after Pentecost, the coming of the Holy Spirit, we have a type of ‘Brite Week’,-no fasting the whole week. Then that week ends with the feast of ‘All Saints’, for those who’s name doesn’t fall any where during the Liturgical cycle. The Monday following All Saints, which usually fall around the beginning of summer, we begin the Apostles fast. Why?
When we think of summer-at least in the Northern Hemisphere-we think of vacation, slowing down, slacking off-schools out, kids are home-we go to the pool, the beach, we relax. The weather is good, we cook out on the grill, we gather outdoors, we go to the cabin; it’s what we do. But there it is, the minute we start to relax, “Boom” a fast period is upon us.
Now, fasting for Orthodox Christians is ubiquitous, we do it regularly and we do it a lot; how strictly depends on your spiritual father who evaluates your particular circumstances and gives guidance. But in general, the discipline of fasting is part of being Orthodox. Why is that helpful? Because if we can control what we put in our mouths, all kinds of things follow. Fasting is a way of controlling our appetites; not just for food, but all kinds of things that would seek to control us-alcohol, love of money, entertainment, video games, sweets, social media, all these things inflame our passions and seek to enslave us. They are called passions. By controlling our ‘appetites’, we begin to control our passions. When our passions loosen their grip on us then we begin to be free. But freedom from passions-anger, lust, greed, avarice, gluttony, sloth, procrastination-all those things that would make us slaves-is never a ‘one and done’, situation.
That is where discipline comes in-regular routines and habits-like fasting-that help keep us on track. The spill over effect from fasting is that we can apply it in many areas of our life-like exercise, the habit of prayer, reading the Bible, service to others. Discipline is the foundation of a meaningful and productive life. The kind of discipline we gain in fasting can even extend to controlling our emotions and moods because we are already in a ‘self-denial’ vs. self-indulgent mode.
So we begin the summer with a fasting period and we end the summer with a fasting period-the fast of Transfiguration and the falling asleep of the Most Holy Theotokos. In a time, ‘summer’, when we could lose our ‘vigilance’, the Church offers us two periods to help us stay focused. Sure, they may seem inconvenient and unnecessary, but that is why they are so important. They give us just enough ‘discipline’, so we don’t stray too far.
Have a blessed summer,
Fr. Anthony