FASTING IN THE OLD TESTAMENT: A MEANS OF PENITENCE FOR RESTORING MAN’S RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD
FASTING IN THE OLD TESTAMENT: A MEANS OF PENITENCE FOR RESTORING MAN’S RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD

Summary/Abstract: Fasting in the Old Testament is a way of repentance, a means of awareness of the state of sin and of expressing the opinion of evil, an act of humiliation of the soul, through which the believer wants to cleanse himself bodily and spiritually and to return to God. In general, as an act of humiliation of the soul (innah nephesh), fasting is not viewed separately from the other specific means for repentance (confession of sins, prayer, mercy, etc.) but in full consonance and with them. Among them, fasting, however, has the role of constituting that good beginning, which man seeks to put into his work of repentance. Moreover, fasting is an occasion for self-retrieval, it restores the inner order and makes the believer find himself in a natural order with God and with his fellowmen.

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