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Published by the
Orthodox
Christian Network,
July 21, 2005
WHAT
DO YOU HUNGER FOR? |
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Father
Christopher Metropulos
A recent study found that “approximately 127
million adults in the U.S. are overweight, 60
million obese, and 9 million severely obese.”
(American Obesity Association) This “epidemic”
of overweight Americans is a symptom of a deeper
poverty.
In the book of Genesis, it was food that got our
race into trouble in the first place. The old
saying, “you are what you eat,” was meant to
reduce a human person to a mechanical engine
with skin, but what it really did was reveal
something significant about the human soul. We
are really an integrated whole being – body,
soul and spirit.
It should also come as no surprise to Orthodox
Christians that it is also food that
communicates to us our very salvation in the
Bread and Wine of the Eucharist. As we, the Body
of Christ, partake of the Eucharistic banquet,
we receive and participate in the Body and Blood
of Christ, and more and more become “what we
eat.”
At the heart of this discussion is the power
of desire. The wisdom of the Holy Spirit in
preserving for us as a central part of our
Christian faith the discipline of fasting is
found in this very core issue of our own
spiritual needs – What are you truly hungry for?
When you answer this question in your own soul,
you will discover just how serious you are about
your faith, about your very salvation.
Here are three wise principles that the
discipline of fasting brings to each of us as we
seek to allow the Holy Spirit to form us anew
into the image and likeness of Christ.
First, Fasting reveals my TRUE NEED. When
I refuse my temporary desires to focus on my
spiritual growth, I teach my own soul what is
the top priority of my life. It is the wisdom of
the Orthodox faith to call me to a time of
reflection on my ultimate need from an eternal
perspective. In the busyness of our modern lives
we have so many “things” competing for our
attention and energy. If we don’t purposefully
stop and evaluate our spiritual condition, we
will let slip that which is most important in
our lives.
Second, Fasting reveals who I TRULY AM.
One of the wise purposes of the discipline of
fasting is to help me seriously mourn the misuse
of the good things to which I am saying “no” for
a short period of time. I get to fast from
certain foods so I can finally learn to receive
them with thanksgiving rather than as my “due.”
We live in an age where the spirit of
“entitlement” seems to rule the day. Gratitude
is a fast fading virtue in our society and the
main reason for this is that we have failed to
receive even creation and our very food with
thanksgiving. When was the last time you said a
prayer before and after your meals to first
acknowledge that all good gifts come from the
Father above? Only pigs run to the trough and
feed with no thought for the Source of their
food!
Finally, Fasting reveals my TRUE PURPOSE.
It is in the spiritual work of preparation for
participation in the Eucharist (the very word
literally means “Thanksgiving”) that I come to
know my eternal purpose and destination. I was
made to be the companion of God forever. I was
created for communion with my fellow believers
and the Holy Trinity. In learning to fast and
master my desires I am confronted with the
ultimate purpose for my life. And I am called to
make my calling a reality by God's grace.
My ultimate purpose is not to accumulate as many
creature comforts as possible. It isn’t to
achieve some notoriety or fame for this or that
accomplishment. It isn’t to collect educational
degrees so that I learn all I can about this or
that subject. No, my ultimate purpose is to
enter into the new life Christ wins for me in
His death, burial, and resurrection.
It is the spiritual discipline of true fasting
that calls me to a purposeful Orthodox Christian
lifestyle and choice. It is in confronting the
taming of my desires and harnessing their energy
for my good that I come to see myself and even
God Himself as we were truly meant to be.
This week we will visit with a man, Fr. Patrick
Irish, who had a dramatic confrontation with his
own physical and spiritual well-being. We will
learn that our deepest brokenness is primarily
spiritual, but that spiritual brokenness has
physical consequences.
Until next week.
Yours for the spread of Orthodoxy,
Fr. Chris Metropulos
P.S. What a joy to hear from you during these
Summer months! You can email me at
mailto:frchris@receive.org!
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