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A Parish of the
Diocese
of the South
Orthodox Church in America 4633 Glissade Drive
New Port Richey, Florida 34652 (727) 847-9900 Priest Pavel A. Yurin |
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| For
complete details, please click here to
consult the statement on the OCA website. What follows is a summary.
This statement from the OCA website, quoted from The Lenten Triodion,
translated by Bishop Kallistos (Ware) and Mother Mary (London: Faber
and Faber, 1978), p. 37, is particularly important: “At all times it is essential to bear in mind that ‘you are not under the law but under grace’ (Rom. 6:14), and that ‘the letter kills, but the spirit gives life’ (2 Cor. 3:6). The rules of fasting, while they need to be taken seriously, are not to be interpreted with dour and pedantic legalism; ‘for the kingdom of God is not food and drink, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit’ (Rom. 14:17).” |
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| Fasting Seasons |
Dates |
| Nativity Fast in preparation for the Feast of the Nativity of our Lord | 15 November through 24 December, inclusive |
| Cheesefare week | The week following the Sunday of the Last Judgment; we abstain from meat, but all other foods are permitted |
| The Great Fast, or Lent and Holy Week, in preparation for Pascha | 8 weeks before Pascha |
| The Apostles’ Fast, in preparation for the Feast of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul | Monday after the Sunday of All Saints through 28 June, inclusive |
| The Theotokos’ Fast, in preparation for the Feast of her Dormition | 1 through 14 August, inclusive |
| Fast-free Periods | |
| The period after the Nativity of our Lord, from 25 December through 4 January | |
| The week following the Sunday of the Publican and the Pharisee | |
| The week following Pascha, also called “Bright Week” | |
| The week following Pentecost | |
| Fasting Days | |
| Wednesdays and Fridays throughout the year, unless they fall in a fast-free period | |
| The Feast of the Exaltation Holy Cross [14 September], on whatever weekday it falls, including Saturday and Sunday | |
| The Eve of the Nativity of our Lord [24
December] |
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| The Eve of the Theophany [5 January] | |
| The Feast of the Beheading of St John the Baptist [29 August], on whatever weekday it falls, including Saturday and Sunday | |
| Fasting
Norms The strict norm for fasting seasons and fasting days is that of the monasteries: Abstinence from all animal products (except shellfish) Abstinence from wine and other alcoholic beverages Abstinence from olive oil (some say all oil) One meal a day, after Vespers (and according to the particular day, perhaps not even cooked) |
| Mitigation, or
relaxation, of the Fast The fast is often mitigated, or relaxed. In
particular, the strict norm is not applied to those with health issues;
the very young and the very old; those living among
non-Orthodox, or who take their meals in venues where
appropriate
food is not available, and so on. The degree of observance ideally is
worked out between the Orthodox Christian and his or her spiritual
father. In general, one is expected to observe as much of the norm as
is possible. Some teachers have cautioned that we should not discuss
with others the details of how we keep the fasts, lest we become a
source of temptation or discouragement to them.
The fast is mitigated for Feasts that occur on fasting days or in fasting seasons, with the degree of mitigation corresponding to the rank or solemnity of the feast. Also, in the Nativity Fast, the Apostles Fast, and the Theotokos’ Fast, there is a mitigation for Wine and Oil on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and for Fish, Wine and Oil on Saturdays and Sundays. Even in the Great Fast, Wine and Oil are part of the Saturday and Sunday fare. For details of the Liturgical mitigations, check the Liturgical Schedule. Fast days have a rose background; while all days in fasting seasons have a lavender background, as do individual days of strict fasting. If the Fast is mitigated for wine, there will be a “W” next to the date; if for oil also, there will be an “O”; and if for fish, there will be an “F”. Fast-free periods are so marked, and also have a white background. |
| Fast-Day Recipes In addition to
traditional fast-day recipes that you may know, at the blog called
“What
I'm Cooking Now”, by Denise Norman, an Orthdox
iconographer and mother of a family, you will find recipes and ideas.
Since this is a live blog, not all recipes posted are fast-day recipes,
so use some discretion, and look for those posted on fast days, or in
fasting seasons. Be sure to check the archives!
If you have fast-day recipes you would like to share, please contact us through the e-mail link below. We will post selected recipes on our “Recipes” page. In fact, all good recipes will be welcome. Please be sure that you have the legal right to disseminate the recipe — if it comes directly from a cookbook, it’s probably protected by someone’s copyright, and we would need permission before posting it; but if it is your own, then your permission to post would be sufficient. If you know of other websites with recipes for fast days, or with recipes for traditional celebrations, please let us know in an e-mail message. |