Tuesday, September 3, 2013

Holy Father Calls us to Prayer & Fasting for Peace THIS SATURDAY!

From Pope Francis Angelus message of September 2:

"I make a forceful and urgent call to the entire Catholic Church, and also to every Christian of other confessions, as well as to followers of every religion and to those brothers and sisters who do not believe: peace is a good which overcomes every barrier, because it belongs all of humanity!

I repeat forcefully: it is neither a culture of confrontation nor a culture of conflict which builds harmony within and between peoples, but rather a culture of encounter and a culture of dialogue; this is the only way to peace.

May the plea for peace rise up and touch the heart of everyone so that they may lay down their weapons and be let themselves be led by the desire for peace.

To this end, brothers and sisters, I have decided to proclaim for the whole Church on 7 September next, the vigil of the birth of Mary, Queen of Peace, a day of fasting and prayer for peace in Syria, the Middle East, and throughout the world, and I also invite each person, including our fellow Christians, followers of other religions and all men of good will, to participate, in whatever way they can, in this initiative.

On 7 September, in Saint Peter’s Square, here, from 19:00 until 24:00, we will gather in prayer and in a spirit of penance, invoking God’s great gift of peace upon the beloved nation of Syria and upon each situation of conflict and violence around the world. Humanity needs to see these gestures of peace and to hear words of hope and peace! I ask all the local churches, in addition to fasting, that they gather to pray for this intention."


Let us respond to our Holy Father's call!

Alas, poorly catechized as I am,  I'm not sure what the Holy Father, bless him, means by "fasting." No food at all, bread only, no water, two small meals? Since there were no concrete instructions provided, and I for one do not know what he means, I'll follow these rules for Ash Wednesday and Good Friday fasting, taken from Catholic Culture:

Fasting means having only one full meal to maintain one's strength. Two smaller, meatless and penitential meals are permitted according to one's needs, but they should not together equal the one full meal. Eating solid foods between meals is not permitted.

Catholics from age 18 through age 59 are bound to fast. Invalids, pregnant and nursing mothers are exempt.

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