| Question Title | Posted By | Question Date |
|---|---|---|
| liturgy | William | Friday, April 15, 2011 |
Question: I know there is Biblical precedent for fasting before communion. Where can I find this in the Old Testament? |
||
| Question Answered by Mr. Jacob Slavek
Dear William, There is fasting in the Old Testament, and the Eucharist is certainly prefigured in the Old Testament, but I don't think that the eucharistic fast is directly prefigured. We're not exactly sure when the eucharistic fast got started but it was sometime before the fourth century. I have been taught that it was more a disciplinary issue in response to abuse. Perhaps you are thinking of Moses's fast for forty days before he "received" the Lord and the Ten Commandments? (Exodus 34:28) Mr. Slavek Footer Notes: (a) A Eucharistic Minister is clergy (Ordinary Ministers of Holy Communion). Laity are Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion and should never be called Eucharistic Ministers. (b) There is no such Mass called the Novus Ordo. The Current Mass is the Roman Missal of 2000, or the Oridinary Form of the Mass. The Tridentine Mass is the Roman Missal of 1962, or the Extraordinary Form of the Mass. Please refrain from using the term, Novus Ordo. Thanks. (c) The titles of Acolyte and Lector belong exclusively to the Installed Offices of Acolyte and Lector, who are men (only) appointed by the Bishop. These roles performed by others are Altar Servers and Readers, respectively. |
||