Fast Day in New Hampshire

MARY BAKER G. EDDY

Along the lines of progressive Christendom, New Hampshire's advancement is marked. Already Massachusetts has exchanged Fast Day and all that it formerly signified for Patriots Day, and the observance thereof illustrates the joy, grace, and glory of liberty. We read in Holy Writ that the disciples of St. John the Baptist said to the Great Master, "Why do we and the Pharisees fast oft, but thy disciples fast not?" And he answered them, in substance, My disciples rejoice in their present Christianity and have no cause to mourn,—only those who have not the Christ, Truth, within them should wear sackcloth.

Jesus said to his disciples, "This kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting," but he did not appoint a fast. Merely to abstain from eating was not sufficient to meet his demand. The animus of his saying was, Silence appetites, passion, and all that wars against the Spirit and spiritual power; and the fact that he healed the sick man without the observance of a material fast confirms this conclusion. Jesus attended feasts, but we have no record of his observing appointed fasts.

St. Paul's days for prayer were every day and every hour. He said, "Pray without ceasing." He classed the usage of special days and seasons for religious observances and precedents as not belonging to the Christian era, but to traditions, old-wives' fables, and endless genealogies.

Send a comment to the editors

We'd love to hear from you!

Easily submit your testimonies, articles, and poems online.

Submit

Fast Day in New Hampshire

We'd love to hear from you!

Sign up for unlimited access