With the beginning of Lent, devotees usually talk about the importance of avoiding red meat on Fridays, since it is a time of prayer, fasting and abstinence. For some believers, this act represents the control of body desires; For others, it is a gesture of solidarity with those who have less resources.
This practice began in the Catholic Church as a proof of will to strengthen the relationship with God through renunciation of something significant.
Is abstinence in Lent?
Father Rodolfo Rodríguez Chinchilla, rector of the Sanctuary of Guadalupe, explains that Lent remembers the 40 -day period in which Jesus fasted and prayed before starting his preaching and revealing that he was the Son of God.
Following their example, Christians are called prayer and fasting during this time. Lent is a penance timeand people must refrain from something that costs them effort, says Rodríguez Chinchilla.
This sacrifice not only implies avoiding certain foods, such as flesh, but also giving up what is difficult to leave, such as cell phone use, alcohol consumption or any habit that away from God.
The idea is to offer something to the Lord as a sample of sacrifice and commitment. For some people, stop eating does not represent a great effort, but giving up certain habits can mean a major sacrifice, adds Rodríguez Chinchilla.
The priest emphasizes that meat fast is mandatory only Ash Wednesday and the Good Friday of Holy Week.
Before it was believed that the Church imposed this restriction Every Friday of Lent, But the religious leader ruled out. He clarified that, although some people maintain this practice, it is not mandatory, since the Church allows it to replace it with another penitential action.
Practice adopted as a symbol of abstinence
In the Bible there is no verse that establishes the obligation of fasting and Meat abstinence Ash Wednesday, on Good Friday or on Friday of Lent as a mandate linked to the sacrifice of Jesus.
However, the Church adopted this practice as a symbol of dominance over desires, also promoting that the money saved becomes an offering for the most needy.
History of meat abstinence
Some historians point out that this tradition arose between the end of the third and early fourth century, when eating meat was a luxury reserved for those who had resources, while the poorest could only observe the privilege of others.
According to the Catholic.net portal, this practice dates back to the time of the apostle Paul, when in the Christian communities the meat sold in the markets used to come from sacrifices offered to pagan gods. Therefore, consuming it was considered an act of apostasy.
Paul encouraged Christians in Rome and Corinth to avoid that flesh so as not to scandalize other believers, although he left this decision to each person’s conscience.
Abstinence as an act of solidarity
Another reasons for meat abstinence is solidarity with those who do not have the resources to consume it or with whom they renounce something important in their lives. This is based on Romans 14:20:
Don’t destroy God’s work by a food. Everything is pure, certainly, it is bad to eat scandal. The good thing is not to eat meat, drink wine, or do it for your brother occasion to fall, stumble or weakness.
Historically, it is said that at the time of the apostle Paul the consumption of meat was a luxury that the most needy could not access. When buying lamb meat, it should be consumed completely to prevent it from decomposing, which generated gluttony in some and, in other cases, waste, affecting those who lacked food.
For this reason, meat abstinence symbolizes solidarity with the most disadvantaged, renouncing a privilege to share it with those who need it. Hence, red meat has been associated with lust, ostentation and wealth.
Exonerated people of fasting
Father Rodríguez Chinchilla explains that the Church has exonerated the fasting people of the elderly or with health problems, allowing them to offer other types of sacrifices, such as visiting a patient or performing a work of charity instead of fasting.
This is done to prevent your physical condition from being affected. Those who are in a position to fast it, and those who not, can opt for another sacrifice, concludes.
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