Friday after Ash Wednesday (20/02/2026)
Readings: Isaiah 58:1–9 | Matthew 9:14–15
Reflection:
Fasting can shrink the stomach and still leave the heart untouched.
Through the prophet Isaiah, God speaks with uncomfortable clarity. The people were fasting. They were bowing their heads. They were performing religious acts. Yet injustice continued. Oppression remained. Harshness thrived. And God asked, almost painfully, “Is this the fast that I choose?”
True fasting is not a performance of hunger. It is a conversion of love.
It is easy to give up food and still hold onto pride. Easy to deny yourself meat and still nourish resentment. Easy to look pious and remain indifferent to the suffering of the poor.
Isaiah reveals the fast God desires: loosen the bonds of injustice. Share your bread with the hungry. Shelter the homeless. Clothe the naked. Remove the pointing finger and malicious speech.
In the Gospel, Jesus reminds us that fasting has meaning because of relationship. When the Bridegroom is taken away, they will fast. Fasting is not about self-punishment. It is about longing. It is about clearing space for God and becoming more sensitive to the needs of others.
If your fasting does not soften you, something is wrong.
If your sacrifice does not make you more generous, something is missing.
If your prayer does not make you more patient, something is incomplete.
Lent exposes our brokenness, yes. But not for display. Not to show the world how serious we are. It exposes it so that grace can enter.
Fast from food.
But also fast from cruelty.
Fast from gossip.
Fast from indifference.
Let your hunger remind you of someone else’s hunger.
When fasting leads to mercy, light breaks forth. That is God’s promise.
Author:
Reflection by Rev. Fr. JP Edozien, C.S.Sp – DSN Team 🌐
DSN #2040
