Rabbi Alan Bright on fasting in Judaism

Ramadan went by with its usual speed this year, and we are nearing the end of Shawwal. Meanwhile, the Jews have celebrated the High Holy Days, one of which, Yom Kippur, involved one of the most important fasts of the Jewish calendar.

During Ramadan, all Muslims read or hear the Qur'anic verse "You who believe, fasting is prescribed for you as it was prescribed for those before you, so that you may be mindful of God" (2:183). "Those before you" refers to older communities of monotheists, including the Children of Israel. I therefore asked my friend Alan, rabbi of the Shaare Zedek synagogue here in Montreal, to share with us his perspective on fasting in Judaism.

Atonement through Affliction

by Rabbi Alan Bright

Islam follows a solely lunar calendar; as a result, the cycle of twelve lunar months regresses through the seasons over a period of about 33 years. Judaism, however, follows a quasi-lunar calendar or, as it has become known, a “lunisolar” calendar. As the Jewish festivals are quired by Torah mandate to fall in specific seasons, months are intercalated according to the Metonic cycle, in which 235 lunations occur in nineteen years. In our days, the Jewish calendar is predominantly used for religious observances; however, it is used by traditional Jewish farmers in Israel as an agricultural framework.

Due to the mechanics of both the Muslim calendar and the Jewish calendar, Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the Jewish calendar, followed the holy month of Ramadan, the most sacred time of the year for Muslims, by approximately one week this year.

A question that is often asked of me;

“Is there a corollary between the fasting within the Judaism and Islam”?

Ask a Jew why he/she fasts on Yom Kippur (the most widely observed fasts of numerous fasts within the Jewish calendar) and the answer will most likely be “to atone for our sins”. Suffice it to say that this vague answer is only one facet of repentance for a Jew.

Ask a Muslim why he/she fasts during Ramadan and the answer most likely will be "to create a greater awareness of God". Awareness of God and his presence is called "Taqwa", a word that can also mean "fear of God", "piety" or "self-restraint". Another reason many Muslims give for fasting is "to feel more empathy for the poor and indigent".

While both these great Abrahamic faiths include fasting as part of their doctrine, they do so for very different reasons.

From sunset Sunday September 27th through dark Monday September 28th, Jews around the world observed the festival of Yom Kippur. For this year only, these dates correspond to the dates outlined in the Old Testament. In the book of Leviticus the following is found:

...In the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you shall afflict your souls, and you shall not do any work ... For on that day he shall provide atonement for you to cleanse you from all your sins before the L-RD. -Leviticus 16:29-30

The name of the seventh month in the Jewish calendar is Tishrei. So from the evening of the ninth day of the month of Tishrei until the following evening, (Leviticus 23:32), the holiest day of the year in the Jewish calendar is observed.

Even though not stated directly, i.e., “on this day you shall abstain from eating”, this, however, is the place from whence the concept of fasting in Judaism is derived. The question that begs to be asked is how did the rabbinic sages arrive at an interpretation of “you shall afflict your souls” to mean an abstention from all food and drink?

Throughout biblical literature, we find cases of great people who took it upon themselves to abstain from food and indeed other luxuries in order to repent for wrongdoing. For example ,in the Book of Samuel II, we read that King David –- King of Israel -- atones for his unacceptable sexual proclivities towards Bathsheba by fasting while praying to God for forgiveness. This motif of fasting as atonement for prior sins either committed or even contemplated became an accepted mode of repentance throughout Jewish history to present day. Furthermore, we find the same not only for individuals, but also for congregational penance. It is believed that fasting arouses the compassion of God to forgive the penitent for not only negative behavioral situations, but also to implore God's protection in times of calamity either personal or communal.

To answer our question about how the rabbinic sages arrived at the interpretation of “you shall afflict your souls” to mean the abstention from all food and drink,

Rabbi Arnold Bienstok in his essay on Fasting in the Jewish Tradition states that the rabbinic commentators interpreted the Biblical phrase “affliction of the soul” to embrace a generic understanding of denying oneself physical pleasure on Yom Kippur. The prohibitions included not just eating and drinking, but also bathing, washing, and anointing. Sexual abstinence also becomes part of the rabbinic understanding of “affliction of the soul.” Even the wearing of leather is prohibited because of its association with luxury or rabbinic compassion for animal life (tsaar baalei hayyim).

As stated earlier, fasting is found in the books of the Bible. Throughout biblical Judaism, the prophets develop the concept of Divine appeasement by fasting as it serves to transform the individual spiritually. Bienstok further comments that for the prophetic voice, ethical perfection is the ultimate demand of the religious life. Ritual behavior is meaningful only if it is marked by the inner transformation of the character of the penitent. The prophetic voice condemns ritual expression that is not marked by spiritual transformation. Rabbinic tradition selected the Biblical readings of Leviticus 23 and Isaiah 58 as the readings of Yom Kippur to share a balanced perspective on fasting. Leviticus 23 presents fasting as a propitiatory offering of atonement. Isaiah 58 asserts that the genuine fast is self-evaluation.

* Rabbi Alan Bright, a native of London, England, is the spiritual leader of Shaare Zedek Congregation, Montreal Quebec. Born into a modern orth'odox Jewish family, Alan attended seminaries in the UK and USA, namely Jews' College (UK), Yeshivat Rivevot Ephraim and The Jewish Theological Seminary (USA). In addition to Orthodox ordination, Alan holds a Masters' degree from Concordia University, with a major in Ancient and Medieval Jewish History. Alan's area of interest is medieval Jewish death and burial rites and customs. Alan can be reached via email at rabbi@shaarezedek.ca.

Ramadan reflections from the US on SOF

This Ramadan, "Speaking of Faith" (by American Public Media) has launched a series of Ramadan reflections called "Revealing Ramadan" by Muslims all over the US, as well as a few Muslims living in other places, such as Spain and Britain.

On the series website, you can download the podcast versions of the reflections, or read the text stories that accompany them.

Muslim charity serves up chicken in Toronto

According to its website, the Muslim charity MuslimServ, based in Brampton, has delivered 2,898 lbs of chicken to the Daily Bread Food Bank in Toronto this Ramadan. They're planning to make two more deliveries, on the 7th and the 14th of September.

What I most like about this programme is that it helps Muslims who donate their money to the organisation take part in helping their needy neighbours, regardless of religious or other differences.

What I don't understand, however, is the focus on chicken. Last Ramadan, MuslimServ donated a total of 14,000 lbs of chicken, and is hoping that people will ramp up their donations of money this year, allowing it to donate more chicken to the food bank. My question is: why only chicken? Why not donate a variety of food items?

Ramadan lunch breaks

The Toronto Star has a good article up today about Muslims and lunch breaks during Ramadan.

The author, Stuart Laidlaw, points out that Muslims tend to become more practising during Ramadan, which means that more of them attend Friday prayer. For Muslims who work, that means taking an extra-long lunch break in order to make it to the mosque, listen to the sermon, perform the prayer, and arrive back at work.

Nadir Shirazi, president of Multifacet Diversity Solutions, suggests that non-Muslim co-workers should not think their Muslim colleagues are slacking off. Meanwhile, Liz Chappel, who is vice-president of the Toronto Area Interfaith Council, reminds us that "Our workplaces are centred around Christian holidays", and urges non-Muslims to be aware of what a spiritually important time their Muslim workmates are going through.

My favourite line in the article is "Shirazi and Chappel say employers should avoid holding lunch meetings". Having sat through some of those myself during Ramadan, I can tell you they're painful.

One thing the article didn't bring out, though, is, what about Muslims who attend Friday prayer at other times, during the remaining 11 months of the year? This story almost makes it sound as if Friday prayer is only important during Ramadan.

Obama's Ramadan greeting

Barack Obama charms once again with his Ramadan greeting to Muslims around the world.



As he points out himself, though, it's time to see more action on the ground, in addition to encouraging words. Nevertheless, after Bush, this is so refreshing!

Obama's speech seems to have become one of the top stories connected to the beginning of Ramadan this year, as can be seen both on Al Jazeera and the BBC.

Not quite everyone has the same focus, though. I was listening to the BBC Asian Network yesterday, and the presenter, while discussing the onset of Ramadan, said, "What about... getting it on with your partner?" Certainly a legitimate question, although I don't think I would have put it quite that way. :)

Ramadan mubarak!

I would like to wish my readers a blessed Ramadan. May God accept us our fasts and our good deeds, and forgive us for our mistakes.

Muslim charity donates 5 tonnes of chicken in Toronto

Muslimserv, and Islamic charity based in the Greater Toronto Area, donated 5,000 kg of chicken to several food banks in the GTA last Ramadan (September-October) (see p. 28 of this PDF). It purchased the meat from Maple Lodge Farms using money donated by contributors, and donated it to the Daily Bread Food Bank, which caters to the community at large. The food bank then distributed the meat to those in need.

According to the head of Muslimserv, Shah Nawaz Hussain, food banks were used by almost 323,000 people in the GTA at last count. Of this number, 40 percent were children.

The Daily Bread Food Bank now considers Muslimserv among the GTA's top five anti-hunger fundraisers. As a matter of principle, the Muslim charity has the meat donated to anyone in need, regardless of religion, race or gender. It focuses its activities on Canada, and sends money overseas only in extraordinary conditions (Canadian Asian News).

What a wonderful initiative, ma sha' Allah. Apart from directly helping people who need food, I hope that Muslimserv's actions will help non-Muslims (and Muslims themselves) understand the teachings of Islam regarding sharing with one's neighbour.

Ramadan mubarak!

I would like to wish the readers of Notes on Religion a blessed Ramadan.

If you're wondering how Muslims go about fasting all day during this month, I'd recommend this BBC article on the subject.

You can read a variety of other Ramadan-related news stories on Google News.

US art gallery cancels chocolate Jesus (pbuh) statue display

In a victory for Catholic protesters, an art gallery in New York has cancelled plans to display a sculpture of Jesus Christ (pbuh) made of chocolate and depicting him naked. The statue, made by Canadian artist Cosimo Cavallaro, measures 1.8 m in height, and is called "My Sweet Lord".

The Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights called for a boycott of the gallery, especially given the fact that the statue was meant to be displayed during Easter. As a spokesman for the group pointed out, the gallery "would never dare" to show a similar statue of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) during Ramadan. She has also described the statue as "an assault on Christians".

After management decided to cancel the exhibit, the gallery's artistic director resigned, complaining of "strong-arming from people who haven't seen the show" (BBC).

I must say it's a wise decision on the part of the Lab gallery. Some may see it as self-censorship, but I would prefer to see the outcome as an act of wisdom on the part of the gallery's management. Toying with people's feelings is never a good idea, whether it be in the realm or religion or anything else that people value. Thoughtful, intelligent criticism is one thing, but depicting a person highly respected by about half of mankind (Christians and Muslims) naked is neither thoughtful nor intelligent, but rather, in my view, a misguided shout for attention. I'm glad that the Lab gallery did not decide to take the route followed by the free-speech fanatics in Europe on the issue of the caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh).