I was intrigued to read the book Fasting by Scot McKnight from Thomas Nelson.  When I picked it up I was thinking about Lent, and even though I cannot fast right now (nursing all that), I was interested in the possibilities of adding this to my spiritual arsenal.

From the publisher:

Building a body and mind that hungers for God.

Is the practice of faith centered solely on the spirit? Is the body an enemy, or can it actually play a role in our pursuit of God? In this installation of the Ancient Practices Series, Dr. Scot McKnight reconnects the spiritual and the physical through the discipline of fasting.

The act of fasting, he says, should not be focused on results or used as a manipulative tool. It is a practice to be used in response to sacred moments, just as it has in the lives of God’s people throughout history. McKnight gives us scriptural accounts of fasting, along with practical wisdom on benefits and pitfalls, when we should fast, and what happens to our bodies as a result.

For those who have wondered how to grasp the value of this most misunderstood ancient practice, this book is a comprehensive guide.

After reading The Liturgical Year(see my review), I was a bit skeptical about it’s usefulness but had to give it a try.   It was a fairly good read.   He tended to repeat himself a lot, but I think that it was a useful sort of repeating.   McKnight was very clear to make sure that the correct ideas got across in reading the book.   He opened the book with the idea that you don’t fast to get things from God and I hadn’t really considered that.   It struck me because prior to reading this book, that was precisely what I had been thinking of adding it to do.

Two big points stick in my head:

  1. You do not fast to get stuff from God.  You fast in response to something grievous that has happened.
  2. Improper fasting is not for weight loss or looks.  Too long & too extreme and it causes major problems for your body.

Overall, I would say that he did a fairly good job.   I was glad that there was no Catholic bashing (always checking for bias 🙂 ), and he did a good job including information from traditional Catholic saints and holy people (as well as other Christians, of course).    I would recommend it to anyone who is considering or even interested in fasting as a spiritual discipline.

 

Disclaimer:  BookSneeze® has provided me with a complimentary copy of this book to review.

by | 0 comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Comment *






CommentLuv badge