SERMON XV.

ON FASTING.

MATTHEW Vi. 17, 18.

Thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face; that thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy father which is in secret and thy father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.

THE first point to which I would call your attention in the consideration of this passage, is the relation it bears to the context. It is the last of three instances adduced by our blessed Lord, in which, with respect to certain known and acknowledged duties, He put His followers on their guard against becoming hypocrites.

The two other points specified by Him were those of Almsgiving and Prayer. And as in neither of these instances does He think it necessary to insist on the observance of the duty, but only speaks of the manner in which it is to be performed; so, here, He does not enjoin His followers to fast, for He assumes that

they would do so, but shows them that there is a wrong as well as a right way of exercising this kind of self-denial.

He does not say, "If thou doest alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee," or "If thou prayest enter into thy closet," or "If ye fast, be not as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance;" but "when thou doest alms," "when thou prayest," "when ye fast.” It is taken as a matter of course that those who desire to serve God acceptably will do these things according to their abilities and opportunities, with glad and willing minds, without questioning or doubting. The three duties are, in this respect, put upon precisely the same footing. There may be cases in which it would be wrong to fast, in which a man has no alms to bestow, or in which retirement for the purpose of prayer is impossible, but these are the exceptions, not the rule; in ordinary cases, the discharge of any one duty is as much expected as the others.

Such, I think, at least, would be the impression of any person who read the entire passage, if he could do so candidly, and without preconceived opinions. But in the present state of things there is not much probability that this view of the case will be readily admitted to be the true one, because there is a very strong repugnance among us to the act of fasting. We are a luxurious, pampered, self-indulgent people,

who have altogether got out of the way, of bodily mortification and self-denial, and to many the very name of fasting is an offence and an affront. Some excuse themselves on one ground, and some on another. With the plea that is commonly brought on the score of health, I do not wish to join issue; but I desire to say a few words to those who allege that they do not fast, because fasting is not enjoined in Scripture. Prayer and almsdeeds, such persons say, are commanded again and again, but we find no law laid down on the subject of fasting.

Now to this I reply, in the first place, that it seems to me that there is certainly a divine sanction for fasting in the precept appointing the Jewish great public Fast on the day of Atonement* a day which, in its moral purpose, seems to correspond very much with the Church's intent in appointing the observance of Good Friday. And again, if the prophets were sent to command a special public fast, or to recognise and command the observance of those which were in use among the Jews, this also is a divine sanction.f Whatever was in practice under the Law, and is not abrogated by the Gospel, is still in force. We observe a Sabbath, but not the Jewish Sabbath; so we are to observe some fasts, but not the Jewish fasts.

* Levit. xvi. 29-31, and xxiii. 26-32.

† Joel i. 14, ii. 15; Zech. vii. 5. viii. 19.

Admitting, however, in the second place, that I can adduce no such imperative command with respect to bodily abstinence, as I can for prayer and almsdeeds; nothing so strong as "Pray without ceasing,” or "Sell that ye have, and give alms ;"-still for this an obvious reason may be alleged, which will tend rather to confirm, than disprove the general obligation to fasting. Here and there, there may be some whose natural constitution and bodily infirmities are such, that it would be physically impossible for them to obey such a command without self-destruction. For their sake, doubtless, the command to fast was not made direct and universal; for we know that it was never God's purpose to lay on us more than we are able to bear, because our Lord Himself hath taught us that "the Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath;" that is, as a holy man * explains it, "greater is the care taken of the health and life of a man, than the keeping of the Sabbath.” With regard to prayer, however, there are none who are accountable beings but can pray; and with regard to alms, the very poorest and most destitute man who lives may address his fellow sufferer in the words of St. Peter, "Silver and gold have I none, but such as I have give I thee;" may at least share

Bede in loc.