“Fasting is a school of abstinence. In fasting, we learn to restrain the desires of our bowels. In fasting, we learn to rebuke the evil desires of our flesh, always seeking to dominate the spirit, always seeking to destroy all our spiritual desires, to subdue our will to the desires of the flesh. And the flesh does not lead us to good, our flesh is the source of most sins and temptations. Pleasing the flesh is the essence of most sins. And if, therefore, we force our flesh to be hardened by fasting, if we deprive of its delicious and plentiful dishes, and force ourselves to be satisfied with the least, then by doing so we gain victory over the flesh. This is how we remove the obstacle that prevents us from living a spiritual life.”
Saint Luke (Voyno-Yasenetsky)
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