Rules for fasting regarding coffee
If you are familiar with the canons and rules of fasting, then you probably know that the main restrictions are imposed on food of animal origin. You have to exclude meat and dairy products from your diet.
If you look at it, coffee is a plant product. The grains from which the drink is prepared are grown and collected from trees. So, is it possible to use it?
In this regard, church ministers do not give a clear answer. The rules do not directly prohibit drinking coffee during fasting. But it is not called a recommended drink either. What is this connected with?
- Here you need to understand the general principle. If you look at it, this is the exclusion of desires and pleasures from your life. Strengthening willpower, if you like.
- How do ordinary people feel about coffee? That's right, as a pleasant and favorite drink - read pleasure. This means that refusing it is completely justified. Why do you always want coffee?
- Some clergy condemn this drink because it is addictive. And they strongly recommend eliminating it from your diet.
But there are a few days when you definitely need to exclude coffee from your diet.
- The first and last weeks of Lent. Only water is allowed.
- Dry eating days. Drinks include only water and herbal infusions.
Rules for fasting and coffee
It is forbidden to consume animal products during fasting. Church canons speak about this. But the church’s attitude towards the coffee drink is ambiguous. The clergy do not give a clear answer to this question.
The drink promotes the breakdown of fat cells in the body, reduces appetite
Important! A person himself must realize what a drink is for him. Is a believer ready to humble himself and give up use for the sake of spiritual cleansing?
There is no direct ban on coffee in the fasting rules. Drink of plant origin. But its stimulating effect on the body leads to the development of a habit and the desire to consume a new portion.
The main meaning of fasting is humility, renunciation of habitual pleasures. For many people, coffee is such a pleasure. Therefore, clergy do not recommend its use. Coffee addiction, like any other, destroys a person’s faith and undermines his fortitude.
The church places an unequivocal ban on coffee in the following cases:
- The first and last weeks of fasting are strict. During these days, believers should follow a special diet and drink only water.
- Especially believers observe days of dry eating, when they can only eat raw plant foods and herbal infusions. Products must not be subjected to heat treatment.
Important! Dry eating is prescribed only to monks due to the severity of the prohibitions. Laymen who wish to observe this church canon are advised to receive a blessing for this.
Is it possible to drink coffee during Lent?
What follows from the rules stated above? If you have a craving for black drinks, you should definitely avoid them during your fast.
If you don’t have a particular addiction, then sometimes you can allow yourself to drink coffee. But taking into account the following points.
- You can only drink black coffee, such as Americano or espresso. Cocktails with added milk are prohibited.
- Sugar should not be added either. It helps improve the taste. The point of this is to have fun. And you need to refrain from this.
Is it possible to drink coffee while fasting?
Believers of the Catholic Church control the process of drinking coffee during Lent more strictly. Orthodox Christians do not have a clear prohibition on drinking this drink. This is food of plant origin, which means it can be consumed.
Before deciding to fast, you need to be aware of the purpose for which it is being done. If this is a time to unload the stomach or a way to lose weight, then you should not think about the correct use of coffee - you can drink it. It will bring neither benefit nor harm to such “church service”.
Important! A person who sincerely longs to cleanse his soul and draw closer to God must feel all the burdens of temptation that he has and get rid of them on his own.
Often priests condemn coffee addiction and classify the process of enjoying a coffee drink as gluttony. At the same time, people who are heavily dependent on coffee may reduce the number of cups they drink to a minimum, which will be a sign of limiting carnal desires. The main thing is to control what you can drink coffee with and not abuse it.
Along with restrictions on the consumption of your favorite drinks, there are other equally tempting delicacies: chocolate, sweets, sugar. If they do not contain forbidden products, then they can replace the absence of meat or other favorite forbidden delicacies. Those with a sweet tooth indulge themselves with various delicacies and do not feel deprived of the conditions of church restrictions. Because of this, many believers wonder whether it is possible to drink coffee with added sugar during Lent. The answer is simple - if a person does not abuse these products, then they will not interfere with his spiritual cleansing, and if it is an addiction, then the amount of pleasure should be reduced or completely eliminated.
Those who cannot completely give up coffee should reduce the amount they drink during fasting.
Is it possible to drink coffee during Lent?
A completely understandable answer to the question: “Is it possible to drink coffee while observing Lent?” given by the priest of one of the churches. He said: “If for someone coffee is just a drink, then you can drink it during fasting. And if there is dependence and an urgent need for the presence of this drink in everyday life, then it should be abandoned for the period of fasting. This is a sign of pacification of the flesh.”
If a person who is heavily dependent on a coffee drink was able to reduce the amount of its consumption to a minimum and, in addition, gave up his favorite coffee with cream, then this can be considered a sincere impulse for spiritual cleansing.
Coffee with milk during Lent
The habit of drinking a coffee drink with cream raises the question among many: what can replace milk in coffee? Vegetable substitutes in the form of coconut and soy milk products are good for this.
Fasting for health
The time of fasting can be used usefully, not only for reasons of faith. This is a great way to unload and cleanse the body. By eliminating junk food, you can improve your condition.
What can be said about coffee, looking at the issue from this position?
- It is not recommended to drink black drink on an empty stomach.
- We exclude instant coffee (see freeze-dried coffee). We use only natural coffee, preferably freshly ground (see expiration date of ground coffee).
- In the evening, do not load your body with caffeine (see which coffee is the strongest). Otherwise, you risk having problems sleeping.
What do religious leaders say about fasting and nutrition during this period?
Is it possible to drink coffee during fasting in the Orthodox denomination, no one gives a definite answer. If you ask priests, each will say differently. Some will allow it, some will prohibit it. You need to decide for yourself. You can refuse partially, showing yourself that a person is capable of sacrifice. You can drink it without sugar, which will also be considered a sacrifice, since the taste will be radically different.
If a person is used to adding milk or cream, then they need to be replaced with plant ingredients - soy, almond or coconut milk.
These products are officially permitted and have a beneficial effect on health, because the meaning of fasting is the purification and humility of the soul and body.
Officially, the church prohibits energy drinks, especially during Lent; whether coffee is allowed at least once a day is decided by the person himself, based on his own motives. Giving up on it is not so difficult, but it all depends on the strength of your aspirations.
If a person decides to take the path of spiritual development, he must understand that everything is learned gradually. You can’t give up everything at once - this can negatively affect your thoughts and emotions. For God, it is more important with what heart a person refuses his favorite foods.
Dejection and irritation due to refusal of morning coffee are not the best option to please the Almighty. Even monks admit that prayer does not always work out, the desired state does not always arise. What can we say about the laity?
The effect of lean drinks on the body
Tea – herbal, green, black – are tonic drinks. During fasting, when the body is being cleansed, a person may feel worse. Later this condition goes away, but you can help yourself with herbs that relieve inflammation in the digestive organs and relieve headaches.
The fact is that with a light diet, all toxins are released into the blood and circulate for some time through the vessels, including the brain. To protect itself, it constricts blood vessels, which leads to headaches. Therefore, fasting drinks help remove toxins from the body in the shortest possible time. This also applies to coffee during Lent.
Drinking coffee on the first day of fasting can help you switch to a different type of diet. Usually, when there is a lack of calories, the body reacts with drowsiness, but it needs to work.
Video: Indulging yourself or indulging in sin? Black coffee and coffee with milk
Does a person become gluttonous when drinking coffee?
Gluttony is the inability to refuse tasty food. Reluctance to refuse is already pride. If you feel that life is not sweet without a tasty drink, you should think about it. As an alternative, green grains can be used initially.
They taste like grass, but have a much gentler effect on the body; in addition, they will help cleanse blood vessels of unnecessary cholesterol and improve the nervous system. To put it bluntly, the culinary pleasure of drinking green coffee is not enough. Gluttony will not work.
This is quite enough to begin a spiritual revival. If a person is used to caffeine, then there is even more of it in green beans - you can brew small doses.
The Effect of Coffee and Caffeine on Your Fasting
Having determined whether your fast allows coffee or not, you can worry about whether your fast allows coffee. Because you don't eat as much and drink more water and coffee, you risk suffering from frequent diarrhea. To avoid this discomfort, drink coffee in moderation.
There is also a positive effect. The effects of caffeine seem to be more pronounced. This is due to the fact that the stomach is empty. When caffeine enters your system, you subjectively feel more alert and more energetic.
So what did we find out?
The laity is not expected to perform monastic feats, so coffee is not subject to church prohibitions, as are sugar, low-fat soy milk and other plant products. Formally, you can drink coffee during fasting.
If you adhere not only to the formal rules, but also to the spirit of Lent, then you should not drink coffee during Lent. Especially those of us who are sincerely attached to this drink. Fasting requires not only adherence to a diet, but also humility of desires.
On this issue we agree with the church ministers. If you have already decided to hold a fast, then you should do it not formally, but from the heart. Therefore, it is better to forget about your favorite drink before Easter, so as not to fall into temptation.
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