Thread: fasting praying
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Old 04-21-2009, 12:09 PM
Tandi
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Speaking of fasting, does anyone have research/documentation as to whether Pharisees fasted on Sabbath in the first century? I understand that Pharisees commonly fasted on Mondays and Thursdays (twice a week) but how widespread was this practice? Apparently there is some question about this, but the prime resource I would like to check is in Hebrew (the Gilat reference below). Any assistance would be appreciated.

Quote:
A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on The Gospel According to Saint Matthew, by William David Davies, Dale C. Allison p. 312:

“Although we have not brought the fact into the discussion, fasting was traditionally forbidden by some Jews on the sabbath (cf. Jud 8:6; Jub. 50:12; SB 1, pp. 611-15), and this might have something to do with our pericope, to wit: at least Jesus’ critics could not complain that his disciples should have fasted all day. But was the prohibition widespread? See Y. D. Gilat, ‘On Fasting on the Sabbath’, Tarbiz 51 (1983), pp. 1-15.”
Shalom,

Tandi