wine and oil for the great canon

[ioannis_theologos]

I read that wine and oil are allowed on Wed and Thu of the fifth week for the vigil of the Great Canon, and wine is allowed on Fri for the vigil of the Akathist Hymn. Should you only consume wine and oil, then, if you actually attend these vigils, since it doesn't seem to be a case of relaxing the fast in honor of a saint, but only for sustenance?

Also, what are you meant to be eating otherwise if a little wine and oil makes such a difference? Bread and water? I guess this ties in to my general confusion about what exactly is allowed during 'dry-eating' days. Particularly, are boiled foods allowed or not? Does it make a difference what kind of food you normally eat?

The reason is I'm guessing how you interpret the rules depends on your normal diet. So, if you eat basically north European 'beer and butter' food, like most Americans traditionally, then you should copy the Russians, who seem to limit the fast to meat and dairy, and maybe fish and alcohol (excluding beer) on stricter days, but if you eat basically Mediterranean 'wine and oil' food, you should copy the Greeks.

In Christ

John

[GOCPriestMark]

I have been considering how to answer this for awhile, but really the best answer for you is to ask your spiritual father/parish priest. I agree with your intuition that it doesn't seem right to have wine/oil if you didn't attend the vigils. That seems to be in line with St. Paul's saying; "if any would not work, neither should he eat".

I understand 'dry eating' as cooking without oil. Boiling, steaming and frying in water are all allowed, though some days call for 'unprocessed' foods. There is more than bread and water to eat, we can get all kinds of vegetables from all around the world. It may take time to work it out to fit in with your life, but it shouldn't be too difficult to find a variety of vegetable meals to fix. I just discovered 'tempeh' this year, it has a decent texture, is a complete protein and seems to have fewer side effects than other soy products.

Knowing the difference between eating meals with and without oil is a matter of experience. When you eat the same soup Monday through Friday and on Saturday get to mix a spoonful of olive oil in the bowl, you'll know the difference. The psalmist makes this observation: "My knees are grown weak through fasting, and my flesh is changed for want of oil." (Ps. 108) The effects of fasting from oil are well known, but only experience can teach you this.

Orthodox fasting is meant to change our lives. Eating is at the core of our activities, so naturally, changing our diet, consciously not feeding the desires of our flesh, causes us to sit up and take notice of other aspects of our life also.

May God help and guide you in your struggles.