--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Fasting is a spiritual exercise whose…" description: "\"“Fasting is a spiritual exercise whose purpose is to subject the body to the liberating yoke of Jesus. As Wendell Berry puts it, denying bodily desire ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/072/rod-dreher-13031_fasting_fasting-is-a-spiritual-exercise-whose-pu_3176963.jpg" --- # Fasting is a spiritual exercise whose purpose is to… ![“Fasting is a spiritual exercise whose purpose is to subject the body to the liberating yoke of Jesus. As Wendell Berry puts it, denying bodily desire for the sake of spiritual growth is “a refusal to allow the body to serve what is unworthy of it.”10” quote by Rod Dreher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/072/rod-dreher-13031_fasting_fasting-is-a-spiritual-exercise-whose-pu_3176963.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/072/rod-dreher-13031_fasting_fasting-is-a-spiritual-exercise-whose-pu_3176963.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/072/rod-dreher-13031_fasting_fasting-is-a-spiritual-exercise-whose-pu_3176963.jpg) > ““Fasting is a spiritual exercise whose purpose is to subject the body to the liberating yoke of Jesus. As Wendell Berry puts it, denying bodily desire for the sake of spiritual growth is “a refusal to allow the body to serve what is unworthy of it.”10”” [Rod Dreher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rod-dreher/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Fasting restrains bodily desires to focus on spiritual growth, freeing the self from unworthy pursuits. **In simple terms:** Fasting helps prioritize spiritual over physical cravings. Key Takeaway Practice fasting to strengthen spiritual discipline. Themes discipline spirituality self‑control Mood contemplative motivational Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - religious observance - personal growth - health routines Key Concepts asceticism bodily restraint Questions to Reflect On - What benefits have you felt from fasting? - How can you balance fasting with daily responsibilities? A Different Perspective Fasting may be challenging physically and socially. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Body Liberating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body-liberating-5805291/) [Exercise Purpose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/exercise-purpose-5805290/) [Fasting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fasting/) [Fasting Spiritual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fasting-spiritual-4534207/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Spiritual Exercise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spiritual-exercise-411997/) [Spiritual growth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spiritual-growth/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wendell-berry/) ## Related quotes > [“Fasting is a spiritual exercise that engenders the development of strong willpower and the spirit of regimentation. It”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virender-kapoor/fasting-is-a-spiritual-exercise-that-engenders-the-development-of/) [Virender Kapoor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virender-kapoor/) > [“Meditation is the language of the soul. It is defined as 'a form of private devotion, or spiritual exercise, consisting in deep, continued reflection…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-t-holland/meditation-is-the-language-of-the-soul-it-is-defined-as-a-form-of/) [Patricia T. Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-t-holland/) > [Gardening can become a spiritual exercise, teaching us discernment as we eliminate the weeds from our lives, giving what we value room to grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-dreher/gardening-can-become-a-spiritual-exercise-teaching-us-discernment-as/) [Diane Dreher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-dreher/) > [Prayer is spiritual exercise and every act of prayer stretches the soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-dillet-freeman/prayer-is-spiritual-exercise-and-every-act-of-prayer-stretches-the/) [James Dillet Freeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-dillet-freeman/) > [Spiritual 'exercise' keeps your mind in shape the way physical exercise keeps your body in shape.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-williamson/spiritual-exercise-keeps-your-mind-in-shape-the-way-physical-exercise/) [Marianne Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-williamson/) > [In many ways spiritual exercise is like physical exercise. If you stop exercising physically, your body may not show the results of inactivity for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-george/in-many-ways-spiritual-exercise-is-like-physical-exercise-if-you-stop/) [Jim George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-george/) > [I like music that is able to stir my soul. My music is a spiritual exercise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-r-rahman/i-like-music-that-is-able-to-stir-my-soul-my-music-is-a-spiritual/) [A. R. Rahman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-r-rahman/) > [Writing was a spiritual exercise for my father, the only thing he really believed in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/writing-was-a-spiritual-exercise-for-my-father-the-only-thing-he/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Dancing is a spiritual exercise in a physical form.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/merce-cunningham/dancing-is-a-spiritual-exercise-in-a-physical-form/) [Merce Cunningham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/merce-cunningham/) > [“Come close to God and He will come close to you. (JAMES 4:8) Not everyone is willing to pay the price required to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-meyer/come-close-to-god-and-he-will-come-close-to-you-james-4-8-not/) [Joyce Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-meyer/) > [Seeing' as you travel is somewhat of a spiritual exercise: a process not of seeking interesting surroundings, but of being continually interested in whatever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rolf-potts/seeing-as-you-travel-is-somewhat-of-a-spiritual-exercise-a-process/) [Rolf Potts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rolf-potts/) > [Physical exercise has some value, but spiritual exercise is valuable in every way, because it promises life both for the present and for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bible/physical-exercise-has-some-value-but-spiritual-exercise-is-valuable/) [Bible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bible/) > [“To listen with an open heart and ask questions to better help us understand the other person is a spiritual exercise, in the truest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-lerner/to-listen-with-an-open-heart-and-ask-questions-to-better-help-us/) [Harriet Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-lerner/) > [It would not do for the consumer to know that the hamburger she is eating came from a steer who spent much of his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-sweet/it-would-not-do-for-the-consumer-to-know-that-the-hamburger-she-is/) [Leonard Sweet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-sweet/) > [“We disdain limits. Wendell Berry warned, “It is easy . . . to imagine that the next great division of the world will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tish-harrison-warren/we-disdain-limits-wendell-berry-warned-it-is-easy-to-imagine-that-the/) [Tish Harrison Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tish-harrison-warren/) ## More by Rod Dreher > [“To love requires loving others and letting others love you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rod-dreher/to-love-requires-loving-others-and-letting-others-love-you/) [Rod Dreher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rod-dreher/) > [“Art really does instruct us in how to think, feel, and behave. To be an artist is to have great power. To be the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rod-dreher/art-really-does-instruct-us-in-how-to-think-feel-and-behave-to-be-an/) [Rod Dreher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rod-dreher/) > [“With a few exceptions, conservative Christian political activists are as ineffective as White Russian exiles, drinking tea from samovars in their Paris drawing rooms,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rod-dreher/with-a-few-exceptions-conservative-christian-political-activists-are/) [Rod Dreher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rod-dreher/) > [“The overweight person diets not to punish him- or herself for being heavy but to become healthier. The athlete works out not because he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rod-dreher/the-overweight-person-diets-not-to-punish-him-or-herself-for-being/) [Rod Dreher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rod-dreher/) > [“A Christian who practices asceticism trains himself to say no to his desires and yes to God.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rod-dreher/a-christian-who-practices-asceticism-trains-himself-to-say-no-to-his/) [Rod Dreher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rod-dreher/) > [“For the traditional Christian, establishing internal order is not mere discipline, nor is it simply an act of will. 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But at the very least we can impose on ourselves a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rod-dreher/it-is-not-feasible-for-most-of-us-to-abandon-the-internet-entirely/) [Rod Dreher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rod-dreher/) > [“Father Martin said that those who think stability is meant to hold you back, and to stifle personal and spiritual growth, are missing the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rod-dreher/father-martin-said-that-those-who-think-stability-is-meant-to-hold/) [Rod Dreher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rod-dreher/) > [Ideology is a partial truth masquerading as the whole truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rod-dreher/ideology-is-a-partial-truth-masquerading-as-the-whole-truth/) [Rod Dreher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rod-dreher/) > [As it turns out, the ecological catastrophe Kirk feared that would be the consequence of our impiety appears not to be one of radically…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rod-dreher/as-it-turns-out-the-ecological-catastrophe-kirk-feared-that-would-be/) [Rod Dreher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rod-dreher/) > [“Here's how to get started with the antipolitical politics of the Benedict Option. Secede culturally from the mainstream. Turn off the television. Put the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rod-dreher/here-s-how-to-get-started-with-the-antipolitical-politics-of-the/) [Rod Dreher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rod-dreher/) > [“Inferno was for learning about the nature of our sins. Purgatorio is for learning how to overcome our tendencies to fall victim to them.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rod-dreher/inferno-was-for-learning-about-the-nature-of-our-sins-purgatorio-is/) [Rod Dreher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rod-dreher/) > [I quite often feel that my greatest task as a father is to raise children who love what is good, true, and beautiful, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rod-dreher/i-quite-often-feel-that-my-greatest-task-as-a-father-is-to-raise/) [Rod Dreher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rod-dreher/) [Explore all 52 Rod Dreher quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rod-dreher/) ## More Fasting quotes > [We must master our egoism, and through this mastery, step outside ourselves and educate ourselves in giving. Fasting requires that we rediscover all that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tariq-ramadan/we-must-master-our-egoism-and-through-this-mastery-step-outside/) [Tariq Ramadan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tariq-ramadan/) > [The man of wisdom is devoid of ego even though he may appear to use it. His vacant or fasting mind is neither doing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ramesh-s-balsekar/the-man-of-wisdom-is-devoid-of-ego-even-though-he-may-appear-to-use/) [Ramesh S Balsekar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ramesh-s-balsekar/) > [How much more of the mosque, of prayer and fasting? Better go drunk and begging round the taverns. Khayyam, drink wine, for soon this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/omar-khayy-m/how-much-more-of-the-mosque-of-prayer-and-fasting-better-go-drunk-and/) [Omar Khayyam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/omar-khayy-m/) > [When the stomach is full, it is easy to talk of fasting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/st-jerome/when-the-stomach-is-full-it-is-easy-to-talk-of-fasting/) [St. Jerome](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/st-jerome/) > [Fasting is not bodily hunger but bodily elevation and purity. It is not a body that hungers and longs for food, but a body…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-shenouda-iii-of-alexandria/fasting-is-not-bodily-hunger-but-bodily-elevation-and-purity-it-is/) [Pope Shenouda III of Alexandria](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-shenouda-iii-of-alexandria/) > [Fasting is truly a secret source of power.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jentezen-franklin/fasting-is-truly-a-secret-source-of-power/) [Jentezen Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jentezen-franklin/) > [Surfeits kill more than fasting does.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-osborne/surfeits-kill-more-than-fasting-does/) [Dorothy Osborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-osborne/) > [Good Friday. Way of the Cross. Fasting and abstinence. Examine conscience. Have a really blessed day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/good-friday-way-of-the-cross-fasting-and-abstinence-examine/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I go by my own body type when it comes to fasting, which means that I would not follow some general advice or rule…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/riya-sen/i-go-by-my-own-body-type-when-it-comes-to-fasting-which-means-that-i/) [Riya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/riya-sen/) > [“Fasting clears away the thousand little things which quickly accumulate and clutter the body, mind and heart. It cuts through corrosion and renews our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-bragg/fasting-clears-away-the-thousand-little-things-which-quickly/) [Paul Bragg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-bragg/) > [Fasting confirms our utter dependence upon God by finding in Him a source of sustenance beyond food.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dallas-willard/fasting-confirms-our-utter-dependence-upon-god-by-finding-in-him-a/) [Dallas Willard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dallas-willard/) > [Fasting makes sense if it really chips away at our security and, as a consequence, benefits someone else, if it helps us cultivate the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/fasting-makes-sense-if-it-really-chips-away-at-our-security-and-as-a/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/) > [The dogmatic and, therefore, invulnerable core in Islam is understandably simple: acknowledgement of faith, prayer, charity and fasting. Almost everything else is open to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tariq-ramadan/the-dogmatic-and-therefore-invulnerable-core-in-islam-is/) [Tariq Ramadan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tariq-ramadan/) > [One of the reasons intermittent fasting can work is that it reconnects you with what hunger feels like.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-mohr/one-of-the-reasons-intermittent-fasting-can-work-is-that-it/) [Chris Mohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-mohr/) > [“Fasting, prayer, and almsgiving build the third pillar of the eremitic rigor that helps to develop the spiritual life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelius-wencel/fasting-prayer-and-almsgiving-build-the-third-pillar-of-the-eremitic/) [Cornelius Wencel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelius-wencel/) [Browse all 367 Fasting quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fasting/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Fasting is a spiritual exercise whose purpose is to subject the body to the liberating yoke of Jesus. 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