Mt 9:14-15
14The disciples of John approached [Jesus] and said, “Why do we and the Pharisees fast [much], but your disciples do not fast?” 15Jesus answered them, “Can the wedding guests mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast.”
Fasting. To fast is not just to abstain from food. More conscious of their health and weight, people now control their food intake and fast in style. Fasting intends that what we save in denying ourselves we use to feed the poor! The sacrifice is meant not to punish ourselves but to give to the poor what we normally put into our tummies.
We are like the best man for the bridegroom. We do everything first for the groom before we attend to ourselves. Fasting puts the groom first, the guests second, and us third—God first, the poor second, and ourselves last. Understand this meaning of fasting, and everything will fall fast into place for you.
Bridegroom. Weddings in any culture are occasions of joy and feasting. Abstaining from food and drink is an insult to the married couple and their clan. Jesus compares himself to the bridegroom who brings messianic joy to God’s people. His presence among his disciples is like that of the bridegroom, so the disciples are not called to fast. Still, Jesus foresees that he will be “taken away,” as he will be rejected by the authorities. In remembrance of his passion, there is also time for fasting among his followers.