Fasting and Food Habits in the Eastern Orthodox Church
Fasting and Food Habits in the Eastern Orthodox Church
This chapter examines fasting and food habits in the Eastern Orthodox Church. Orthodox dietary rules require periodic vegetarianism through the avoidance of all animal food, with the exception of mollusks and crustaceans, which are permitted on many fasting days. Some plant-based foods, such as wine and vegetable oil, are also prohibited during some fasting periods. The Greek Orthodox religious calendar includes four extended fasting periods before each of the principal feasts: Lent (preceding Christmas—in the West called Advent), Great Lent (preceding Easter), Fasting of the Apostles (after Pentecost), and the two weeks preceding the feast of Assumption of the Theotokos on August 15. Fasting is prescribed for a total period of 150 to 180 days a year. The duration of fasting periods can range from seven weeks, in the case of the Great Lent, to a single day. In addition, meat is prohibited throughout the year on Wednesdays and Fridays.
Keywords: fasting, food habits, Eastern Orthodox Church, Orthodox dietary rules, vegetarianism, Greek Orthodox, religious calendar, Lent, Great Lent, Fasting of the Apostles
Columbia Scholarship Online requires a subscription or purchase to access the full text of books within the service. Public users can however freely search the site and view the abstracts and keywords for each book and chapter.
Please, subscribe or login to access full text content.
If you think you should have access to this title, please contact your librarian.
To troubleshoot, please check our FAQs, and if you can't find the answer there, please contact us .
