How Did the Prophet Daniel Keep a Fast?

Abstract

This article addresses the so-called “Daniel Fast,” comparing the perspective of today’s fruit and vegetable diets to the perspective of the biblical Daniel. The contemporary Catholic concept of fasting is significantly different from that in Judaism, which involved absolute abstinence from food and drink—a practice also preserved in the Oriental Churches. Daniel’s motivation is also explained in the biblical text as avoiding unclean foods and idolatrous sacrifices and as abstaining from meat as a sign of solidarity with the besieged Jerusalem. In contrast, the motivation of today’s “Daniel Fast” practitioners is to lose excess weight, even though the biblical account maintains that Daniel became fatter after 10 days of following a fruit and vegetable diet.