After the Ancient and Godly Usage of the Church of England

This “little fast,” once treasured in the English Church, is our way of waiting with the saints and learning again to hunger for Christ above all things. 

The English Reformers did not reject fasting. They received it as ancient Christians did: not as a means of earning grace, but as an act of worshipful discipline to humble the heart and turn it more fully toward Christ.

Fasting is simply the soul’s way of saying, “Come, Lord Jesus.”

Below is a simple household rule for keeping the Advent Fast in a spirit of English devotion.

I. Of Days and Times

The Fast begins on the First Sunday in Advent and continues until the Feast of the Nativity.

Fridays shall be days of fast and abstinence.

The Ember Days of Advent shall be kept with special devotion:

• Ember Wednesday: December 17, 2025

• Ember Friday: December 19, 2025

• Ember Saturday: December 20, 2025

Sundays are not fasting days, but days of preparation, marked by temperance and godly cheer.

Fasting refers to reducing the amount of food (fewer or smaller meals).

Abstinence refers to refraining from a particular food (such as meat), even when meals are otherwise ordinary.

II. Of Abstinence and Temperance

Let the household take no flesh (meat) on Fridays and Ember Days. On other days let the diet be sober and moderate.

Early Christians fasted from meat on Fridays to remember the Lord’s Passion, following the pattern taught in the Didache, which instructs believers to keep distinct fast days as a sign of devotion and identity with Christ’s suffering.

Let each person keep a single meal, or two small collations, on fast days.

Let there be no excess of wine or strong drink, except for necessity or hospitality.

Let no vain feasting be made, nor riotous mirth, nor costly entertainments.

III. Of Prayer and Worship

Morning and Evening Prayer should be diligently used in the household.

On fast days, say the Litany, adding the Penitential Versicles.

Read each day a lesson from the prophets and a Gospel concerning the coming of Christ.

Use often the Penitential Psalms: 6, 32, 38, 51, 102, 130, 143.

Let all in the house examine their consciences, confessing their sins unto Almighty God.

IV. Of Charity and Almsgiving

What is spared from the table, let it be given to the poor and needy.

Visit the sick and comfort the sorrowful.

Reconcile any who are at variance, seeking peace and Christian love.

Keep secret alms, that God alone may behold.

V. Of Watchfulness and Holy Living

Observe silence of heart, avoiding trifling talk and idle amusements.

Let no vain shows or entertainments draw the mind away from Christ.

Practice simplicity in the household, restraining needless spending and worldly pomp.

Keep peace with all, forgiving freely, speaking gently, and ordering life in charity.

VI. Of Christmas Eve

Keep Christmas Eve as a day of strict abstinence and prayer.

At even-tide, attend the Holy Communion with reverence and joy, receiving the Lord with a clean heart and quiet mind.

Then let the fast give way to holy gladness at Christ’s Nativity.