February 18th, 2009 Posted in FAITH FORMATION | Comments Off
Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up himself up for her.
MEN: HUSBANDS FASTING FOR THEIR WIVES
The e5 Man fasts for his bride to imitate Jesus as described by Saint Paul in his letter to the Ephesians, chapter 5 (for which e5 is named). Fasting is eating only bread and water.
Jesus made a bodily sacrifice on the cross for His Bride the Church to present her to God the Father “without spot or wrinkle”.By fasting for our earthly bride and joining our sufferings to Christ’s we intercede for grace for our brides. At the same time our act of bodily love in union with Christ accelerates our own conversion.
By making this sacrifice for the women in our lives we live out the essence of the gospel through a very particular act of self denial. To lay down one’s body out of love for another is the central message of the gospel.
Register as an e5 Man. Click here.
Click here to watch the e5 video.
NOT ONLY FOR MARRIED MEN
Membership is not limited to married men. For single men, their fast may be dedicated to their future bride. For widowers or those unlikely to get married, the beneficiary of their fasts may be for a deceased wife, a daughter, a sister, or a granddaughter, or any other women in great need. For the consecrated celibate man the benefit of their fast can be for the benefit of the community they serve or for consecrated celibate women.
REQUIREMENTS
Except for medical reasons, the minimum requirements to be an e5 Man are that you:
1. Be a baptized Christian man.
2. Register with e5. Register as an e5 Man. Click here.
3. Fast on plain bread and water at least one day a month for your bride for her spiritual growth and healing – preferably on the first Wednesday of the month.
ADDITIONAL INTENTIONS OF THE E5 MAN
The intentions of the e5 also include:
1. All the other e5 Men’s brides or primary intention.
2. For all the e5 Women registered with us.
3. For all women sinned against by men.
4. For the petitions sent to us by women for women.
5. And in general for all women.
Many e5 Men choose to fast more than once a month and often choose other beneficiaries for those days such as sisters, mothers, or friends. see e5 Special Forces.
Register as an e5 Man. Click here.
OUR PRIVACY POLICY
Your postal address and e-mail address will never be sold to another organization. You will receive a monthly reminder e-mail with a short reflection several days before the first Wednesday of the month. From time to time you may receive other information from us that seems appropriate. In short, we will treat your personal information with respect.
E5 HELPFUL FASTING TIPS
by Steven Habisohn, e5 Founder
Fasting is often difficult not only because of our own weaknesses but because in God’s wisdom He allows it to be harder for some than for others. Sometimes Satan himself desires to discourage us and will put barriers in our way. This is especially true the first few times. It doesn’t take much to throw us off, especially if we live hectic lives.
Here are a few ideas that might help with your fasting if you are having difficulty.
Having a specific intention is important
We are meant to love others so when we fast only for ourselves it just doesn’t seem to be as easy to do. As men we are made to lay down our lives for our brides – fasting taps into this part of our masculine hearts.
Prepare the night before with some prayer time
I find that waking up in the morning having not made a firm commitment the night before makes a fast more difficult.
Pray for the one you are fasting for during the fast
Short prayers during the day are especially helpful. You might find spiritual road blocks throughout the day will turn into simple road bumps with the recitation of the Lord’s prayer for your intention.
Call an e5 buddy and ask him how it’s going
I have one e5 friend who loves to leave voice messages about steak dinners and rolls dripping in butter. It sure makes it a lot easier to do the heavy lifting knowing you’re not alone.
Start fasting once a week instead of only once a month
Although not so obvious, this sometimes can make it easier. Perhaps you could fast every Wednesday for lent and see how it works. Check out e5 Special Forces.
Start a consistent meditative prayer life if you haven’t already
When you fast you are ridding yourself of the joys of the flesh for a day and it reveals the emptiness in your heart that wants to be filled. Instead of filling it with food, fill it with Christ’s love. However, if you are not in the habit of praying often, it could be a very painful mental and emotional experience to fast . You may only feel the emptiness and suffering which used to be filled with the simple joys of food. This experience certainly gives new meaning to the phrase “comfort food.” Fasting is a challenge to make God your comfort but if you do not have a developed prayer life you will certainly notice the emptiness when you are fasting.
Change the start and end time of the fast
An easier way to do the 24 hour fast (slightly modified) is to go from dinner time one day to about dinner time the next. For instance start after dinner on Tuesday and end right before dinner on Wednesday. I use this schedule when there is a social engagement where I should eat. It’s a nice variation to have ready, especially for those that are fasting every week. There are quite a few e5 Men always do it this way because they need and/or want to eat with their families. Often it is a way to keep the fasting more private from family members.
Have minor fasts throughout the month
Perhaps choose to fast at least from one meal every Friday between first Wednesdays to keep up the fasting mentality.
Modify and ramp up to the 24 hours
If you can’t seem to fast for the 24 hour minimum, set out to have some type of fast at least once a week and over time slowly build to fasting for the whole 24 hours. Take as long as you need.
Attend an evening of devotion
Attend an evening of devotion like a mass, prayer meeting, rosary group, or bible study on your fast day. You will be particularly receptive to what the Lord wants to give you at those times and your satisfaction from the day of fasting will be increased.
Ask in prayer specifically for the grace to accomplish the fast
Any good work is only accomplished through the goodness of God living and working through us anyway. Ask for more of it. Ask especially when you feel particularly weak in your ability to accomplish the fast.
Be as gentle on yourself as Jesus is
Remember that God gives us the gift to make the gift. Be patient with yourself. He makes it harder for some than others according to His will. One fast for you may be as important as 5 for another.
Remember to Eat bread and drink water
Often one might forget sufficient water on a fast day. Also some might get into the legitimate habit of not eating anything; then on a particularly difficult day they forget that they can eat some bread. The e5 Fast is not about radical physical suffering; it’s about taming the sensual passions for the sake of another. Being tired and aching is not necessarily the point. The point is to take away the pleasure that food brings to cooperate with God in ordering our bodily passions towards love of another and not self love.
Live a less hectic life
Often the chaos of the day takes a lot out of us and we don’t even realize it. Fasting can be a real battle sometimes, and for some every time. The chaos in our life is often a factor in not being able to do the mental work it takes to follow through on a fast. A simpler life in general but specifically on the day of the fast will help greatly.
Hope these help.
