Of all the liturgical rules pertaining to the Great Fast, one is of crucial importance for its understanding and is key to our liturgical tradition. It is the rule that forbids the celebration of the Divine Liturgy of John Chrysostom on weekdays. The only exception to this rule is the Feast of the Annunciation, celebrated on March 25th, if it happens to fall during the week.

Why this rule? In very general terms, this rule gives true expression to a very special and basic liturgical principle, namely the incompatibility of the Eucharist with fasting. To understand the meaning of this principle, however, one must understand the meaning of the Eucharist.

In the Eastern Christian tradition, which is deeply different from the eucharistic theology and practice of Western Christianity, the character of the Eucharist is always understood to be festal and joyful. It is, first and foremost, the mystery of Christ’s coming and presence among us, His disciples. Therefore it is a celebration. It makes real and is a proof of Christ’s resurrection. It is meant to be our real experience of His presence among us, causing us to rejoice and be glad.

The Eucharist is meant to be for us the experience of the Risen Lord, causing our hearts to leap for joy and burn with love. Just as the disciples knew the Lord in the breaking of bread, so too do we know the Lord in the breaking of the bread. And so great is this joy that for the early Church the Day of the Eucharist was not just one of the days of the week but, in truth, the Lord’s Day – a day already beyond time that makes the Kingdom of God present at the very moment of our celebration of the Eucharist.

We remember that it was Jesus’ response when questioned why his disciples didn’t fast: The sons and daughters of the Kingdom cannot fast while the Bridegroom is with them. The practice of fasting is meant to help us mourn for our lack of real awareness of the presence of the Lord. We break our fast by greeting the Lord and being filled with joy at His presence. This is one of the reasons why the Church has prescribed as least minor fasting before the reception of the Eucharist.

So, if this is the spirit of Eastern Christian liturgical theology, why do we have the Liturgy of Presanctified Gifts?

The answer next week!