When to Fast

Weekday Fasts

There is the required weekly fast of every Wednesday and Friday.  We also fast on the day before Christmas and Theophany, on the feast days of the Exaltation of the Cross (Sep 14) and the Beheading of John the Baptist (Aug 29).

Fast periods

Then there are five fasting periods.

1. Great Lent, which lasts for fifty days. There is also a partial fast during the week preceding the beginning of Lent (Cheese Week).

2. Holy Week. A lesser fast is observed on the Saturday of Lazarus and Palm Sunday. A strict fast is observed from Holy Monday through the Paschal Vigil.

3. Fast of the Apostles begins on the Monday after the Sunday of All Saints and ends on June 28, the eve of the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul the Apostles. The duration of this fast depends on the date of Pascha.

4. Fast of the Dormition of the Theotokos (August 1-14).

5. Fast of the Nativity of Christ (November 15-December 24). In modern usage a strict observance of this fast commences after December 12. (The celebration of the Marriage Service which is generally prohibited during fasting periods is permitted between November 15 and December 12).