The theme today is worship that costs something. Hermas reminds us that true fasting isn’t hunger of the body but purity of the heart; Augustine helps us see that joy itself is an act of giving; and Aquinas shows how pleasure, rightly ordered, becomes fuel for holiness. All three reveal that God measures our fasting, our joy, and even our delight not by what we give up but by what we love most. (Philippians 4:10–14)

Readings:

Hermas, The Shepherd of Hermas, Similitude 5 — Of True Fasting and Its Reward: Also of Purity of Body

Augustine, The Confessions, Book 10, Chapter 26 (Sections 39–40)

Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologica, Part 1–2, Question 33 (The Effects of Pleasure)

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