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When voluntary fasting raises questions about privilege and suffering

I fast during Lent every year but this year I keep thinking about people who don't have enough food and whether my voluntary hunger is somehow offensive or if it helps me understand suffering better.

Rumi
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More people experience this than they realize.

What we've seen

Choosing to abstain from abundance can generate ethical confusion about whether voluntary hardship increases empathy or trivializes real deprivation.

Ideas that help explain it
Worth thinking about

“Where Are You with Fasting as spiritual practice?”

If this sounds familiar, the Library can help you find the bigger picture.