Fasting: Midnight to Midnight

[Gregory]

Why do we fast (Wednesdays and Fridays) from midnight to midnight rather than sundown to sundown?

Gregory

[OrthodoxyOrDeath]

From what little I know, sundown is midnight in church time. So in the monasteries, when the sun sets, it is the start of a new day, and the cycle of services and activities are based on this.

In the secular world, sunset is always changing throughout the year, and differently in different parts, but schedules based on secular clocks don't change. Therefore, since the services are based on secular clocks, which don't change, we also use secular midnight to midnight.

So I guess the real question is, why don't we go by Church time and not secular time for everything. Without thinking about this to deeply, I suppose its because many people would be unable to adjust their secular schedules and would either miss services or lose their jobs. Remember, there should be services every day like in the monasterys, unfortunatley this is rarley done.

I could be wrong about this, but this is what I have always thought.

[lsaac]

No no no. Midnight to midnight is a very Orthodox way of measuring time. You have to understand the Church as having both Roman heritage, which measure days from midnight to midnight, and Jewish heritage, which measured days from sunset to sunset. Both are used for different purposes.

In her wisdom, the Church has decided to use midnights to mark off fasting periods.

[Justin Kissel]

In her wisdom, the Church has decided to use midnights to mark off fasting periods.

But why? Why choose the "Roman heritage" in this instance over the "Jewish heritage"?

[George Australia]

In her wisdom, the Church has decided to use midnights to mark off fasting periods.

Actually, I don't think she has. When I was in Jerusalem in 1987 for Holy Week, I was surprised to find that the Ceremony of the Holy Fire (marking the Ressurection) takes place at Midday on Holy Saturday after which people enjoy the Paschal Feast. In the Patriarchate of Jerusalem, the Holy Week fast ends at midday since midday is counted as the beginning of the day.

[Mor Ephrem]

In the Patriarchate of Jerusalem, the Holy Week fast ends at midday since midday is counted as the beginning of the day.

Man, this gets even more confusing. How is it that they regard midday as the beginning of a new day?

[George Australia]

Man, this gets even more confusing. How is it that they regard midday as the beginning of a new day?

Before clocks, the cycle of the day had to be measured by observable points in the journey of the Sun through the sky. Midnight is not observable, so the three points of reference were sunrise (the Sun in the Eastern Horizon), sunset (the Sun in the Western Horizon), and midday (the Sun at it's highest point, i.e. closest to Zenith).
Since a day is actually 'a day and a night' and is determined by a cycle of movement of the Sun, it doesn't matter which point in the cycle you choose as the reference point.
It gets even more confusing if you live in Finland!

In Matthew 12:40, Christ says:

"For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth."

If Christ died on Friday afternoon and rose before dawn on Sunday, that would make only two days if you count the beginning of the day at sunrise or sunset. But if the day begins at midday you have:
Part of the day of Friday (One Day)
The first part of Friday Night (One night)
The second part of Friday night counted as Saturday night. (Two nights)
Saturday morning (Two Days)
Saturday afternoon (Three days)
The first part of Saturday night (Three nights)