Antioch Session Call for Fasting & Prayer

At its February stated meeting held on Monday the 17th, the Antioch Session formally issued a call for a day of fasting and prayer for the reformation and revival of our country, and especially for our local communities here in the South Carolina Upcountry. The appointed day is Wednesday, February 26th. The Session is calling for members and friends of Antioch Presbyterian Church to commit as much of the day as possible to fasting and prayer for our country and local communities, culminating in the prayer meeting scheduled for 6:00 PM on that day.

The Presbyterian Church in America’s Book of Church Order contains a chapter on Days of Fasting and Thanksgiving as part of its Directory for the Worship of God. The relevant portions of Chapter 62 are as follows:

62-1. The observance of days of fasting and of thanksgiving, as the dispensations of Divine Providence may direct, is both scriptural and rational.

62-2. Fasting and thanksgiving may be observed by individual Christians; by families, by particular congregations; by a number of congregations contiguous to each other; by the congregations under the care of a Presbytery; or by all the congregations of our Church.

62-3. It should be left to the judgment and discretion of every Christian family to determine when it is proper to observe a private fast or thanksgiving; and to the church Sessions to determine for particular congregations; and to the Presbyteries, to determine for larger districts. When it is deemed expedient that a fast or thanksgiving should be general, the call for it should be issued by the General Assembly. If at any time the civil power should appoint a fast or thanksgiving, in keeping with the Christian faith, it is the duty of the. ministers and people of our communion to pay all due respect to it.

62-4. Public notice should be given a sufficient time before the appointed day of fasting or thanksgiving, that persons may so order their affairs as to allow them to attend properly to the duties of the day.

62-5. There should be public worship upon all such days; and the prayers, psalms or hymns, the selection of Scripture, and sermons, should all be in a special manner adapted to the occasion.

62-6. On days of fasting, the minister should point out the authority and providences calling for the observance; and he should spend more than the usual time in solemn prayer, particular confession of sin, especially for the sins of the day and place; and the whole day should be spent in prayer and meditation.

For a brief article on when it is proper to engage in prayer and fasting, refer to Seven Occasions for Fasting.

Sermons on Fasting from Antioch