During the days when the fasting periods of members of different religious communities overlap in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the guests of the “Novi dan” (New Day) show on N1 television were Father Mirko Majdandzic, a well-known Bosnian Franciscan, and Imam Muhamed Hafizovic, the imam of the Alipasa Mosque in Sarajevo.
Their meeting in the studio sent a strong message about the importance of unity, spirituality, and a return to fundamental human values, accompanied by deep and inspiring reflections on what fasting truly represents.
Father Mirko’s arrival in the studio brought his recognizable optimism. He described the atmosphere through seemingly ordinary but meaningful details of the welcome, emphasizing the importance of the positive energy people exchange.
“When I arrived in front of the building, the receptionist was waiting. He greeted me with a smile, set down his coffee, and moved the cone aside to welcome us. “Welcome,” he said. I entered the building, and Imam Muhamed and I quickly caught up, exchanging positive energy from the meeting. Spirit touches spirit. That’s how it is. You send out one ray of good energy, and it is received and then enriched with more good energy from my brother. We can say that we are brothers. We are journeying toward the same Heavenly Father, and I believe we are on the same mission here. A kind word and a kind gesture are the minimum. During these days of fasting, it would be good not to fast from kind words. In other words, during fasting, let us not fast from kindness. That would fill all our meetings with goodness,” said Father Mirko Majdandzic.
“Only Profound Silence Awakens the Good within Us”
Building on those thoughts, Imam Hafizovic explained the essence of fasting in a time of constant noise and chatter in modern life.
“Fasting fundamentally signifies a return to ourselves, the return from the constant chatter or noise that has overwhelmed both social networks and people on the streets. It often feels as if someone speaks just for the sake of speaking, without any real need to convey a message or to ensure that what is said carries goodness and faith. Fasting wants to bring us back to that beginning, to help us hear the believer within ourselves. That chatter can serve as a verbal exercise to keep us in shape, but it is the deep silence that comes with fasting that draws out the good within us, the good we sometimes feel even without words,” emphasized Imam Hafizovic.
Speaking about the spiritual dimension and human nature, he used a vivid example:
“Every human being carries something divine within, in our tradition, it is called ruh. It is the part God breathed into humans so that they could be human. Over time, people forget or suppress it under the weight of the horizontal dimension of life, and the vertical connection toward God weakens. That is why it is important to return to fasting, to renew that vertical dimension. A Christian theologian explained this well using the example of the cross, comparing the horizontal and vertical lines: if we gather enough strength to stop evil and negativity on the horizontal level, we will rise higher on the vertical and draw closer to God.”
Giving Up Food versus Giving Up Selfishness
Reflecting on the essence of Christian Lent, Father Mirko warned about the danger of reducing fasting to a mere formal obligation.
“In our tradition, Ash Wednesday and Good Friday are the only two days in the year when strict fasting and abstinence are required. On those days, you may eat once until you are full. If I say that I do not eat meat during Lenten Fridays, that is completely normal, and I am allowed to eat fish, which can sometimes be two or three times more expensive than meat. So what is fasting in that case? I have fulfilled the legal requirement, I have given up meat, but I may still overeat, which can even be good for physical health. Many people fast to improve their physical condition. But sometimes it is much harder to fast through silence,” explained Majdandzic, adding:
“It would be very meaningful if, during Lent or Ramadan, everyone decided not to send a single negative message or comment on social media. If someone writes something to me, I will send them a heart. That would mean I am fasting from negativity. It is often easier to fast from food than from our own selfishness.”
Speaking about the 40 days of Lent as a reflection of Jesus’ fasting in the desert and his temptations, Father Mirko concluded with a message of moderation:
“We have human needs that are completely normal. It is normal to eat, to work, to dress well, and to live in a decent home. These are not only allowed but also necessary. However, if we exaggerate them, if they become the only thing that matters and we forget the person next to us because we are focused only on ourselves, then those healthy needs turn into idols that lead us astray.”, N1.
