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When did fasting begin?

Question

Question

When did the rules on not eating after midnight before receiving Communion come into effect?

--Fasting in Phoenix

Answer

Answer

The Catholic Source Book indicates that the practice of a recognizing and doing a "eucharistic fast" before receiving communion ,dates from the Council of Carthage in 254 and Antioch in 268. It seems to have been a universal practice by the 5th century.