I am certain that underneath their upmost layers of frailty men want to be good and want to be loved. Indeed, most of their vices are attempted short cuts to love.
John Steinbeck
We fast during Lent because fasting gets our attention. It is a necessary tool for rousing us from our day-to-day sleepwalking.
We fast during Lent because when we willingly give up something we delight in but do not, strictly speaking, need, we come closer to participating in, understanding, and reverencing the self-emptying act that is Christ on the Cross.
We give up something for Lent to align ourselves with the heart, will, and experience of Jesus. Fasting teaches us that we are not utterly subject to our bodily desires. And in sated and overfed America, fasting reminds us, sharply, of the poor.
Lauren Winner, Giving Up Sex For Lent