What Does the Didache Teach About Fasting and Daily Prayer?
1. Fasting and Prayer in the World of the Didache
The Didache (Teaching of the Twelve Apostles) is one of the earliest Christian writings outside the Bible. Composed in the late first or early second century, it presents a picture of how early believers ordered their lives around worship, fasting, and daily prayer. The Didache reflects both Jewish traditions and the teaching of Jesus, showing how the church developed its devotional life in continuity with Scripture.
In chapters 7 and 8, fasting and prayer appear together. Baptism is to be preceded by fasting, while regular days of fasting are assigned to distinguish Christians from surrounding Jewish customs. Likewise, the Lord’s Prayer is prescribed three times daily, connecting the believer’s rhythm of life to Christ’s own teaching. The Bible repeatedly shows fasting and prayer intertwined as acts of devotion, such as when the church at Antioch fasted and prayed before sending out Paul and Barnabas (Acts 13:2–3).
2. The Didache’s Instruction on Fasting
The Didache explicitly instructs believers not to fast “with the hypocrites,” understood as a reference to the Pharisaic practice of fasting on Mondays and Thursdays (Didache 8:1). Instead, Christians were to fast on Wednesdays and Fridays, setting themselves apart while still maintaining the biblical practice of fasting. This change reinforced Christian identity without discarding the value of fasting itself.
Fasting in the Didache is not an empty ritual. It was connected to preparation for baptism (Didache 7:4), signaling repentance and readiness for new life. The Bible also presents fasting as a way of humbling oneself before God (Ezra 8:21; Joel 2:12). In the New Testament, Jesus himself fasted forty days in the wilderness (Matthew 4:2), and he warned against fasting for human praise (Matthew 6:16–18).
The Didache preserves this biblical balance. Fasting is meant to prepare the heart for obedience, strengthen prayer, and align the believer with the kingdom of God. It was both communal and personal, showing that the church saw fasting as a shared discipline of faith.
3. The Didache’s Teaching on Daily Prayer
The Didache instructs Christians to pray the Lord’s Prayer three times a day (Didache 8:2–3). This practice echoes Jewish patterns of daily prayer, such as Daniel praying three times a day (Daniel 6:10), but it centers specifically on the words Jesus taught his disciples. By repeating the Lord’s Prayer morning, midday, and evening, believers ordered their days around the kingdom petitions of Jesus: the sanctifying of God’s name, the coming of his kingdom, daily provision, forgiveness, and deliverance.
The emphasis on “daily” connects to the biblical teaching of perseverance in prayer. Paul commands believers to “pray constantly” (1 Thessalonians 5:17) and to “pray at all times in the Spirit” (Ephesians 6:18). The Didache captures this spirit by rooting daily life in prayer shaped by the Gospel.
Daily prayer was not an optional extra—it was seen as essential to Christian identity. Just as Israel was marked by the Shema recited morning and evening (Deuteronomy 6:4–9), the church was marked by the Lord’s Prayer, anchoring its life in God’s reign.
4. The Relationship Between Fasting, Prayer, and Worship
In the Didache, fasting and daily prayer are not isolated practices but parts of the larger rhythm of worship. Fasting prepared believers for baptism, prayer sustained them through daily life, and together these disciplines connected to the Eucharist and weekly gatherings. Worship was holistic—touching body, spirit, and community.
The Bible consistently links fasting and prayer in this way. In Luke 2:37, Anna the prophetess is described as worshiping night and day “with fasting and prayers.” In Acts 14:23, church leaders were appointed “with prayer and fasting.” The Didache reflects this biblical pattern, demonstrating that the earliest Christians understood worship as more than singing or teaching—it was a life consecrated to God through repeated rhythms of devotion.
5. Fasting and Prayer as Gospel Practices
The Gospel shapes both fasting and prayer in the Didache. Fasting points to repentance and dependence, reminding believers that “man must not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4). Daily prayer centers the believer on Christ’s kingdom, reinforcing the hope of his return: “Your kingdom come, your will be done” (Matthew 6:10).
For the early church, these practices were not legalistic burdens but joyful disciplines of discipleship. They flowed from the reality that Jesus is Lord and that the church belongs to him. Fasting prepared the church for God’s work, while prayer joined the community to God’s presence each day. Both practices pointed forward to the hope of eternal fellowship in God’s kingdom.
6. The End-Time Dimension of Fasting and Prayer
The closing chapter of the Didache (16) places fasting and prayer within an eschatological frame. The church is warned of false prophets, persecution, and the coming of the Lord. Believers are called to perseverance, which is sustained through disciplines like fasting and daily prayer.
This connects directly to the teaching of Jesus in the Bible. In Luke 21:36, Jesus commands, “Be alert at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are going to take place and to stand before the Son of Man.” The early church understood that fasting and prayer prepared them not only for daily faithfulness but for the final day of Christ’s return.
7. Lessons for the Church Today
The Didache teaches that fasting and daily prayer are central to Christian worship and discipleship. From its perspective, the church today can learn:
Fasting cultivates humility and repentance. It reminds believers of their dependence on God.
Daily prayer anchors life in the kingdom of God. Repeating the Lord’s Prayer shapes desires and actions.
These disciplines prepare the church for mission. Just as Paul and Barnabas were sent with fasting and prayer, so the church today relies on God’s power.
They keep worship eschatological. Fasting and prayer orient believers toward Christ’s coming kingdom.
The Bible and the Didache together reveal that fasting and prayer are not optional but integral to following Jesus. They teach the church to live faithfully in the present age while waiting for the age to come.
Conclusion
The Didache presents fasting and daily prayer as core practices of Christian life. They distinguish the church from surrounding traditions, root daily life in the teaching of Jesus, and prepare believers for both present obedience and future hope. By aligning its worship with the Bible, the early church learned to depend on God in every season, embodying the Gospel through humble fasting and continual prayer.
For Christians today, the Didache is a reminder that the way of discipleship is sustained by daily devotion and shaped by eternal hope. Worship is not confined to one day a week—it is the daily offering of one’s life to God through fasting, prayer, and thanksgiving in Christ.
Bible Verses About Fasting and Prayer
Matthew 6:16–18, “Whenever you fast, don’t be gloomy like the hypocrites … your Father who sees in secret will reward you.”
Matthew 6:9–10, “Therefore, you should pray like this: Our Father in heaven, your name be honored as holy. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”
Luke 2:37, “She did not leave the temple, serving God night and day with fasting and prayers.”
Acts 13:2–3, “As they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, ‘Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul’ … then, after they had fasted, prayed, and laid hands on them, they sent them off.”
Acts 14:23, “When they had appointed elders for them in every church and prayed with fasting, they committed them to the Lord.”
Daniel 6:10, “Three times a day he got down on his knees, prayed, and gave thanks to his God, just as he had done before.”
Ezra 8:21, “I proclaimed a fast … so that we might humble ourselves before our God and ask him for a safe journey.”
Joel 2:12, “Even now—this is the Lord’s declaration—turn to me with all your heart, with fasting, weeping, and mourning.”
1 Thessalonians 5:17, “Pray constantly.”
Ephesians 6:18, “Pray at all times in the Spirit with every prayer and request.”
