El ayuno en la Didajé

Abstract

The praxis of fasting, widespread in the Jewish world and adopted by some Christian communities, was used in the nascent Christianity with different functions, as the Didache testifies: as group identity sign (8,1), as expression of love (1,3) and as preparatory element for the baptism (7,4). This is the oldest testimony of the prebaptismal fasting, transmitting an existing praxis in its community, without needing to justify it. Probably it was understood as a liminal element of ritual of the baptism and, as a collective act, denoted the spiritual solidarity of the community with the candidate.