Why fast?
Fasting is actually a form of penance, which helps us turn away from sin and toward Christ. Denying ourselves something good, we remember what the highest good of all is – GOD. We also practice self-discipline and self-mastery, which we need in order to achieve holiness. Jesus fasted in the desert and calls us to do the same.
Why abstain from meat?
We give up meat, which still today is a luxury in some parts of the world, denying ourselves a good thing to remember that Christ is better than food and needed more by all of us than anything else.
Why is fish not considered meat?
Because it was the food of the poor who could not afford meat, yet could catch fish to sustain themselves.