"...fasting was a duty often practised by the people of God, and by holy men under the law of Moses. And the gospel recommends it, from the beginning to the end, by the examples of Christ and John the Baptist, of Peter, Paul, and the rest of the apostles, as well as by their counsels and exhortations; nothing is more frequently inculcated than this duty of fasting, throughout the writings of the New Testament: And without all doubt, it is now as requisite as ever it was, since we are liable to the same infirmities, exposed to the same temptations, and beset with the same dangers as former Christians were; against all which evils fasting is proper remedy. Fasting mortifies the body, and tames concupiscence; it quenches lust, and kindles devotion; it is the handmaiden of prayer, and the nurse of meditation; it refines the understanding. subdues the passions, regulates the will, and sublimates the whole man to a more spiritual state of life: 'this the life of the angels, the enamel of the soul, the greatest advantage of religion, the best opportunity for retirements of devotion. While the smoke of carnal appetites is suppressed and distinguished, the heart breaks forth with holy fire, til it be burning like cherubim, and the most ecstasied order of pure and undiluted spirits. These are the proper and genuine effects of religious and frequent fasting, as they can witness who make it their practice."