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Fasting, health and the stomach
The human stomach is an adjustable compartment of elastic quality. It expands and contrasts depending on factors, natural or artificial. For example, it is natural for a middle-aged man to develop pot-belly, but artificial for a three-year-old to develop same.
In the case of the three-year kid, such wonderful stomach may contain a thousand and one worms, each of them vying for alimentary superiority. Or, it may be a product of a disease that has gained official and unofficial recognition in Third World countries – Kwashiokor.
All things being equal, however, a person’s stomach may grow either positively or negatively depending on his political ambitions, economic circumstances, alcoholic potential or religious inclination.
The reader will agree with me that the year 1990 has brought about a coincidence of religious events. While Muslims were engaged in their religious exercise of prayer and fasting, Christians on the other hand were seriously engrossed in eating and drinking to celebrate the Easter.
Anyhow, there is nothing of consequence since both Christians and Muslims fast at one time or the other. Fasting as a religious practice is a gateway towards spiritual growth and development, and most religions consider it as such. It is supposed to draw one nearer to God; in fact, to make it possible for one to spiritually wine and dine with the Lord at the Royal table. After such divine buffet dinner, the diner’s soul becomes pure, free from sin, and eligible for a passport to heaven without a visa.
Fasting, however, does more than merely making the spirit a visa-free sojourner in God’s abode. Fasting has good effects on the human being since it has excellent physiological tonic on a body which eats, digests and assimilates every kind of food without going on annual leave.
In a rather feeble attempt to become a born-again sometime in the 1980s, I had occasion to taste of the sweetness and bitterness of fasting. I was to fast for three days during which I was supposed to pray for my sins. Before I began the fast, I had to weigh a considerable number of factors under the guise of a feasibility study in order to forecast whether I would faint mid-way, develop hernia alongside, or woefully fail the test of a religious hunger-strike.
As such, I had to consider the durability of my will-power, the threshold of my appetite and whether I had enough blood and vitamins in my system to see me through three days of stomach palaver.
I began on a Friday morning in high spirits. By noon I was
already tired and gustatorily sane to continue this self-persecution but I керt reading Bible verses and got lost in the aura of their power, as the Holy Spirit urged me on.
However, at three o’clock (standard time) I was dead hungry. Fact is that, for over 20 good years I’d never fasted for even half a day. During every single day of these years, I constantly digested breast milk, lactogen koko, ice-cream, koose, banku and okro soup, yoke gari, waakye with diarrhoea pepper and whatever.
And just overnight, I was compelled to suspend this useful biological continuity and go without food for three days.
The first day came to pass quite fine except for a rather sleepless night. On the second day I felt no hunger till 2.00 pm when I encountered the real test. A woman was carrying her waakye and stew to the market when like a radar, my nose tracked down the delicious aroma coming from the stew, I salivated like a hungry Royal dog but began reciting the Lord’s Prayer immediately.
Had it not been for the Lord’s Prayer, I would have shouted for the waakye seller to trot to my end. I would have ordered her: “Maame, tear me waakye 80, meat 70, all making 150. Add more pepper because my uncle Kofi Jogolo says pepper is good for the acts on waist. “
The third day was quite eventful. I had reduced in weight and found it prudent to stay in the bedroom to avoid unnecessary questions about my almost disjointed frame. I was so light that if there had been a hurricane, I would have been carried away to Venezuela without travelling documents.
On this third day, I was tempted, perhaps more than Jesus Christ was after 40 days of fasting. Immediately I came out of my study room to sit under a shady tree, a banana seller to whom I was a long faithful customer materialised before me with fresh, juicy lobes of her ware.
“How much should I give you,” she asked me as usual “I’ve already eaten,” replied tersely, “But you look hungry, and your lips are dry. If you don’t have money, no problem. I’ll come for it tomorrow, how much groundnuts should I add?” “Fact is that, Madam, I’ve eaten, Come tomorrow and I’ll buy everything for you,” I said, for it is a religious impropriety to reveal that you are fasting.
She looked at me carefully and shrugged. Before I realised it, she had hobbled away.
Not long thereafter, sellers came perambulating my territory, I now began reciting Psalm 23 as they enticed me with jollof rice, sugar-bread, boiled eggs, goat-khebab, and apapransa, among others. By 5:30pm, I decided to sign an accord with the devil to relieve my stomach of its palaver. For, the final lapse of 30 minutes was more than a century to me. Eventually, the ‘century’ came to pass as the devil beat its wings and soared away after losing the battle. That ended my ordeal.
Then I thought I could break the fast with a hundred oranges and five kilos of banana, but I was disappointed. I could take two oranges only and no banana at all. I hear someone broke a two- week fast with fufu and thick palmnut soup with crabs and doctor-fish, and was immediately allocated some space at the nearest cemetery.
Dear reader, the three-day fast did me a lot of good than harm. When I resumed my normal course of eating, I felt very healthy and I was energetic, walked with springy steps and was almost ready to train to become a boxer. I was full of energy and experienced free bowels. Quite expectantly, my girlfriend said I looked more handsome.
Truth is, fasting has more than mere spiritual value. The body needs to be rejuvenated by exercise, continence and self-denial. Over indulgence shortens your life.
Every medical authority will advise a full-day fasting once a month for buoyant health. Some illnesses can be cured by a period of fasting. The human system is cleansed by fasting, and the most healthy-individuals are those who endeavour to do without food at periodic intervals. Fasting needn’t be only a religious duty.
And it is always healthful to be disciplined in one way or the other to ensure a healthy body. For your HEALTH is your WEALTH
This article was first published on Saturday April 28, 1990
Merari Alomele’s
Merari Alomele’s
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Today, I focus on the Apostolic Church International in Finland, as I continue with my description of institutions and personalities and their accomplishments as members of the Ghanaian Diaspora in Finland.
The Apostolic Church International, Finland (or, Apostolic International Association Ry) was established in October 9, 2023. The Church in Finland has seen significant strides and accomplishments within the short time that it has been established in Finland, which must be highlighted.
History of the Church in Ghana
The Apostolic Church Ghana originated from the 1904–1905 Welsh revival, officially established in Ghana (then called Gold Coast) in 1935 following connections between a local prayer group in Asamankese (a town in southern Ghana), led by Peter Newman Anim, and the Apostolic Church, UK. There were historical splits in 1939 and 1953, but the Apostolic Church attained autonomy in 1985.
Today, the Church is headquartered in Accra. Last year (2025), it dedicated its new 10-storey headquarters, “The Apostolic Church Tower,” in Frafraha, Adenta West in Accra.
Activities of the Apostolic Church in Finland
The Apostolic Church in Finland conducts church service on Sundays. The service starts at 11a.m. in the morning and closes by 1 p.m. in the afternoon. There are no other activities during other days for now.
The Minister in charge of the church in Finland is also the Area Head of Italy Area. He is Pastor Daniel Kofi Addison who is the new Italy Area Head, and has just been transferred from UK South Area to Italy Area during the just-ended Council Meeting in March this year. Italy Area comprises Italy, which has 13 Assemblies, Germany, one Assembly, and Finland, one Assembly.
Elder Ebenezer Amoaning-Coffie is the Presiding Elder in charge of the Assembly in Finland. A Presiding Elder is responsible for day to day activities of the church (Assembly) and reports to the District Pastor, or in the absence of the District Pastor, reports to the Area Head.
Achievements
The Apostolic Church International, Finland was officially registered under the Finnish Law, guaranteeing freedom of worship and providing legal foundation for future growth. The church service is conducted in both English and Twi.
The church opens its doors to all people of every nation, especially Ghanaians who are in Finland and other African nationals. Now, the membership comprises Ghanaians, Nigerians and Sierra Leoneans.
The Church and the Ghanaian migrant community in Finland
The Apostolic Church in Finland plays a prominent role as a religious group that serves Ghanaian migrants and others in the Finnish society.
Thus, the Apostolic Church is a religious body for Ghanaian migrants in Finland and other nationalities who want to worship with them for diversity and better intercultural and multicultural understanding.
Elder Amoaning-Coffie said that the main and primary aim of the church is to bring people closer to God. “We aim to win souls for Christ. We aim to preach the gospel to the world. By propagating the gospel to the people, we are hopeful that they will turn away from any ungodly ways and be good individuals in the community and in society in general”, he stated.
He said that everything is going well so far. A key challenge, however, is how to get more members especially the youth. As a new Assembly, we are in need of instrumentalists, for example. We pray to God Almighty to help us do His work, the Elder disclosed.
Integration
By its activities, the Apostolic Church is helping to ensure integration of its members well into the Finish society. This is important since social interaction and citizens’ well-being are an important part of the integration process in Finland.
As I mentioned some time ago, the role of migrant associations and groups such as the Apostolic Church acting as bridge-builders for the integration and inclusion of migrants through participation in the decision making process and by acting as a representative voice is highly appreciated in Finland. Thank you!
With Dr Perpetual Crentsil
The landscape of the Ghanaian palate is shifting, and not necessarily for the better. In our bustling urban centres, from the streets of Accra to the suburbs of Kumasi, a quiet culinary revolution is taking place; one where the mortar and pestle are being replaced by the pizza oven and the deep fryer. This transition from traditional staple foods like fufu, banku, akple, kenkey, tuo zaafi, and ampesi toward “continental” dishes is more than just a change in appetite; it is a reflection of a deeper social struggle with identity and prestige.
The illusion of modernity
For many, “stepping out” for a meal has become synonymous with consuming foreign cuisine. There is an unspoken social hierarchy where a bowl of Abunuabunu is relegated to the village category, while burgers, pizzas are branded as prestigious choices. We have reached a stage where we equate foreign with modern and local with primitive.
This perception is a dangerous illusion. Our traditional dishes are marvels of culinary engineering complex, nutrient-dense, and deeply rooted in our history. When we choose a processed foreign import over a meal made from local tubers or fermented maize, we are not just changing our lunch; we are eroding the indigenous knowledge attached to our local ingredients and foods.
We need to turn the consumption of indigenous grains and tubers like millet, sorghum, and plantain into a statement of self-worth and national pride.
The cultural and health erosion
Every time a local dish disappears from a restaurant menu to make room for foreign fast food, we lose a piece of our cultural fabric. Traditional Ghanaian cooking is an art that requires patience and skill. By choosing the convenience of foreign fast food, we are raising a generation that may know the taste of a pepperoni pizza but cannot identify the rich, earthy profile of Prekese or the subtle tang of well-fermented dough dishes like corn porridge, banku, etew, abolo, agidi or kamfa, and kenkey.
Furthermore, we are at the crossroads of a nutrition transition. Replacing high-fiber, indigenous crops with calorie-dense but nutrient-poor foreign fast foods is driving a rise in lifestyle diseases such as obesity, hypertension, diabetes, stroke, cancer, and liver disease. We are trading our longevity for 15-minutes convenience or unhealthy diet.
A call for culinary patriotism
It is time for us to appreciate, preserve, and promote our indigenous foods and culinary traditions. We need to be proud of our local dishes, ingredients and cooking methods, rather than relying heavily on foreign or imported foods. We must stop viewing our local delicacies as low-class and start treating our culinary heritage as the high-end gastronomy it truly is.
True sophistication does not come from imitating Western fast food; it comes from innovation and adding values to our own resources. We see glimpses of this potential in the rise of branded Sobolo and the creative use of gluten-free plantain flour in modern baking of flour-based dishes such as bread, cakes, biscuits and others. This is the path forward. We must elevate our local dishes, making them as accessible, affordable, presentable and trendy as any foreign alternative.
To the hospitality industry: Innovate or stagnate
Our hotels and high-end restaurants must lead the charge. They must stop relegating local dishes to the “traditional corner” of the buffet, and apply the same culinary finesse given to imported dishes to our Fante Fante, apapransa, aborbi tadi, fetritoto, akple, abolo, yakayeke, fufu, ampesi, kokonte, wasawasa, tubani, apapransa, mpotompoto, kelewele, aliha, brukutu, pito, and other local dishes. The industry must enhance customer experiences making eating local dishes the ultimate luxury experience for both tourists and residents alike. We must elevate the presentation of our foods by using modern plating techniques to show that a bowl of light soup can be as visually stunning as a French consommé. We need to reclaim our Ghanaian plate before it is too late.
To the policy makers: Let us encourage buying of local ingredients to promote the local food industry and economy. There should be educational programmes and talks about the nutritional and cultural benefits of local foods so that people understand their value.
We need to encourage serving traditional dishes at school programmes, parties, and celebrations instead of only fast foods,
To the Youth: Let us value and appreciate our traditional dishes instead of always choosing foreign foods. There must be balance in our choice of local and foreign dishes. Confidence in our culture encourages others to respect it too. Our local dishes can also be promoted by sharing pictures, recipes, and videos on platforms such as Instagram, TikTok, and WhatsApp to make them attractive and trendy.
Young citizens must learn from their parents and elders how to prepare local meals to keep the knowledge and cultural relevance alive. Local dishes can be modernised to appeal to younger generations and tourists.
Conclusion
We cannot afford to trade our heritage for foreign cuisines which are gaining grounds across the country at an alarming rate. We must disabuse our minds of the perception that anything foreign or imported is better than those locally made. Our health, economy, and identity are tied to the soil. It is time to stop apologising for our local flavours and start celebrating them. It is possible to embrace modernity without losing ourselves and our cultural identity. Let us make the Ghanaian kitchen the heart of our modern identity once again.
By: Marilyn Gadogbe
