Two Days of Yom Kippur? For a More Meaningful Fast

FOR A MORE MEANINGFUL FAST - TWO DAYS OF YOM KIPPUR? ONLY THE JEWS COULD SAY EATING IS FASTING!...how now?! What does that mean? Well, in the Torah there is one verse that says the 10th is the day we celebrate and fast for Yom Kippur, and another verse says that we do it on the 9th. No! But, yes! I bet you remember what the the MISHNA says (the 2000 years old teachings of the Sages): On Yom Kippur, the day on which there is a mitzva by Torah law to afflict oneself, it is prohibited to engage in eating and in drinking, and in bathing, and in smearing oil on one’s body, and in wearing shoes, and in conjugal relations. BUT, CHECK THIS OUT: Ḥiyya bar Rav of Difti taught him: It is written with regard to Yom Kippur: “And you shall afflict your souls on the ninth day of the month in the evening, from evening to evening you shall keep your Sabbath” (Leviticus 23:32). The Gemara wonders: And does one fast on the ninth of Tishrei? Doesn’t one fast on the tenth of Tishrei, as the Torah says at the beginning of that portion: “However, on the tenth day of this seventh month is the Day of Atonement; there shall be a holy convocation for you, and you shall afflict your souls” (Leviticus 23:27)? Rather, this verse comes to tell you: One who eats and drinks on the ninth day of Tishrei in preparation for the fast the next day, the verse ascribes him credit as if she fasted on both the ninth and the tenth of Tishrei. WE GET CREDIT FOR TWO DAYS OF FASTING by.....EATING!! (anyone have good suggestions for the best foods to eat before the fast?) Do we need two days of fasting? And how does the eating part of fasting really work here? Two days of fasting for Yom Kippur inclusive of the eating part on the 9th paints a fuller picture of why we don't eat and refrain from all those earthly pleasures on the 10th. The meal of the 9th helps us ratchet up our gratitude, for all we have. We are blessed with abundance. And then the 10th comes around. We stop using our mouths for eating. We hear Kol Nidre, we pray we'll be able to stop hateful, spiteful, callous and sinful words from forming on our tongues. Our focus turns to more heavenly matters; we leave the Earth behind - a little more like angels, the better angels called upon to live up to the promise of being Jews, partners with all who seek peace and holiness, in Israel and America. We use the fast of the 10th to focus on the thanks we have the for necessities we are blessed with. The hopes we have that others may have their needs met. And when we remember the great meal part of the fast that we ate on the 9th we clarify for ourselves what we truly NEED in our lives and what is really just unnecessary or extra. Two days of Yom Kippur? Yes! It makes for a little extra thinking about the purpose and power of our fasts - that extend from the 9th to the 10th and include the eating part as much as the not eating part. Yom Kippur offers a powerful time to be thankful for all we have, to understand all we need, and to pray our neighbors needs will be met. And what is it that we really need less of, or not at all? There are TWO DAYS OF YOM KIPPUR coming for a fuller, more meaningful fast. Why shouldn't Yom Kippur be two days long, Rosh HaShanah was! G'mar Hatimah Tovah

What texts do you know that provide inspiration for a more meaningful fast?
How do you "use" fasting as a spiritual technology?
Why do we fast on Yom Kippur?
Is fasting itself a form of prayer?