The Universal House of Justice has
received your letter of 7 March 1991 concerning exemption from fasting and
obligatory prayers in the case of an individual suffering from alcoholism. We
have been asked to convey the following.
Regarding the Fast, as you know, there is exemption for those who are ill. The
answer to your question, therefore, should be determined on the basis of
competent medical advice. Ultimately, the keeping of the Fast and saying of the
obligatory prayers are left to the conscience of the individual.
(20 May 1991
written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to an individual believer;
compilation ‘Exemption from Obligatory Prayer’, prepared by the Research
Department of the Universal House of Justice)
