On-the-go Ash Wednesday gets praise

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) - In our increasingly fully-scheduled lives, it's sometimes hard to fit church in between exercise, meals, work or school, and simply just relaxing. With that in mind, Providence's Episcopal Diocese is one of several trying a new-school way of imposing ashes for Ash Wednesday: taking the ceremony to the people on the go.

At Kennedy Plaza and the city's train station, pastors in full clerical dress were walking around, offering the sacramental ashes to anyone who wished to take part -- in between heading to work and school, or wherever.

"It takes them something, where they are, instead of waiting for them to come to us," said Rev. Claire Fischer-Davies of St. Martin's Episcopal Church, who was available at the bus plaza. Hers is one of more then seventy dioceses nationwide giving the service Wednesday.

The faithful gave it rave reviews. Convenient, they said, to pay their repentance: "We usually go to church, but we either have to come to work late and take an early mass, or go at night, after work, at seven o'clock," said Adrienne Mancini.

"If a Catholic does not go to church, that doesn't mean he doesn't believe in God," said Adrienne's husband Jerry.

Daniel Mulcahy said his work schedule often makes it hard to participate in his faith -- without the new availability, he said, "I would miss it altogether. I would just go to work and not be able to go to church."

The church considered the event a success, and plans to repeat it next Ash Wednesday.