For the third year in a row, Episcopal congregations in towns across northern New Jersey will take to the streets on Ash Wednesday, March 5, marking the beginning of the Christian holy season of Lent by giving “Ashes to Go.”
Ash Wednesday initiates the Lenten season of reflection and penitence which precedes Easter. In the Episcopal tradition, ashes are used to mark the foreheads of the faithful with the sign of the cross, with the words “Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”
Numerous priests and lay people will visit train stations, bus stops, coffee shops, shopping centers and street corners to offer ashes and a brief prayer to commuters and pedestrians who wish to participate. Some congregations are engaging in ecumenical efforts with local Lutheran, Methodist and UCC churches.
The Rt. Rev. Mark M. Beckwith, Bishop of Newark and The Rev. Canon Gregory A. Jacobs, Canon to the Ordinary will offer ashes to evening commuters outside Newark Penn Station beginning at 4 PM.
A list of churches in the Diocese of Newark which plan to offer Ashes to Go at public locations in their towns is below.
The Ashes to Go initiative was started by the Rev. Teresa K. M. Danieley of St. John’s Episcopal Church, St. Louis, MO, who began conducting a street corner service with the distribution of ashes in 2007.
For more about the Ashes to Go program, visit http://ashestogo.org.
The Episcopal Diocese of Newark comprises the northern third of New Jersey with over 100 congregations in Bergen, Essex, Hudson, Morris, Passaic, Sussex, Warren, and Union counties.
Video: "Ashes to Go" 2013
In this video, hear from three of our congregations – Christ Church, Bloomfield-Glen Ridge, St. John's, Ramsey, and Calvary Church, Summit – about their experiences offering Ashes to Go in 2013.
Episcopal Churches in the Diocese of Newark Offering Ashes to Go
Allendale – Trinity Episcopal Church (201-327-3012)
5:30 - 9 AM outside the Allendale Train Station
(with the pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church)
Bayonne – Trinity Church (201-858-4460)
7:30 AM outside the 8th Street Light Rail Station
8 AM outside the 35th Street Light Rail Station
Belvidere – St. Mary's Church (908-475-5494)
8 - 9:30 AM outside the Warren County Courthouse
11:30 AM -12 PM at the Warren County Nutrition Program (Third St., Belvidere)
Bloomfield/Glen Ridge – Christ Church (973-743-5911)
6:30-8:30 AM outside the Glen Ridge Train Station, at the Bus Station at the corner of Bloomfield and Park Avenues, and at the Starbucks on Bloomfield Ave.
2-5 PM at Montclair State University in the Center for Faith & Spirituality (SC 112)
Boonton – St. John's Episcopal Church (973-334-3655)
6:25 - 9 AM outside the Boonton Train Station
6:35 - 6:55 AM, 7:35 - 7:55 AM and 8:05 - 8:25 AM at the Boonton Town Hall Bus Stop
6:50 - 7:25 AM at the Myrtle Ave (Boonton) Bus Stop
7:15 - 7:45 AM outside Boonton High School
10:30 - 11 AM at the NJ Firemen’s Home
11:30 AM - 12 PM at Merry Heart (Boonton)
1 - 1:30 PM at Care One (Parsippany)
Chester – Church of the Messiah (908-879-7208)
6 - 6:45 AM outside Dunkin' Donuts on Rt. 206
7:45 - 9:45 AM outside Starbucks on Rt. 206
Essex Fells – St. Peter's Church (973-226-6500)
8-9 AM and 5-6 PM in front of the church (271 Roseland Avenue)
Fair Lawn – Church of the Atonement (201-797-0760)
5:20 - 8 AM outside the Radburn Train Station
Fort Lee – Church of the Good Shepherd (201-461-7260)
7 - 8:30 AM at the George Washington Bridge Bus Stop on Route 95 North
Glen Rock – All Saints' Church (201-444-6874)
6:45 - 8 AM outside the Glen Rock Boro Hall Station
Harrington Park – St. Andrew's Church (201-768-0819)
6:15 - 7:30 AM outside the Harrington Park Bus Terminal (LaRoche Avenue)
Harrison – Christ Church (973-483-1260)
7 - 9 AM outside the Harrison PATH Station
12 - 2 PM at Carepoint Health, Christ Hospital, Jersey City
Hawthorne – Clement's Church (973-427-8118)
7:30 - 8:45 AM outside the Hawthorne Train Station
Hope – Luke's Church (908-459-4340)
8 - 9:30 AM - outside the Warren County Courthouse
Jersey City – Grace Church Van Vorst (201-659-2211)
7:30 - 9 AM outside the Grove Street PATH Station in Jersey City
Jersey City – St. Paul's Church (201-433-4922)
7:30 - 9 AM and 5 - 6 PM at McGinley Square in Jersey City
Kinnelon – St. David's Church (973-838-6696)
Early morning rush hour at the Meadtown Mall Bus Stop
6:30 - 8:30 AM at the church driveway (91 Kinnelon Road) and outside the Lowe’s and Home Depot on Route 23
8 AM along Main Street, Bloomingdale
8:30 AM outside the Pathmark in Kinnelon
Little Falls – St. Agnes' Church (973-256-5020)
7:30 - 9 AM outside the Little Falls Train Station
Madison – Grace Church (973-377-0106)
6:30 - 7:30 AM outside the Madison Train Station
Maplewood – St. George's Church (973-762-1319)
7:45 AM outside the Maplewood Train Station
(with the pastor of Memorial Memorial Methodist Church in Maplewood)
Millburn – St. Stephen's Church (973-376-0688)
6:30 - 8:45 AM outside the Millburn Train Station
Montvale – St. Paul's Church (201-391-3181)
6:30 - 7:30 AM outside the Montvale Train Station
Mountain Lakes – St. Peter's Church (973-334-4429)
6 - 8 AM at the Waterview Bus Stop on Hwy. 46 E. in Parsippany
(with the pastor of The Community Church of Mountain Lakes, UCC)
Nutley – Grace Church (973-235-1177)
2 - 3 PM in front of the Nutley Park ShopRite (Franklin Ave)
Oakland/Franklin Lakes – St. Alban's Episcopal Church (201-337-4909)
6:30 - 8:30 AM at the corner of Pulis and Franklin Avenues (with coffee and doughnuts)
12 - 1 PM at the door to their preschool (1 Church Lane) for parents, grandparents and caregivers who are dropping off and picking up
Passaic – St. John's Church (973-779-0966)
5:45 AM outside the Rutherford Train Station
Paterson – St. Paul's Church (973-278-7900)
9:30 -11 AM outside the main Post Office in Paterson
Ramsey – St. John's Memorial Church (201-327-0703)
7 - 8:30 AM outside the Ramsey Main Street Train Station
(in case of inclement weather, outside the Rt. 17 Train Station)
Ridgefield – St. James' Church (201-945-0079)
8:30 - 10 AM on Roff, Columbia and Broad Avenues in Ridgefield and Palisades Park
Ridgewood – Christ Church (201-652-2350)
6:30 - 7:15 AM outside the Ridgewood Train Station
Rutherford – Grace Church (201-438-8623)
5:45 AM outside the Rutherford Train Station
Secaucus – Church of Our Saviour (201-863-1449)
7 - 8:30 AM outside the Secaucus Junction Station
South Orange – St. Andrew & Holy Communion (973-763-2355)
5:45 - 9 AM outside the South Orange Train Station
Sparta – St. Mary's Church (973-729-3136)
7 - 8:15 AM at the Dunkin' Donuts in the CVS Plaza
Summit – Calvary Church (908-277-1814)
6 - 8 AM outside the Summit Train Station
Teaneck – Christ Church (201-833-4502)
8 - 9 AM outside the Hackensack Bus Terminal
