'Ashes-To-Go' For People On The Go This Ash Wednesday
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POMPANO BEACH (CBSMiami) -- As the holy season of Lent begins, Christian faithful head to church to observe Ash Wednesday. However, life can be chaotic and people are so busy these days. For believers with tight schedules who still want to mark this Holy day, a South Florida church is offering drive-through blessings and Ashes-To-Go.
"We don't force ourselves onto anyone," explained Fr. Mark Andrew Jones with St. Nicholas Episcopal Church in Pompano Beach.
Fr. Jones spent the morning taking part in his ashes-to-go program at the Tri-Rail Station in Pompano Beach.
"Very grateful that we're here because they are in a hurried pace life," he said.
He is offering the sacred penance to people pressed for time. It is an idea that has caught on among churches around the country.
"To help people remember that we are mortal and we do need to ask ourselves what's the purpose, what's the meaning of life," asked Fr. Jones. .
It is a way to get all of that in a super convenient way.
"It was very nice," said Sandy Baptie, her forehead already marked with the holy penance.
Baptie works at the church thrift store and received her ashes later in the day when Father Jones was spreading blessings roadside.
"I have a friend who just had a pacemaker put in and he wasn't able and he wasn't really able to come to a service," said Baptie. "I said, 'Well I'll take you through the drive through."
What's important, says Fr. Jones, is delivering the message of God to people wherever they are.
"We know that in a hectic and hurried world it can be difficult for people to get into church so we want to bring a little of this, out to the world so that people can experience it."
For the people who prefer to receive their blessings in a more traditional setting, the church held a more traditional Ash Wednesday liturgy at noon, and another takes place at 7:00p.m.