Unique Ash Wednesday Service Coming To Marlborough

MARLBOROUGH, MA — A local Lutheran church will offer a unique Ash Wednesday service in Marlborough on Feb. 26. Religious leaders will be posted on a street corner providing ash service to anyone who wants it.

The Rev. Joseph Graumann and minister Ann Gibson of Saint Stephen Lutheran Church will provide ashes from the corner of Main and Florence streets from noon to 1 p.m. on Wednesday.

For those unfamiliar with the practice, Christians mark the beginning of Lent on Ash Wednesday by wearing an ash mark on their forehead. (Mardi Gras, or Fat Tuesday, is a party held on the day before Ash Wednesday before the Lent fast.)

"Ash has been a symbol of death and mourning since ancient times," Graumann said in a statement. "Christians mark their foreheads with ashes to remember that 'we are dust, and to dust we shall return.' We remember our mortality, but also in the sign of the cross, how Jesus triumphed over death."

The Lent season marks the 40 days before Easter, and is a time of fasting and worship. Lent shares similarities with the Muslim holy month of Ramadan and Jewish Passover. In fact, Saint Stephen will host a joint mass on March 25 with Marlborough's Temple Emanuel.

For those who don't want ashes, Graumann and Gibson on Wednesday will also offer blessings and prayers to passersby.