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Around 40 people gathered to celebrate Ash Wednesday outside of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Mattydale office, but they didn’t hold signs or chant.

Instead, the group walked through a hail storm together to the space between two parked cars, designated for them by federal agents, while singing the religious hymn “This Little Light of Mine.”

This is something Adam Eichelberger, director of communications for the Episcopal Diocese of CNY, said was quite intentional.

“Jesus says, ‘Blessed are the peacemakers. Blessed those who are meek apart,’ and we were trying to embody that,” Eichelberger said. “Meekness doesn’t mean weakness. Meekness means making sure that we understand what our voice can do, and that there’s something very powerful in protest, and there’s something very powerful in prayer.”

The event, led by Bishop DeDe Duncan-Probe and representatives of other Christian denominations, welcomed attendees regardless of religion or background, Duncan-Probe said. Following prayers and readings, the group welcomed attendees to receive ashes on their foreheads as part of the Lenten celebration.

Rev. Megan Castellan, who works with Duncan-Probe at the Episcopal Diocese, said the idea for the service originated during a staff meeting weeks earlier, when deciding where to distribute ashes aside from a typical church space.

Castellan said in the past years, the group went to Syracuse University’s campus and downtown. She had the idea to hold the event in front of the ICE office during a discussion with fellow staff members.

“It’s a call for repentance in the locus of the place that has harmed so many people,” Castellan said. “Ash Wednesday is all about calling for repentance and asking people who have harmed the community to repent of what they’ve been doing, not just because they’re horrible, they’re bad, but also because we all stand in need of repentance.”

Outside of the Syracuse area, religious-centered services have also been held across the country, including a vigil at an Phoenix, Arizona ICE office. Religious leaders at an ICE facility outside of Chicago, where agents previously tear-gassed clergy members, entered the detention center Wednesday to distribute ashes, as well as communion.

The multifaith service brought together members of Roman Catholic, Presbyterian, Methodist, United Church of Christ and Lutheran denominations. Eichelberger said he also believed people outside of the Christian faith attended as a “presence.”

Chris Greene, who attended the service with fellow parishioners at All Saints Church, said its ecumenical representation felt “wonderful.”

“It should be all Americans that are sitting there saying ‘This is wrong, this is not who we are,’” Greene said. “Our forefathers didn’t fight for this one; they must be rolling over in their graves.”

Canon Rev. Deacon David Stickley of the Episcopal Diocese of CNY helped plan the service and, similarly to Greene, said the inclusive nature of the service made it particularly meaningful.

“It’s very heartening that so many people came out and came out peacefully and came out in a way that doesn’t exclude anybody,” Stickley said. “Including the people whose actions we may or may not agree with.”

Duncan-Probe began the service by highlighting the role love and healing play in current times, simultaneously emphasizing the importance of Ash Wednesday.

“There’s so much in our world that’s horrific to us, and we all are complicit in how we respond to it,” Duncan-Probe said. “In our own response, to not dehumanize where there’s been dehumanization, to stand for justice where there needs to be justice and to recognize the institutional racism of our country that is on full display.”

Meg Ksander, a pastoral associate at All Saints Church, attended with a group of parishioners and explained the church recently had two parishioners detained by ICE at the Mattydale office. She described Wednesday’s sacramental location in front of the office as “deeply meaningful.”

“I feel very compelled to be here to be in solidarity with all those who are targeted unjustly and oppressed by this regime,” Ksander said.

Though explicitly welcomed by Duncan-Probe and other religious representatives, no federal agents participated in the service. Two agents, however, supervised the final moments of the ceremony from a short distance.

Eichelberger said the officers’ presence didn’t feel threatening at that moment, but recognized possible fear in the situation.

Before the service, Eichelberger, along with the Duncan-Probe, entered the offices after being initially told their presence was not allowed. However, Eichelberger described two other officers as “surprisingly accommodating,” saying they allowed the service to happen on the grounds of free speech, on the condition that it not interfere with protocol.

“Hopefully, what we are seeing, because we’re seeing so many folks who are affiliated with the government’s actions, not being bad apples, but potentially being good apples,” Eichelberger said. “So we remain forever optimistic and hopeful that people change their minds.”

Both agents declined to comment.

Ksander said she hopes the service will increase awareness and prompt political action from representatives for immigration-related policies.

Following the service’s conclusion, the group once again sang what Greene said she recognized from attending Catholic school while growing up.

“Sometimes the songs are what really makes it, the words: ‘Let there be peace, let it begin with me,’” Greene said. “So many times, I think we kind of sit back and say, ‘Oh, peace, yeah, you should get started.’ It’s so easy to tell somebody else what to do.”

Published on February 19, 2026 at 3:17 am
Contact Arabella: akklonow@syr.edu