Holy Cross Church News
United Parish of St Mary the Virgin Reculver, St Bartholomew Herne Bay and Holy Cross Church Hoath
Below is a notice concerning parish reorganisation:
PCC Notice
Holy Cross Services
Everyone is warmly welcome to all our Services, dates and times as follows:
Every Friday Benefice Prayers 9.15 am
1st Sunday in the month 11 am Morning Worship
2nd Sunday in the month 11 am Holy Communion
3rd Sunday in the month 11 am Worship Sunday
4th Sunday in the month 11 am Holy Communion
5th Sun 10 am United Parish Service at alternate churches
Click on the website link below for more information
Please respect each other’s space during the easing of restrictions, thank you.
Messy Church will be on the first Saturday of the month at 11.30 am to 1 pm.
Please could all children to be accompanied by an adult. thank you
Coffee Mornings at Holy Cross Church from 10 am to 12 midday
With bring and buy, homemade cakes tea and coffee, all welcome
These are usually on the third sat in the month, unless there are other events taking place.
Church Warden Mrs Clare Hopper 860579
Parish Office opening hours Tues 9.30 to 12 noon Tel 01227 369941
Email mbhcbeneficeoffice@gmail.com
Website The United Parish of Reculver (unitedbeneficereculver.co.uk)
Any enquiries outside these hours should be made to Rev. Sue Martin – 01227 360948.
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Friends of Kent Churches
The north aisle at Holy Cross church was added to the original building sometime in the nineteenth century. It is probable that since it was built it had not been renovated in any way – as we soon realised when water dripped through whenever there was a heavy shower of rain. With thanks to a grant of £3000 from the charity Friends of Kent Churches the building is now watertight once again. The north aisle roof has been stripped and all batons and slates replaced.
The Friends of Kent Churches was founded to promote enthusiasm in churches of historic interest or architectural importance in the county and to give financial aid to their preservation.
By cycling, walking or running around Kent churches you can raise money, which is divided equally between The Friends of Kent Churches and the church or chapel of your own choice.
It is fun! There are over 800 churches and chapels which participate. All of them are open and most provide refreshments as you “clock” in. In a group or a family plan a route – how many churches is it possible to visit within a limited time? And then enjoy the ride.
This event takes place every 2nd Saturday in September and if you would like to know more information can be found on the table in Holy Cross Church usually from August onwards.
Jenny Hadlow
Church history
The church we know as Holy Cross in Hoath was probably built in the reign of Henry 111 (1216-1272) to save the inhabitants the trouble of traveling to Reculver. However, it was not allowed to bury its dead in the churchyard until 1303. One can imagine the hardship involved in transporting the deceased the four miles to Reculver, particularly during the winter with the ford at Ford in full flow! A century later in 1310 Hoath at last had its own resident priest. The tower contains three bells, one dated 1500 and the other two 1696 and the Parish Register dates back to 1554.
Around 1570 Robert Hunt was born in Hoath, in 1594 he became Vicar of Reculver and Hoath. He later exchanged parishes with one in Heathfield in Sussex. Subsequently he applied to join an expedition to America for the Virginia Company of London, and on his arrival in the James River in 1607 celebrated the first Anglican Communion in that land. From this beginning rose the Episcopalian church in the United States.
Church interior pre 1900 and now
Holy Cross, Hoath is now part of The United Parish of St Mary’s Reculver and St Bartholomew Herne Bay.
There is an all-age act of worship every Sunday at 11 am. Two services each month are Holy Communion. At each service there is a children’s session followed by activities to support their theme, which they complete together whilst the service continues. There are a variety of services to celebrate the major festivals of Christmas, Easter, Whitsun and Remembrance Sunday. Every service is followed with refreshments and a social time.
The church is frequently used for weddings and baptisms and some funerals. The churchyard is closed for burials but is open for the internment of ashes in the Garden of Remembrance. The southwest window of the church is designated as a memorial window and is available for flowers, plants and messages of loved ones and by it stands the Book of Remembrance.
The church takes its responsibility to the community and our world seriously and welcomes the opportunity to donate 10% of its annual income to charity. The Hospice in Canterbury, Demelza House (the children’s hospice in Sittingbourne), and Poverty and Hope (a Church of England charity), receive regular donations. In addition financial support is given to Maxine Raabe, a friend of the church to further her missionary work in Asia. In the last few years an appeal for the Mustard Seed Mission Charity ‘Love in a Box’, which is Christmas gifts for orphaned and disadvantaged children in Eastern Europe, has been well supported by the people of the village. In the past we have helped to support the Kent Peoples Project Health Centre in the Gambia and more recently The Canterbury Food Bank and Porchlight.
Hoath Church
Holy Cross is open daily and is available for the community. Each week prayers for the sick and people in need are included in the service and a prayer book inside the church is available for anyone to add their names. As a church we are committed to serving the community and will always try and respond to any need of which we are aware.
For further information or assistance please contact the Reverend Sue Martin on 360948,
email the United Parish of St Mary the Virgin Reculver, St Bartholomew Herne Bay and Holy Cross Hoath
Hoath Parish Charity
Hoath Parish Charity seeks to support local residents who are experiencing financial difficulties. If you would welcome assistance, please write in confidence to:
The Trustees,
Hoath Parish Charity
C/O Holly House,
Hoath,
Canterbury,
Kent,
CT3 4JT