Dear friends,

This Saturday, a few of us from St Alban’s will be walking 10 miles in one day to the grave of Fr Charles Lowder, founder of the Society of the Holy Cross (SSC), at Chislehurst. We are making this pilgrimage in anticipation of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, which we celebrate this Sunday.

Fr Lowder’s life was one of prayer, sacrifice and service to the people of God. The Society of the Holy Cross, which he founded, continues to encourage priests to live faithfully at the foot of the Cross — centred on Christ, committed to prayer, the Eucharist and the service of those in need.

Our pilgrimage is also part of our St Alban’s brickwork appeal. We need to raise £160,000 to repair more than 500 bricks and the mortar of our church, helping to preserve this beautiful building so that it can continue to be a place where Christ is worshipped and where people are welcomed, fed, supported and loved.

Hope lives here.

For more than a century, St Alban’s has been a place of prayer and worship in this community. Today, that continues through our Sunday Mass, Foodbank, Advice Hub, free Saturday meals, Toddler Tuesday and all the other ways in which the church opens its doors to our neighbours.

Some of us are walking the full 10 miles this Saturday, while others are taking part by walking 10 miles over the course of the week. We would be very grateful if you would consider sponsoring us and supporting the brickwork appeal.

Please give what you can — every gift helps us keep the Cross standing at the heart of this community.

Click this to make a donation

Please also pray for us as we walk, for our parish, and for all those who will continue to find Christ here in the years to come.

“We adore thee, O Christ, and we bless thee, because by thy holy Cross thou hast redeemed the world.”

With my prayers and every blessing,

Fr Sean