What we believe and our vision
We believe in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour, that He came to this earth as a gift from God through the virgin birth, and that as the Son of Man. He died for our sins and was resurrected to join our Father in Heaven. We believe in the Holy Trinity; God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, through which, together with prayer and the words of the Bible, He reveals himself to us, guides us and cares for us. Truly knowing Jesus is our salvation and that binds us together as a church family, no matter what our background, or where we come from.
We are an Anglican church with traditional and informal contemporary expressions of worship, part of the North Downs Deanery and and in turn, the Church of England.
​
Our vision is to be a church committed to loving and serving God and the community with a welcoming attitude.
Meet Our Leadership Team...
Our church is currently in Interregnum, which means we are "between" vicars. There is an ongoing process being run by our Parochial Church Council (PCC) to recruit a replacement for our recently retired vicar, Rev John Corbyn.
Nonetheless, our church is very much alive and the PCC have appointed a Standing Committee to manage the affairs of the church during this period comprised of the Church Wardens, the lay chair of the PCC, Treasurer and the PCC secretary. Meanwhile our spiritual leadership will be through our long standing associate minister Lesley Ludlow with Colin Terry also officiating at certain services.
​
If you have any questions for concerns regarding this period of interregnum please address these to the Standing Committee through the church office. Click here to email the Standing Committee.
Lesley Ludlow
Associate Minister
Colin Terry
Permission to Officiate
Teams
The church is governed by the Parochial Church Council (PCC). For more information on governance click here.
​
In addition there are a number of committees and individuals who serve in the life of our church, and you can find out more below.
There are several teams guiding our service life including Classic Leadership team and the New Way Leadership team. Then there are various pastoral and management roles:
Reader
Pastoral Assistants
​
​
​
​
Children and Youth Minister
Church Wardens
​
Treasurer
Parish Safeguarding Officer
Parish Disclosure Officer
PCC Secretary
Musical Director
Flowers
Church Bells
Ann Harrison
Caroline Naylor
Madelline Stroud
Pam Renton
Peter Ashford
Claire Hutchins
Vacant
Andrew Knatchbull
Sandra Knatchbull
Peter Richardson
Valerie Parker
Sally Suitters
Helen Judges
Christine Tate
Joan Curtis
Ian Parker
The Story so far...
It is known that there was a settlement at Bearsted in Anglo-Saxon times, commonly called Berghamstyde or Berghstede - "the homestead on the hill".
We also know that late in the year 695 the second surviving code of Kentish Law was issued by King Wihtred, in the assembly of Kent nobles and clergy, was held at Bearsted (FM Stenton - Anglo-Saxon 2nd Ed., p.62.), thus implying a religious order.
​
The construction of the church building as we know it today was commenced in the 13th Century, and took a further two centuries to complete in its basic form. Worshipers have therefore crossed our Grade 1 listed threshold for more than eight hundred years.
​
Records show that since 1216 at least 55 named clergy have led our worship.
​
If you are interested in discovering more about the history of Holy Cross Church then click on the link to visit our virtual tour of the building, and discover some of its hidden past.