The Parish Church of St Mary and St Eanswythe

    From a painting by Roger Joyce

The Church of St Mary & St Eanswythe, with St Saviour Folkestone, exists to make Jesus Christ known in Folkestone through its worship, its fellowship and its mission. It looks to encourage its members, and the people of the community of which it is a part, to realise their full potential as children of God.

The church is open for visiting between 11.00 and 13.00 Mondays to Saturdays, and our regular Communion services are at 10.30 on Sundays and Thursdays: details of this week’s services and other news are here. Please check with the Parish Office if you need to know whether the church is due to be open on a specific day: opening is subject to availability of volunteer welcomers.

Artists & designers sought to create ‘home’ for remains of England’s earliest verified saint

The parish church of St Mary and St Eanswythe, in Folkestone, Kent, is seeking designs for a new reliquary to house the relics of St Eanswythe. The relics were scientifically verified in early 2020 when Kent archaeological and history experts, working with Queen’s University in Belfast, confirmed that the human remains were almost certainly those of St Eanswythe. The bones are thought to be the earliest verified remains of an English saint – and the only currently verified remains of the Kentish royal dynasty. Click here for further details.

 

Lent Course: Wednesdays Beginning 1st March

Visiting times over the winter months

We’re sorry that due to unavailability of volunteer welcomers the church will be closed to visitors on Mondays and Tuesdays over the winter. The church will normally be open for visiting and private prayer between 11.00 and 13.00 on Wednesdays to Saturdays.

Supporting our Church Financially: The Widow’s Mite Fund
 
We desperately need money: our costs, especially running costs such as heating, are constantly rising and our income is still affected by the consequences of the Pandemic. If you are not able to visit the church to make cash donations or use the planned giving scheme, please donate so that we can keep paying our bills! All donations will be very gratefully received and we can claim Gift Aid if you are a UK tax payer and provide your details when you make your donation. You can donate any amount from £1 upwards through our online donation service provided by givealittle.
 
You can make a single donation online here  Donate or you can download our GiftAid and Donation Form to make a single donation by cheque and allow us to claim Gift Aid.
 
To make regular donations please see our Widow’s Mite Fund appeal. Any regular donation, however small, is invaluable to us.
 
A bronze mite, also known as a Lepton (meaning small), minted by Alexander Jannaeus, King of Judaea, 103 – 76 B.C. and still in circulation at the time of Jesus

Organ Appeal

Our historic organ is in desperate need of major and expensive refurbishment. Please follow our organ appeal web site at https://www.eanswythes-organ.com or on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/eanswythesorgan for information about the organ itself and events in support of the appeal.

Please visit the Choir and Organ page for more information about the choir.

Covid-19 Guidelines

As cases are reducing, and with the lifting of Plan B, we’re making the following changes to our Covid safety measures from Sunday 6 Feb:
  • Although not mandatory, we ask that you wear a face covering if you can.
  • Track & Trace registration and social distancing remain voluntary – before sitting next to someone please check they don’t mind.
  • Priests will dip your wafer in the wine before you receive it. If you prefer an undipped wafer, please let them know.
  • Refreshments will be offered after our Sunday service.

Eucharist services will be live streamed on our Facebook Page.