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LENTEN PROJECT 2004 -5|
In previous Lenten Projects we have raised money for people in need outside our parish, particularly overseas, e.g. the street children of Columbia; a poor parish in Haiti, the homeless in London, or the Royal Hospital for Neuro-disability in Putney. This year we have decided that the focus of our Lenten Project fund raising should be the restoration of our beautiful church.
It is well overdue. Parts of the fabric of the church are crumbling and we have no alternative but to effect repairs. But not only do we need a safe and comfortable church: by restoring its beauty, we are strengthening St. Raphael’s as a symbol of our faith to the wider community of Kingston and Surbiton. The way we maintain our church is a reflection of the care we give to our spiritual life. It will serve as a channel to reach out to the wider community and welcome people in.
We are not therefore simply spending money on ourselves: this is an investment in the future spiritual as well as physical health of our parish and the wider community.
Restoration will take time and will cost money. We will not see quick results and work may not even begin for some time yet. It is also difficult right now to focus our fund raising on specific projects: we need first to go through a process of consultation with relevant church and architectural authorities. So our fund raising may initially appear unfocused. While the estimated costs for some individual elements, such as fixing and restoring the deteriorating stained glass windows above the high altar, are relatively small at around £10,000, the overall restoration adds up to several hundred thousand pounds (more details soon).
We shall need and seek help from other organisations and charitable trusts. But they in turn need to see that we ourselves are committed to the restoration and are willing to raise money for it. We think it is important, therefore, to keep up the fundraising momentum which we built up over Advent and the Christmas season.
Please do consider how you can help in the various events being planned or you may well come up with more ideas. There are lists of events in the church porch offering everyone the opportunity to help out – and also importantly - for all of us to enjoy more of each other’s company.