THE CONSECRATION OF ST. MARY'S
Meanwhile preparations were being made for the building of a permanent Church. Here again the Founder showed his foresight in the selection of site. Not only did he choose the highest piece of ground available, traditionally the place for the Church, to mark it as the most important building in the Parish, but he also chose a spot exactly in the centre of the new district. In the early years it sometimes appeared to be situated rather at one end of a residential area, but the building, which was to take place amply justified his choice. St. Mary's now is, and is likely to remain, right in the centre of its population.

The large amount of money necessary for the building of the Church and the endowment of the living was gradually collected. A large proportion of it was given by Miss Contance Eastwood of Swanley Village, whose name should ever be remembered as one of the most liberal and generous of our benefactors. There was still a large debt on the Building Fund that was to prove a heavy burden with which the Parish was saddled for nearly 20 years, but on 15th September 1900, the foundation stone of the new church was laid. The ceremony was performed by Lady Emily Hart Dyke. Her Husband, Sir William Hart Dyke, had given the ground on which St. Mary's stands.

The building proceeded with speed and by the end of the following year the Church was ready for use. Swanley was at that time in the Diocese of Canterbury not in that of Rochester. The Church was therefore consecrated on 12th December 1901 by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Frederick Temple, father of the late Archbishop William Temple.

After the Consecration, which took place at 11am the Archbishop celebrated the first Mass and preached on the opening verse of the 137th Psalm: "By the waters of Babylon we sat down and wept", which seems a curious text for such an occasion. But an account says that it was a short and impressive sermon urging the need of beauty and dignity in our Churches and in their services, and impressing on the congregation that they should continue and complete what had been so well begun. In spite of bad weather nearly 300 people were present at the service. On the following Sunday, Father Shaw said Mass in the new Church for the first time. One can but picture what his feelings must have been.