Christmas Lights Switch-On at St Ann’s – A joyful evening of unity
St Ann’s Catholic Church, Kingston Hill, welcomed around 250 people for a radiant Christmas Lights Switch-On celebration — a gathering that became a true expression of love – a place of solace, unity, and faithfulness in our community.
After the Second Sunday of Advent Mass and the blessing of the Advent candle and indoor lights, everyone processed outdoors for the countdown. The moment the lights came on, the whole parish family shared a sense of warmth and belonging, followed by refreshments that everyone enjoyed.
A message from our Member of Parliament
We are grateful to Sara Olney MP for joining us and for sharing these kind words on her official website:
“It was a pleasure to attend St Ann’s Church’s switching-on of their Christmas lights last Sunday. The beautiful lights really bring a Christmas atmosphere to the area, and I would like to thank Father James and the local community for welcoming me at this event.”
— Sara Olney MP, Richmond Park
(Source: Richmond Park News, 12 December 2025)
Gratitude to our honoured guests
We are deeply grateful for the presence and support of:
Faith community leaders
- Reverend Mandy
- Reverend Jyoti Prasad
- Our friends from the Anglican community, the Sikh community, and the Hindu community
- Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, New Malden,
- Special thanks to Mohammed and family
Civic leaders
- Sara Olney, Member of Parliament for Richmond Park
- Councillor Rowena Bass, Coombe Hill Ward
Schools, neighbours, and local groups
- Families and staff from Holy Cross Preparatory School
- Staff and students from Marymount International School
- Residents and staff from Galsworthy House and Sherwood House
- Friends and parishioners from St Boniface, the Kingston Deanery, and neighbours all around Kingston Hill
A community gathered in harmony
People from every age group, parishioners, neighbours, and friends united in a spirit of shared joy. The sense of community was felt strongly — a reminder that Christmas is not only a season of lights, but a season of hope – a place of solace, generosity, and peace.
Thank you to all volunteers who helped prepare, welcome, guide, provide music, and serve refreshments. Your dedication made the celebration smooth and memorable.
HOMILY FOR THE CHRISTMAS LIGHTS SWITCHING-ON CEREMONY
My dear friends,
My dear neighbours,
My brothers and sisters of different faiths, traditions, and communities…
We gather this evening around a simple but profound symbol – light.
And the Word of God gives us a vision through the prophet Isaiah – a vision that was born in a time of fear, conflict, and deep uncertainty. Isaiah looks at a broken world, a people wounded, and a nation confused. Yet he does not allow his eyes to be imprisoned by the darkness of his time. That is why he is a prophet/visionary.
A prophet is one who sees beyond.
A prophet refuses to be chained by the limitations of the moment.
A prophet looks through the night and perceives the dawn that others cannot yet see.
A prophet is not swayed by the immediate noise of history, but listens to the quiet whisper of God within the heart.
Isaiah sees a world where the wolf dwells with the lamb, where the lion eats straw like the ox, where the child leads the strong, and where peace is not a dream but a living reality.
This is the prophetic vision: to see what can be, not simply what is.
And, my dear friends, humanity carries this prophetic capacity.
Every one of us – whether from the Christian tradition, Hindu tradition, Muslim tradition, skich tradition, or from any path of sincere goodwill – we have within us the power to transcend, to rise above the instincts of fear and division, to rise above ego, to rise above the limitations.
The ancient Upanishadic prayer captures this profoundly:
Asato ma sad gamaya – Lead us from the unreal to the real
Tamaso ma jyotir gamaya – Lead us from darkness to light
Mrityor ma amritam gamaya – Lead us from death to fullness of life
Om shanti, shanti, shanti – Peace, peace, peace.
The spiritual teachers of the world all agree that peace cannot be imposed from the outside; it must be born from within.
The light we switch on outside must become the light we switch on inside.
The darkness inside us –
the darkness of suspicion,
the darkness of prejudice,
the darkness of misunderstanding –
that darkness is dispelled only by the light of knowledge, the light of wisdom, the light of understanding
Today, as a parish, as a community, we stand together – civil leaders, local representatives, neighbours, families, people of different religions and cultures.
We are here not out of compulsion,
but out of love,
out of respect,
out of a shared desire for the flourishing of humanity.
We stand here because humanity has a greater potentiality:
to grow larger in generosity,
to grow deeper in compassion,
to grow gentler in spirit,
and to become a blessing to society and to creation itself.
Let the prophet’s vision become our vision –
a world where every person, regardless of religion or background,
becomes a catalyst for peace,
a bearer of harmony,
a light in a world that often cries out for hope.
As we switch on the lights today,
may God switch on something within us as well –
a small flame that grows into a lamp,
a lamp that grows into a beacon,
a beacon that becomes a blessing. Amen.