Multicultural Multifaith Tooting – Part 2
Tooting is home to a huge array of faiths, making it one of the most vibrant communities in London! Rachel Husband takes us through some (you can read part one here).
The Arulmigu Valvai Sri Muthumaariamman Temple
If you walk down Mitcham Road towards Amen Corner, with Tooting Broadway behind you, you might notice an HSS Hire Shop on your right. What you might not know is that a Hindu Temple resides above it! The Arulmigu Valvai Sri Muthumaariamman Temple was founded on this site several years ago by a Mr Seevaratnam, to benefit the local Tamil community through religion and to act as a social support centre.
The Temple has gone from strength to strength, and is now one of the most active in London, employing many priests. It is funded by donations from the community and also runs a charity to help people in Sri Lanka. It has built an eye hospital in Jaffna and also funds an orphanage.
St Augustine's is on Broadwater Road, just off Tooting High Street. I spoke to the Revd Dr Andrew Davey to find out more.
How long has the church been on this site?
There has been a place of worship on this site for over 120 years. It began as a mission hut next door to the church, where the flats currently are. As Tooting grew, it was decided to build a full size church in the late 1920s. The building we have today was consecrated in 1930. When schoolchildren visit I always get them to look at the amazing ribbed roof which looks like the inside of an old boat.
When did you join St Augustine’s church & how does it serve its community?
I’ve been vicar here for 6 years. I previously worked in social policy work for the church, and have an academic interest in the relationship between urban sociology and theology, particularly diversity and global links. Tooting is the place where all that is lived, everyday. I am also vicar at Holy Trinity on Trinity Rd. Being vicar of two churches is a real challenge but very rewarding.
St Augustine’s very much looks out to the community. For example, we host an annual Fun Day on Broadwater Road with Gatton School; local schools visit us to learn about the building and the Christian faith; and community groups such as the West Indian Family and Friends Association come for their celebrations. Church people are involved in supporting the Wandsworth Foodbank and the Homeless Support Café at Holy Trinity. We also play host to two West African churches every weekend.
Tell us about some of the celebrations & ceremonies that take place in the church.
Christmas and Easter are obviously big events with carol and crib services, and the observation of Holy Week followed by the Easter services. On Thursday 10th May we will be marking Ascension Day with a festival service followed by fireworks and refreshments. Our biggest event is Emancipation Day on the first Sunday in August when we mark the declaration of emancipation in the British Caribbean with a service at 11am and community lunch.
St Boniface is a Catholic church on Mitcham Road, and is home to a large parish community in South West London, with over 45 nationalities represented in their parish family. Father Shaju Varkey is the parish priest and was appointed in 2015.
Tooting Catholics were served from Balham in the 1890s by a priest saying Mass at a house known as 'Holly Lodge' on Mitcham Road. About 1899, Fr Rudolf Bullesbach opened a chapel in Hereford Lodge, Mitcham Road. Fr Bullesbach's successor, Fr George Williams, was responsible for erecting the present church. The foundation stone was laid on 17 November 1906 and the church, still unfinished, was opened for worship on 18 April 1907.
Nowadays the church plays a big part in the community with regular masses & saints days, as well as parent/toddler groups, regular meetings of the Brownies, prayer groups and a youth club.
South London Liberal Synagogue
This synagogue is at the far reaches of Tooting, just off Streatham High Road on Prentis Road. The synagogue was established in 1929 as one of the first liberal congregations in the UK. Its first president was the Honourable Lily H Montagu, one of the founders of Liberal Judaism. Two years earlier, Samuel Morris Rich and several of his friends discovered a potential nucleus for a congregation in South London and so set about gathering people together. The congregation moved to its present home in Prentis Road (formerly a girls’ school) in 1938.
Services are held every Shabbat and during festivals and encompass traditional and modern practices. Hebrew and English are used in the services which use the Liberal Judaism siddur (prayer book), Siddur Lev Chadash. Services are led by Student Rabbi Nathan Godleman and their lay leaders. They hold regular family services, led by Gesher (religious school) pupils with some adult help.
Want to know about the different faiths in Tooting? Then why not join the Multifaith Walk this Sunday?