Ministries

Ministries and Activities

Catechists

Mission:

All State Schools provide school time for students to receive formation in their faith. The Catechists give religion education classes for half an hour to an hour a week.

It is our responsibility to serve Catholic families who have chosen public schooling, in whatever ways people and the signs of the times require, consistent with the values of the Catholic Church.

Above all we contribute to the formation of the whole person through education towards and in faith, as services to individuals, families and the Church.

Contact: Cathy Sammut. Phone: 8522 0300

 

Play Group

Mission: To provide an environment for children up to 5 years of age to enjoy themselves, and to provide community support for young parents.

Meets: Every Wednesday (except during school holidays) from 10am to 12pm in Thornton Hall (enter from Giddings Ave through the school grounds).

Parents with children up to five years old meet to share some morning tea and chat, while the children enjoy themselves with toys and the company of other toddlers.

Contact: Allison Grant through the Parish Office. Phone: 8522 0300

 

Scripture Study for Adults

Mission: To bring about a greater understanding and love of the Word of God, increase personal awareness of God’s living presence in Scripture, and learn how to apply the teachings of the Bible to our daily life.

The parish of Cronulla offers various programs, including an annual Bible study conducted by Catholic Adult Education Centre.

The programs are announced in the weekly bulletin of the parish. You can also inquire the parish office for detailed information

Youth Activities

Please see the Youth section of this website, with more information coming soon.

Sunday 6pm Mass is our Youth mass. We welcome all young people to the 6pm choir, whether you can sing, play an instrument, or would just like to join in and help out.

Care and Concern Group

Mission: To give care and concern to those members of our parish community who are or have been involved in stressful situations be it through bereavement, illness, trauma, age, family crisis or other upheaval.

Calls for assistance should be made to the presbytery in the first instance. All information is treated with complete confidentiality. The Care and Concern Network complements and supports the work of the St Vincent de Paul Society
and the Legion of Mary in identifying special needs of parishioners.

The areas of support are:

  • Support for the Sick and Aged through visiting the sick or dying in their home or hospital
  • Through bringing Holy Communion to sick or housebound parishioners when requested
  • By providing transport to attend the Celebration of the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick during Mass on the first Saturday of February, April, June, August, October and December at 10am.
  • Support for Parishioners/Families in Crisis: Helping with shopping and other errands; providing transport to doctors and hospitals; help with preparation of meals.
  • Support for Carers: Carers of the sick and aged also need support. It may be in some of the practical ways already mentioned. But carers have special needs as well.They may like the comfort of knowing that someone is praying for them, or supportive of them. They need someone to listen to their concerns in a respectful and confidentialmanner, in person or by phone. The Care and Concern group may then be able to offer assistance in more practical ways, as listed above.
  • Support for the Bereaved: Assistance with funeral arrangements. The Bereavement Support group is an open forum for the bereaved. Whether the loss occurred only weeks ago or years ago you’ll find an open and caring environment to share your experience and find support.

Contact:

  • Robyn McCabe (organiser) through the Parish Office. Phone: 8522 0300

Rosary Making Guild

Meets: Wednesdays 12.30 pm in the Chapel

Mission: To make rosary beads for the missions and propagate Rosary devotion. A group of people interested in making Rosary beads meet in the chapel of the church each Wednesday 12.30 pm.

After a short prayer together they make Rosary beads and share their skill in in doing so. The Rosary beads they make are distributed free of charge within the parish as well as to many missions.

First Fridays of the month the Guild also prays the Rosary together. They happy to introduce the way to pray the rosary to any new comer. They are always ready to welcome new members. It can also be a occupational therapy for those who are looking for one.

Contact: Carol Stuart through the Parish Office. Phone: 8522 0300

 

Legion of Mary

Mission:

  • To imitate the virtues of Mary, Mother of God, especially her Faith, Charity and Humility.
  • To spread devotion to Mary, primarily by encouraging praying of the Rosary.
  • To perform spiritual and social apostolic works.

In 1961, Fr Roth Delaney, the assistant priest at Cronulla at that time, made a very impassioned appeal for membership of the Legion of Mary. As a result the Immaculate Conception praesidium was formed.

The parish group meets Tuesday afternoons at 4.15pm in the Madden Room. New members are always welcome.

The Legion of Mary is a worldwide organisation of Catholics who offer their service, in union with Mary, Mother of the Church, for the spiritual welfare of souls. Their Apostolic works include hospital visits, visits to the homebound, teaching of the faith to children in State Schools, assisting with baptism preparation and many other works.

Contact: Pauline Lund through the Parish Office. Phone: 8522 0300

St Vincent de Paul

Mission: To deepen the Catholic faith of its members – to go out into our parish to heighten the awareness of Jesus Christ. We do this by sharing ourselves – who we are and what we have – with the poor on a person to person basis. We seek to co-operate in shaping a more just and compassionate Australian community, and to share our resources with our twinned countries.

Our preferred option in this mission of service is to work with the poor in development, by respecting their dignity, sharing our hope, and encouraging them to take control of their destiny.

The St Vincent de Paul Society, an international lay Catholic organisation, offers support to needy families and individuals. No act of charity is beyond the scope of this Catholic lay organisation. New members are always welcome.

The Day Conference meets every 1st and 3rd Monday of the month at 10am in the Parish Centre Room.

The Night Conference meets every 1st and 3rd Monday of the month at 7.30pm in the Madden Room.

Contact:

  • Day Conference. Joan Tangney.
  • Night Conference: Tony Bishop
  • Contact through the Parish Office. Phone: 8522 0300

Social Justice Group

Mission: To provide information to the parish community about current and continuing social justice issues as well as encouraging individual and group action.

Our current areas of focus are:

  • Indigenous Recognition. Established on going relationship with the La Perouse Aboriginal Catholic Community.
  • Climate Change. Focus on Pope Francis’ Encyclical, ‘Laudato Si’: ‘Care for Our Common Home’.
  • Have established a St Aloysius Earth Care Group
  • Migrants and Refugees. Support of the Jesuit Refugee Service.
  • Human Trafficking and Modern Slavery. Awareness raising and representation to State Government.
  • Social Justice issues; Youth Mental Health, Affordable Housing and Homelessness, Domestic Violence
  • Timor Leste, village community of HatoUdo (Province of Ainaro).

‘Friendship across the Sea’. High School and Vocational Education sponsorships. Financial and Training support for local bakery.

For more information, and the latest news and updates, please see our Social Justice Group page.

 

Liturgical Ministry and Other Ministries

Altar Servers

Mission: To assist the priest during the celebration of the Holy Mass and other special liturgies. The ministry of altar servers is open to girls and boys who have made their First Communion. Initial training consists of two 1 hour sessions. Altar servers can expect to serve at least once a month.

Acolytes

Mission: To assist the priest during the celebration of the Holy Mass and other liturgical services. The ministry of acolyte is open to men over the age of 18. Acolytes are entrusted with the work of helping priests and deacons in their role of distributing Holy Communion to the Faithful, including the sick as extraordinary Ministers. The acolyte assists by preparing the altar and books for Mass and guiding the altar servers.

Choir and Singing

Please contact the Choir leaders through the Parish Office. Phone: 8522 0300

Sunday 8am Mass: Contact: Vicki Rolland
Sunday 10am Mass: Contact: Vincent Mai
Saturday Vigil and Sunday 6 PM Masses: Parish Office
Bundeena: Contact: Sandra Shanahan

Mission: To praise, glorify and honour our Lord with beautiful music during the Mass and other special liturgies. To promote music that enhances prayerful participation of the congregation at all parish liturgical celebrations. St Augustine said that “Those who sing well pray twice.”

Organist and Instrumentalists

Mission: To praise, glorify and honour our Lord with beautiful music during the Mass and other special liturgies. If you like to sing or can play an instrument, why not join the choir and share your God-given talent to help make our prayer more divine and joyful.

Liturgy: Proclamation of the Word

Mission: To proclaim the Scriptural readings and Prayers of the Faithful for Mass.

Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion

Mission: To assist the priest in distributing Holy Communion within the context of Mass, and to assist by taking Holy Communion to the sick and home bound.

Liturgy: Ushers

Mission: To guide and assist parishioners during the Sunday Masses and to assist with the collections. The ushers help distribute the bulletins, straighten the church before and after Mass and help with the collections.

Church Cleaning

Mission: To ensure the cleanliness of the church.
The main body of the church is cleaned at 8am on Saturdays on a roster basis.

Arts and Environment

Contact: Anne Palumbo through the Parish Office. Phone: 8522 0300
Mission: To ensure “ornamentation that befits the house of God.”
The Arts and Environment ministry is responsible for the procurement, design, and care of the decorations, flowers, altar cloths, liturgical furnishings, and other items. The decoration of the sanctuary, the nave and the foyer for the different seasons, feasts, and liturgies plays an integral part in this ministry.

Please contact the Parish Office for more information on any of these ministries.

 

Touch Football

Mission: To provide exercise and an opportunity for community spirit and social outreach.

The St Aloysius Cronulla Touch Football group plays a social game every Saturday morning of the year, generally around 8:45am at De La Salle College Cronulla (the venue may change at times depending on field availability).

The game was started by Fr John Greig and parishioners in the early 1990s, and continued by Fr Michael McLean who was also a regular player.

We are a welcoming family-oriented group of parishioners and friends, who play a friendly but wholehearted and competitive game. We cater for players of all ages and skill levels, with players ranging from 6 to 65+ years old.

New players are very welcome, please contact us to confirm the location and time.

Contact:

  • Dunstan de Souza through the Parish Office. Phone: 8522 0300

Dinner for Eight

Mission: To build parish life through broadening friendships and acquaintances within the parish.

Dinner for Eight is a group that facilitates social get-togethers in the parish. It is purely a social grouping, sharing, preparing and eating of a meal for eight people.It is not a prayer group or a social lecture group.

A group of eight people (couples and/or singles) meet for dinner on a regular basis (about every 5 – 6 weeks). A couple or individual within each group will be asked to act as Initial Host and Coordinator of future meals for that group. The dinners should rotate within all the homes of group members. At the end of six months the group will divide into two and one half will then team up with half of another group to make up a new eight for the next six months. At the end of the 12 months, each couple or person will have been involved with two sets of groups and hopefully will have doubled the number of friendships/acquaintances within the parish family.

Contact: Brian Collins through the Parish Office. Phone: 8522 0300