About us
Outreach
A "Community Meal" ministry operates from our premises 4 nights a week, serving the disadvantaged in our community. St John's parishioners look after Monday nights, and other church groups handle the other 4 nights. Please contact us for further information and offers of support.
Note that the Tuesday night group, "The Dining Room", is now an authorised parish project and can attract tax deductible donations.
We collect groceries each week and deliver to Anglicare Croydon and to the Maroondah Citizens Advice Bureau. Each year we have an annual "Undies Sunday", decorating the sanctuary with new "sox and jocks", and donating it all to the Asylum Seekers Centre at Dandenong.
Our ministry
A Dinka-speaking Sudanese congregation meets on Sunday afternoons in St John's, led by the Rev'd David Gai Manyok.
We have Sunday School activities during term time. We continue to work at making St John's a 'family-friendly" church.
"Carols On The Lawn" now is an annual fixture, on the Sunday night before Christmas, as we share the Christmas Spirit with our community. Also, the "Blessing of the Animals" takes place on a Sunday afternoon in early October.
Teams from the parish visit local nursing homes and homes for the elderly each month to conduct services of worship. The vicar is always available to visit, on request, those in hospital -- and to arrange for Holy Communion to be taken to the housebound.
Baptisms and weddings
The vicar is always happy to speak to those enquring about Baptism. Preparation sessions are held at the convenience of the families concerned, and the baptism ceremonies usually take place in the context of our Sunday morning services.
Likewise, the vicar is always happy to speak to couples wishing to be married at St John's. Wedding services are conducted here according to the Anglican wedding rites, and couples are required to attend a marriage preparation program beforehand.
Christian education
Parish Christian education continues at different levels: a Lenten program usually attracts over 40 parishioners; confirmation classes are held from time to time to prepare young people and others for a deeper Christian commitment. We always welcome enquiries about the Christian Faith and the Anglican Church in particular. Sermons preached on Sundays are available on this website.
Partnerships
We have a prayer partnership with the struggling rural parish of Edenhope and we work cooperatively with the parishes of Mooroolbark and Kilsyth-Montrose on various projects, including a Saturday breakfast in Lent, and training sessions for lay people in various church and worship tasks.
The vicar is chair of commitee of the "Maroondah Inter-Faith Network" , an organisation which attempts to promote harmony between the religions represented in our district.
Our social calendar
Fundraisings during the past 12 months have included Sunday afternoon concerts ...a "sponsor the Vicar" bike-ride from Lilydale to Woori Yallock... an "International Food Night"... and the "Incredible Edibles" pre-Christmas food fair.
Annual social events include the Fathers' Day weekend "Men's Breakfast" and the Racing season's "Ladies Spring Afternoon Tea".
Parish groups meet regularly and would love to welcome new members: Mothers Union (MU Australia), and the Womens Evening Fellowship, meet monthly; Mens' Connection meets weekly.