The Syromalabar community of Darwin
The Syro-Malabar Catholic Church, an Eastern Catholic church in the Catholic communion with the Apostolic See of Rome, is well-recognised in the world as the 3rd largest particular Catholic church for its traditions. The Syromalabar community of Darwin has its roots back to the strong faith of the Syromalabar Church.
The eparchy of St Thomas the Apostle, Melbourne, Australia, was established on 23 December 2013 to serve the high number of Australian Malayalee migrant communities. There are currently 50 communities and over 65,000 parishioners within Australia.
The Syromalabar community of Darwin has its roots back to the strong faith of the Syromalabar Church. Rev.Fr Joseph Pullanappillil, CMI, celebrated Syro-Malabar Holy Mass every month in Darwin and catered for the spiritual needs of then a small Malayalee community of Darwin until xxxxx.
St Alphonsa Syromalabar Mission Darwin was established in xxxxx after an increase in the growth of the Malayalee community was noted due to the increased migration of Malayalee families to Darwin.
Bishop Mar Bosco Puthur raised the Syromalabar Mission Darwin to the status of a Parish in xxxxx . Since then, the Syromalabar community of Darwin has been growing in both faith and numbers. The Parish provides a broad range of services-Holy Mass every Sunday, catechism classes and various programs to meet the spiritual demands of the evergrowing Darwin Malayalee migrant community.
The St. Alphonsa Syromalabar Mission Darwin operates under the guidance of the Eparchy of St Thomas the Apostle, Melbourne, Australia, and has established various functional structures to support and strengthen its focus on the community's needs.
The Syromalabar Parish Council consists of a Vicar and a group of parishioners elected by the parish community. The Parish Council plays a pivotal role in the continuous faith development of the Darwin Malayalee community.
The St Alphonsa Catechism school works under the guidance of the Department of Catechesis to provide faith formation classes to young kids, thereby enabling them to lead a Syromalabar faith and develop them as our future leaders.
The Youth Movement works closely with the Syromalabar youth movement to bring together all the SMC youth of Darwin and supports the growth of spirituality and faith in the context of Syromalabar teachings and beliefs.