The Church of Our Lady Star of the Sea is a Roman Catholic

Roman Catholic Church

The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...

 church in Singapore

Singapore

Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...

 and comes under the jurisdiction of the Archdiocese of Singapore. The church is located at Yishun

Yishun

Yishun, or Nee Soon as it was initially named, is a suburban town in the northern part of Singapore, encompassing the Yishun Planning Area, in the North Region, which includes Yishun New Town and the Nee Soon private residential estate....

 Street 22.

History

The church had its humble beginnings in the Naval Base area, in August 1949. This is now the area around Sembawang Road. Religious services started at an old Japanese language school which was left over from World War II. The school was located in Jalan Kedai, off Canberra Road.

Fr. Dominic Vendargon, (Aug 29, 1909 – Aug 3, 2005) was appointed by the then Bishop of Malacca

Malacca

Malacca , dubbed The Historic State or Negeri Bersejarah among locals) is the third smallest Malaysian state, after Perlis and Penang. It is located in the southern region of the Malay Peninsula, on the Straits of Malacca. It borders Negeri Sembilan to the north and the state of Johor to the south...

 & Singapore, Bishop Michel Olçomendy, M.E.P., to formulate a self-sufficient parish. In August 1950, Fr. Vendargon was succeeded by Fr. Albert Fortier (Apr 24, 1911- Jan 13, 1998). Fr. Fortier conducted everything, from Masses, marriages and all other rites, at the Japanese school.

By 1952, the old school had become so rundown and unsafe that the British Colonial authorities advised Fr. Fortier to build a new church. Fr. Fortier found a plot of land in Jalan Sendudok which was part of the British Naval Base. The British Colonial authorities approved the site for a 21 year lease. The building of the church was completed in 1953.

Fr. Fortier was succeeded by Fr. I. Fernandez, for the next 10 years, followed by Fr. Bernard Binet from 1964 to 1968. Fr. Albert Fortier returned to assume the role of Parish Priest in July 1968. Fr Fortier served in the church until his retirement on 31 December 1986. Fr. Amiotte-Suchet Louis (Aug 29, 1917- Oct 17, 1998) was appointed to take over from the duties of Fr. Fortier.

On 26 August 1987, the Church of Our Lady Star of the Sea was informed by the authorities that "the premises and the land are scheduled to be cleared by 31 December 1987 and you are hereby notified to move out by this date".http://www.veritas.org.sg/olss/history1.html

The present site for the Church of Our Lady Star of the Sea was bought by the Archdiocese of Singapore on 6 March 1989. The church was officially blessed by the Archbishop

Archbishop

An archbishop is a bishop of higher rank, but not of higher sacramental order above that of the three orders of deacon, priest , and bishop...

 of Singapore, Gregory Yong

Gregory Yong

Gregory Yong Sooi Ngean , D.D. D.C.L was the second Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore. Archbishop Gregory Yong died on 28 June 2008 of a heart failure....

, on 30 May 1992.

Organisation

The Church of Our Lady Star of the Sea currently has 3 priests administering to a parish population of 5680. These priests are:

• Parish Priest Reverend Father John Joseph Fenelon
• Reverend Father Noel Chin
• Reverend Father Luke Fong

The church has the following ministries:

• • Catechists
  • Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults (RCIA)
  • Legion of Mary
    Legion of Mary
    The Legion of Mary is an association of Catholic laity who serve the Church on a voluntary basis. It was founded in Dublin, Ireland, as a Roman Catholic Marian Movement by layman Frank Duff. Today between active and auxiliary members there are in excess of 10 million members worldwide making it...
    
    
  • St. Vincent De Paul Society (SVDP)
  • Christian Women's League
  • Natural Family Planning
  • Sacristy Family
  • Choirs
  • Altar Servers
  • Youth Ministry
    Youth ministry
    Youth ministry, also commonly referred to as Youth group, is an age-specific religious ministry and is the way in which a faith group, or other religious organization involves and engages with the young people who attend its place of worship, or live in its community...
    
    
  • Extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion
  • Churchwarden
    Churchwarden
    A churchwarden is a lay official in a parish church or congregation of the Anglican Communion, usually working as a part-time volunteer. Holders of these positions are ex officio members of the parish board, usually called a vestry, parish council, parochial church council, or in the case of a...
    
    s
  • Lector
    Lector
    Lector is a Latin term for one who reads, whether aloud or not. In modern languages the word has come to take various forms, as either a development or a loan, such as , , and . It has various specialized uses:...
    
    s
  • Charismatic Group
  • Ministry of Sick
  • Church Decorations
  • Elders Group
  • Library
  • Bookshop
  • Canteen
  • Chinese-speaking Apostolate
  • Indian-speaking Apostolate
  • Filipino Apostolate

• Neighbourhood Christian Community (NCC)
  • Zone 100
  • Zone 200
  • Zone 300
  • Zone 400
  • Zone 600
  • Zone 700
  • Zone 800 / Sembawang/Others