Each Advent, Gesu "plants" a Christmas tree near the east altars and invites parishioners to trim this Advent Mitten Tree. The first Sunday of Advent marks the start of our annual-sharing project for the home with gifts of warmth: new mittens, caps, scarves and gloves for homeless children and adults of several shelters for Milwaukee’s homeless and victims of domestic violence. Since 2002, we have also planted a Haiti Children’s Tree, which parishioners decorate with bars of soap, toothpaste and brushes, underwear, shoes and socks, and hair clips and ribbons for the children of St. Jude, our twin parish in Haiti.

The Catholic Diocese of Raleigh, North Carolina, in 1979 established a commission of African American Ministry and Evangelization to address the needs of African American Catholics in the diocese.

The mission of the Arrupe Program is to promote the pursuit of truly human values by business managers and executives and the people who run them. The program offers an eight-week seminar entitled Faith and Values at Work, to help the participants develop a faith-centered framework for thinking about themselves, the purpose of business, and the vocation of organizational leadership. The Arrupe Program has also developed a one-day workshop centered around these same themes for groups of Jesuit high school and university alumni, and a values-based course, The Foundations Seminar, for use with business management teams.

Parish volunteers assist with Spiritual Exercises retreats as retreat companions for persons in homelessness seeking change and growth to overcome homelessness.

Parish volunteers provide lunch monthly to assist persons in homelessness with histories of emotional and/or mental challenges participating in Tender Mercies permanent housing and supportive services.

Parish volunteers and others present an introductory 3-day retreat weekend in Christian faith and personal growth for local prison inmates.

Located on the near south side of Milwaukee, this former convent is available for day and overnight retreats for parish and school staff. An accessible and affordable meeting place in the midst of the city’s urban scene, the facility puts retreatants in touch with the vibrant spiritual life of the neighborhood’s Latino community. This self-supporting renewal center and retreat house is the realized dream of Father Dave Shields, SJ and thus has decidedly Ignatian underpinnings. 

The Centro Altagracia is dedicated to faith in action; promoting social justice through active collaboration with parishes, community organizations, and individuals and through initiatives that serve the needs of the community as those needs have been identified by the Hispanic community of northern Manhattan. We seek to awaken awareness within individuals of how their Catholic, Christian faith calls them to be aware of the issues impacting their community and to be engaged in action to address these issues. Among the Centro's programs are: Social/Pastoral Ministry Teams that serve as coordinators and catalysts for social awareness and action within parishes; H.E.L.P. (Hispanic Evangelization Leadership Program) that trains young adults for leadership roles within their parishes; and G.R.A.C.E. (Gaining Respect and Awareness through Community Education) which addresses the issue of domestic violence. The Centro also maintains a library of books and DVDs for community use.

The Dominican Outreach Center or Centro Altagracia de Fe y Justicia (Altagracia Center for Faith and Justice) was formed by the New York Province of the Society of Jesus in response to the unmet needs of the Dominican community of the Washington Heights area. In a period of slightly more than one year the Centro Altagracia has been able to make incredible strides in establishing itself in the community through its work with the ten parishes of the North Manhattan vicariate, various community organizations, and elected officials.
 

Members live the Ignatian ideal through prayer, contemplation, discernment and action. CLC is a discerning community for Mission, which gives us a sense of Church that leads us to be present where God’s love is lacking. http://www.clc-usa.org/

Since 2007, Project Homeless Connect is a one-day event held at Creighton that serves as a "one-stop shop", connecting homeless individuals to needed services, including: housing, healthcare, legal resources, Social Security, food-stamp benefits, and employment. Creighton University President Fr. John Schlegel who has served as chair and host of the event noted in 2010: 330 individuals were provided housing information, 80 moved into housing, more than 100 have received new dentures, and 540 received some form of health care-related service and of those 80 percent receiving follow-up treatment.

The Gabriel Project is a crisis pregnancy center that provides services to address unexpected pregnancies.

The social ministries are active year-round and open to all parishioners to join in making the social mission of the church the essential and central mission of the parish.  Examples of ministries include: parish twinning with St Jude's parish in Haiti, ongoing social justice eduation programs, and fair trade coffee sales.

Gesu Social Concerns Committee oversees a number of programs to the homeless including a regular Saturday meal program, Sunday breakfast bags. Gesu parishioners also partner with downtown congregations offering shelter and day programs to the homeless individuals and families and Gesu parishioners were instrumental in the establishment of a Milwaukee Housing Trust Fund

The parish promotes healthy living through blood pressure checkups, walking, and special teachings to gain wisdom on how to take care of our body, mind and spirit. Yearly event: “Walk to Bethlehem” starts in September and continues through December.

A vibrant Hispanic community at St. Raphael and celebrate Wed 7pm, Sat 7:15pm, and Sunday 2:30pm Masses in Spanish. The Office coordinates preparation for sacraments in Spanish, Presentaciones, Quinceaneras, Charismatic Renewal, and celebrations for Our Lady of Guadalupe and All Saints Day.

The Cultural Institute for Leadership in the Midwest seeks to build the capacity of lay Latino leaders in the Church.

Gesu Church is a member of the Interfaith Hospitality Network (IHN) – a coalition of area churches, syna­gogues, and places of worship, which provide temporary overnight housing for homeless families at periodic weekly intervals during the year. Volunteers are needed to provide meals and companionship during times when Gesu hosts IHN guests in McAuley Hall.