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Prayer Requests:
For Archbishop Joseph Fiorenza who will undergo surgery on is colon and bladder on March 23.
For the repose of the soul of the Mother of Fr. Robert Higgins, AOS Port Chaplain, Charleston, SC.
Fr. Felix Petrovsky, Cruise Ship Priest, who is recovering from a stroke.
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Cruise Ship Priests Mentioned During ITF's Seafarer Welfare Trust Banquet
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Our Risen Lord,
First, I would like to pass on the information on the 2012  Maritime Day Mass at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C. This is a major event for the National Day of Prayer and Remembrance for Mariners and the People of the Sea.
Bishop Kevin Boland, Bishop Promoter for the Apostleship of the Sea will be the main celebrant for this special liturgy.
It will 10:00 a.m. in the Crypt Church at the Shrine, which is located at 400 Michigan Ave, N.E. in Washington, D.C. It is sponsored by the National Office of the Apostleship of the Sea. For more information, you can call 202-541-3225, or go to the web site at www.usccb/aos .
In this newsletter, I also want to share with you some of the great things that happened two weeks ago at ITF's banquet celebrating the 30th Anniversary of the Seafarers' Trust. AOS-USA was blessed to be represented by our London representative, Michelle Homden. Here thoughts and reflections follow below.
In addition, Michel Grey from Lloyd's List also attended, and noted the great presentation made by AOS-Italy's national director, Fr. Giacomo Martino on the great service of the ship chaplain on the Costa Concordia.
I have included a number of odds and ends that I have collected related to cruise ship ministry.
Finally, here are two links to the ITF's Seafarers Trust video, which was released at the banquet, and can be ordered from the ITF. The first is the summary version (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7a9YMQFOL8Q) and the full version (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7a9YMQFOL8Q)
God bless all in this holy Easter Season,
Fr. Sinclair Oubre, J.C.L.
President - AOS-USA
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Message from Our European Representative, Michelle Homden, and Her Short Report
Good morning Fr Sinclair and Doreen
I had a lovely time at the ITF dinner last night. There were lots of old friends there including Ricardo from Barcelona, Fr Giacomo from Genova and, of course, Fr Bruno who was quite surprised to find me working for AOS again! I distributed my card with my "London representative" credentials. I also spoke to Tom Holmer. He was really pleased that AOS USA was represented and commented on how he appreciates your willingness to work with the trade unions. I also spoke to Roy Paul whom I see is on the programme for your forthcoming conference.
There were several speeches during the dinner, including one from the outgoing head of the IMO, and a short film was shown about work of the Seafarers' Trust. Although it was a general survey of welfare services around the world, I couldn't help noticing how often the Stella Maris logo appeared. Ultimately, it all comes down to the hardworking folk in the ports.
Thank you for giving me the opportunity to attend the event and thank you for all you do for seafarers.
Regards
Michelle
Short Report:
During the dinner, we were addressed by ITF President Paddy Crumlin, former seafarer in the Australian Merchant Navy, and by ITF General Secretary David Cockcroft who is a familiar face at AOS events. We also heard from Mr Efthimios E. Mitropoulos, until very recently the Secretary-General of the IMO which has its headquarters in London. Mr Mitropoulos paid tribute to the work of the Seafarers Trust and emphasized the importance of seafarers, and their welfare, in the maritime world. He told guests how, in 2008, he had unveiled a statue in the Greek harbour town of Galaxidi. This statue is a monument to the 'Wife of the Seafarer', reminding us that seafarers come from families and communities and that it is not only those who go to sea who are affected by separation. |
Michael Grey notes the moving presention by AOS-Italy's National Director
...Incidentally, Fr Sinclair (please give him my kind regards) might have been interested to hear of the extremely moving address by his Italian colleague Fr Giacomo Martino, speaking at an ITF Trust 30 year seminar in London a couple of weeks ago. He spoke about the extraordinary efforts of the 74 year old Chaplain aboard Costa Concordia, the way that the whole of the South European AOS team was scrambled to assist in the aftermath, and of the way
that the crew, who really felt that they had done a decent job, felt badly served by the media and all those "citizen journalists".
There was, he said, a huge amount of mutual support - he instanced the efforts of a cabin steward who made superhuman efforts to look after a mother with two disabled youngsters, getting them out of their cabins and into a boat. He spoke of the power of prayer and the passion of people determined to help others, by no means the sum of the stories that were being retailed by the Italian and world media. There were, he said"countless little stories of help and compassion" and at the end of the day the crew really could hold their heads up with pride. But it was significantly the AOS team which recognised the need to listen to the crew
members as they counselled them, and could tell of these stories, which deserve to be spread widely.
With kind regards,
Michael Grey
From Lloyd's List Welfare - because they are worth it! by Michael Grey
Seafarers often face a tough time and ITF seminar suggests ways to improve their lives
IF YOU were some sort of malign being who hated humanity, how would you most efficiently go about destroying the happiness and mental health of your fellow human beings?
Well, you might start by studying some of the things that have been done to seafarers over the past few decades - not through any over-arching evil strategy by some dark power, but through a combination of economics, technology and politics.
Reduce crew sizes to that which becomes socially insupportable, preferably in a cultural and linguistic mix so nobody can actually converse. Make the voyages longer through slow steaming, make it exceedingly difficult to get shore leave, reduce the standards of accommodation through a combination of regulatory pressure (tonnage measurement) and economics (shipbuilding prices), and ensure that the few crew live in a vibrating steel tower block abaft the stern frame, or on the forecastle, serving as a breakwater, wreathed in anti-piracy razor wire.
From here, the watchkeepers keep their lonely watches, they eat alone and watch videos in their grim cabins, speaking briefly and haltingly about operational matters, as e-mails pour into the master's computer, urging greater efforts and more cost savings.
This sort of recipe for mental destruction flashed through my mind as I was listening to Dr. Suresh Idnani, president of the International Maritime Health Association, talking about the changing face of welfare in the maritime industry.
He spoke of the need to spread best practice in welfare and health of seafarers, with more attention paid to recreation, communications, transport and access to health. He spoke about the importance of counselling and friendship, and the package of social measures that helps to keep any individual mentally healthy.
There is quite a lot in contemporary shipping, I reflected, that conspires against this happy picture.
Dr Idnani was one of the speakers at the ITF's Maritime Trust seminar last week on seafarers' welfare matters, a really useful and timely event held to commemorate the Trust's 30th anniversary. Timely also with the ratifications of the ILO's Maritime Labour Convention now numbering up to 26 nations and its hoped-for coming into force in the next year or so.
There were some excellent interventions at this seminar, at which there was an appeal to the common sense that suggests good crew welfare provision, which treats people as individuals rather than economic units, promotes both happiness and efficiency.
"The best crews come back for more," said Hennie La Grange, General Secretary of the International Christian Maritime Association, who also pointed out the often-forgotten fact that a ship is a seafarer's home, in addition to a place of work.
The seminar discussed the importance of the MLC in so many different ways, and the means by which shoreside welfare provision should be funded. Should port levies be compulsory or voluntary, and what makes the best possible shoreside facility, always supposing that seafarers can actually get to it?
We had the German Seamen's Mission's Jan Oltmanns, director of the celebrated Duckdalben Seafarers' Centre in Hamburg, explaining of some of the things they do in their award-winning centre. A bit of fun, music, even karaoke goes down a storm, he suggests, along with a port health facility, money transfer, a gift shop, port information and a library. "Seafarers deserve it all," he says.
Welfare tends to be needed when things are going well - but when they go wrong, it is essential. We heard about the need for counselling and care in a piracy or hostage situation, for both the seafarers and their families.
Roy Paul, who is the manager of the Maritime Piracy Humanitarian Response Programme, spoke of the real fear of piracy, and the need to help people after they have been released, following their ordeal. Piracy seems to have become a contemporary maritime risk and, like other marine risks, there is a need for training. It is worth recalling that 3,770 seafarers have been held since the Somali piracy plague began.
There was a moving intervention from Fr Giacomo Martino, the co-ordinator for the Apostleship of the Sea in Italy and a former chaplain on cruiseships. Italian passengerships invariably carry a uniformed chaplain, contracted to the company, who chairs the ship's welfare committee and attends to counselling and faith needs of those on board.
The chaplain on board the Costa Concordia was a 74 -year-old, who worked tirelessly as the ship was evacuated and stayed close to the needs of passengers and crew after the ship had been abandoned. Fr Martino, who said the media treatment of the disaster bore little resemblance to the reality, pointed out there was much for the crew to have been proud of in their professional efforts. The media, he said, sadly ignored the "little stories of help and compassion" as they pursued their wider agenda.
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The Tradition of Ship Chaplains Standing By in Times of Trouble
As many in the cruise line industry look for cost savings, and scratch their heads as to why is there a need for a cruise ship priest today, Fr. Rafaeli Mallena has received great praise his presence aboard the ill fated M/V Costa Concordia. However, if one is at all familiar with maritime history, Fr. Rafaeli's actions are the rule, and not the exception. Here are two other examples of priests shepherding their maritime flocks in times of distress.
RMS Titanic:
On the centennial of the great ship's sinking, a look at the sacrifice made by Catholic clergy on board
By OSV staff - OSV Newsweekly, 4/15/2012
On April 14/15, 1912, a glittering, technological marvel in the shape of a ship called the RMS Titanic struck an iceberg and sank to the bottom of the sea in the icy waters in the North Atlantic, killing more than 1,500 people and capturing the imaginations of people over the past 100 years.
 | | The White Star Line's RMS Titanic set sail on its maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York on April 10, 1912. Newscom photo |
Many books, museum exhibits and movies have told the story of the supposedly unsinkable ocean liner, including the Oscar-winning 1997 film "Titanic," recently re-released in theaters in a 3D format. Even the popular PBS series "Downton Abbey," set in Edwardian England, features the sinking of the Titanic in its plot line.
Most people know at least the basic story of what happened to the Titanic on her maiden voyage from Southampton, England to New York, but they may not realize the role three Catholic priests - a Lithuanian, a German and an Englishman - played in bringing comfort to passengers of the doomed ship.
Each celebrated Mass every day while on board the ship, but it was their heroism and the spiritual care they gave to the passengers literally until the end that has been remembered.
Serving 'to the very end'
 | | Father Montvila |
Father Juozas Montvila, 27, a native of Lithuania, boarded at Southampton on a second-class ticket.
Father Montvila was headed to the United States, where he had family, after suffering at the hands of the Russians, who controlled Lithuania at the time. When it was discovered he was serving Ukrainian Catholics, who were in disfavor with the government of Czar Nicholas II, the Russians prohibited him from performing his priestly ministry. In the United States, Father Montvila believed, he could serve the growing Lithuanian community.
On the fatal night, Father Montvila was on the boat deck as the 20 lifeboats on board - far too few for the 2,200 passengers aboard - were filled. A survivor reported, "the young Lithuanian priest, Juozas Montvila, served his calling to the very end." He was offered a place in one of the boats, but he refused to go. His body was never recovered.
Praying the Rosary
Benedictine Father Joseph Benedikt Peruschitz, 41, also was a second-class passenger on the Titanic.
He had entered the Benedictine community at Scheyern in 1894. On April 28, 1895, he was ordained a priest by the archbishop of Munich-Freising in the parish church in Scheyern. He made his profession as a Benedictine on Aug. 24, 1895.
In 1912, he was on his way to join the faculty at St. John's Abbey -
now St. John's University - in Collegeville, Minn. He spent Holy Week at St. Augustine's Benedictine house in Ramsgate, England, before boarding the Titanic on April 10 at Southampton. The ocean liner departed later that day, stopping in Cherbourg, France, and Queenstown, Ireland, before crossing the Atlantic.
Father Peruschitz went among passengers after the ship hit the iceberg, giving absolution. Some people on deck reportedly mocked him and the other priests. But the priests continued to pray with those who asked for prayer, not only Catholics but people of all faiths.
Father Peruschitz also was offered a place in a lifeboat, but he declined to leave the other passengers. One survivor recalled seeing him shortly before the sinking, leading a group of passengers in the Rosary. Like his Lithuanian counterpart, his body was never recovered.
At the Scheyern monastery, a plaque memorializes Father Peruschitz's life and sacrifice. It reads, "Father Joseph Peruschitz, OSB, who sacrificed himself piously on the famous 'Titanic' on 15.4.1912 at the age of 42 years in the 17th year of his priesthood and profession."
Aiding passengers
Father Thomas Roussel Davids Byles, 42, came from a prominent family in England and was the son of a Congregationalist minister. While at Oxford, he was received into the Church of England. Originally intending to become an Anglican priest, he converted to Catholicism in 1894 and was ordained a Catholic priest in 1902.
 | | Father Byes |
In April 1912, Father Byles was on his way to Brooklyn, N.Y., to officiate at his brother's wedding.
He, too, embarked at Southampton as a second-class passenger.
On April 14, the day that would end with the accident, Father Byles celebrated Mass twice - once for second-class passengers and a later one for third-class passengers.
Most third-class passengers were immigrants to America, mainly from Ireland, so they would have understood English. Many others, however, were from continental Europe. Father Byles preached his third-class homily in English and French, and Father Peruschitz followed with a sermon in German and Hungarian. According to a newspaper report at the time, both priests preached about "the necessity of man having a lifeboat in the shape of religious consolation at hand in case of a spiritual shipwreck."
When the collision with the iceberg came, Father Byles returned to third-class cabins. Survivors recall that he pointed third-class passengers to exits from lower decks or into the boats. He heard confessions. He prayed with anxious passengers.
According to newspaper reports, Father Byles too was offered a seat in a departing lifeboat, but he refused to leave the other passengers. He died with the ship and his body was never recovered.
A memorial to Father Byles was erected at his parish in Chipping Ongar, Essex, England.
Portions of this piece were adapted from Msgr. Owen F. Campion's April 17, 2005, In Focus titled "Priestly sacrifice at sea."
� 2011 Our Sunday Visitor, Inc. All rights reserved.
S/S Andrea Doria:
From Out of the Fog: the Sinking of the Andrea Doria:
 | | Altar on S/S Andrea Doria |
Staff Captain Magagnini told Capt. Calamai as Andrea Doria continued list to starboard, and as most passengers and crew had left the ship, "'There is nothing else we can. We can wait for the tugboats in our lifeboats.' Calamai replied, almost inaudibly, 'You go, I'll stay.'
"Captain Calamai then summoned Monsignor Sebastian Natta, the ship's priest. The two men began to speak in very low voices when Magagnini interrupted them, 'It's pointless, Captain, but if you're going to stay, so will wee.' Some twenty officers now remained on board Andrea Doria, and there were some forty crewmen in two lifeboats nearby." (page 68)
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Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of
Migrants and Itinerant People
2012 Easter Message
Dear chaplains, volunteers and people of the sea,
The Easter proclamation rings out once again in the world: Christ is risen! He lives beyond death, He is the Lord of the living and the dead.
In His resurrection is fulfilled the great hope of "new" heavens and earth, of a world without suffering and tears, of a society founded on peace and justice and of a life without end.
In welcoming the risen Lord, a new life begins in Him, a new way of living, hoping and loving also starts in all those who believe in Him
This experience of new life in Christ is not something personal, but must be shared with others. In fact, in the apparitions after the resurrection, Jesus sends the apostles to the nations and the whole world.
The celebration of Easter calls all of us to become faithful witnesses of the gospel, and commits us to be missionaries of the Christian faith.
In the pain of separation from one's families for many months, let's bring the consolation of God's love that brings everyone together across the miles.
In the uncertainties of life at sea (piracy, criminalization, etc..) let's bring the assurance that God protects us from every unknown danger.
In situations of injustice and abuse, let's defend the human and working dignity of every person.
In the maritime world increasingly diversified, in the ports crossroads of humanity, on the ships with crews of different nationalities and religious beliefs, let's bring the message of a new world recognizing in the face of others, a person to love and respect.
Together with my most sincere wishes for a Holy Easter, for renewing this missionary commitment, for sharing your experiences and planning for the future ahead, I would like to invite you all to attend the XXIII World Congress of the Apostleship of the Sea to be held in the Vatican from 19th to 23rd November with the theme: New Evangelization in the maritime world (New ways and means to proclaim the Good News).
In the Risen Lord,
Antonio Maria Card. Vegli�
President
X Joseph Kalathiparambil
Secretary
Download Complete Text
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Expert from USCG Cruise Ship National Center of Expertise to Speak on Cruise Ship Safety at AOS-USA Annual Conference on
May 17, 2012
Houston, Texas
AOS-USA is excited to announce the confirmation of Mr. Brad Schoenwald, Senior Marine Inspector and Lead Instructor at the Cruise Ship National Center of Expertise in Miami, Florida.
With AOS-USA supplying more Catholic ministry on cruise ships than any other organization, having a knowledge of where cruise ship safety has come in the last 100 years since the loss of the RMS Titanic, and where cruise ship safety is going, is an important topic for the majority of our members.
Brad maintains an active 100T Masters License, and is a 20 year veteran of the United States Coast Guard. He has specialized in
vessel operation, command, and vessel construction.
In addition to Brad, Daniel Strunk of Holland America has also been invited to be part of Thursday's activities. He will be able to address how AOS-USA cruise ship priests assist cruise lines with their passengers and crew, as well as some areas that AOS-USA's priests can improve their coordination with the cruise lines.
For more information and to register, please click the link below.
AOS USA Annual Conference Registration
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Lake Charles Stella Maris Celebrates
Golden Jubilee, & Deacon Patrick Featured
in Extension Magazine
Extension Magazine
Summer 2012
Lake Charles, Louisiana, is a busy shipping port, with tankers and transport ships loading and unloading all types of cargo around the clock. In the midst of exports like grain and flour departing for Haiti and other countries in need of foreign aid - and imports arriving from nearly every continent - the port seems an unlikely
place for the Catholic Church to be present. But for thousands who travel by sea year round, transporting goods essential for our way of life, the church is there to greet them, providing a place of refuge and safe haven at the Stella Maris Seafarers' Center...
Read Full ArticlePlease keep all of the good folks at the Lake Charles Stella Maris in your prayers as they celebrate their 50th Anniversary. A wonderful day is planned for Wednesday, April 18, 2012. Fr. Sinclair Oubre, AOS-USA president, and Doreen Badeaux, AOS-USA Secretary General, will cross the river to join our AOS-USA treasurer, Deacon Patrick LaPoint and his wife Sandra in this wonderful and historical moment. We will Face Book and Tweet pictures and messages from the anniversary. If you have not become a friend of AOS-USA on Facebook, Click Here If you have not joined up to follow AOS-USA on Twittter,
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Invitation to AOS World Congress
XXIII World Congress of the Apostleship of the Sea
Vatican City, Synod Hall, 19th - 23rd November 2012
Theme:
New Evangelization in the maritime world
(New ways and means to proclaim the Good News)
Dear Friends,
We are pleased to extend the following invitation to you, to attend the upcoming World Congress of the Apostleship of the Sea.
The AOS Bishop Promoter and National Director are responsible for formulating the list of delegates for this meeting. If you are interested in attending, please contact Sr Myrna Tordillo's office via Margaret Marzec mmarzec@usccb.org or PH: 202-541-3225
For more information, please see the links below:
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Important Upcoming Events for
AOS USA Members
AOS-USA Annual Meeting
Houston, Texas
May 15-17, 2012
AOS-USA Annual Conference Registration
National Day of Remembrance and Prayer for Mariners and the People of the Sea
2012 Maritime Day Mass
10:00 a.m.
Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception Crypt Church
400 Michigan Ave. N.E.
Washington, D.C.
For more information: 202-541-3225 or at www.usccb.org/aos
National Maritime Day & National Day of Prayer and Remembrance for Mariners
May 22, 2012
XXIII World Congress of the Apostleship of the Sea
November 19-23, 2012 @ The Vatican
AOS World Congress Invitation
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