I was born near the sea in South Brittany, into a fishing family whose living came from the sea.

I experienced the invitation of the gospel to "Launch out into the deep." - Luke 5, 4 - during a retreat at the end of my studies at St Francis Xavier high school in Vannes; an invitation carried through a see breeze but most of all through my father's work as a fisherman, and that of  most of the people living at S�n�. During our childhood, we were closely associated with the hardships of life at sea which affected our family life; in this way, we learnt how to make a future on our own.

A vocation, at the beginning, is always influenced by the environment from which it emerges; its source does not lie so much in the studies one has had the chance to take up, but to open our hearts and our eyes to the Gospel and to the One who still calls us to live in close contact with the people we meet.

The deep. It means coming and listening to those who put this moment of "departure" at the heart of the story of their calling, like St Francis Xavier and his letters, which were read during the first year of the novitiate in October 1962.. The call of the sea and of the deep, it is also meant going to sea myself and embarking as an electrician, before and after my ordination to priesthood in 1975 by the Bishop of Vannes. It meant livingonboard with French seafarers but also with seafarers from the Philippines, Russia, Sri Lanka and India for 22 years.

The deep came to me through meeting young Filipino seafarers in their country, helping them to enter this particular life on the sea, which was very tough and demanding work and also encouraging them to write down and reflect on their experiences at sea. These fifteen years spent in the port of Cebu - in the Philippines - were an international opening of the maritime world which has become a crossroads of nations today.

It is for this reason that the sea breeze still gives my Jesuit vocation the taste of the deep and the wish to "keep together" friends and families, as most of the time they are scattered and isolated.

The deep , was to continue when I returned to France in 2006, through the many encounters of seafarers on the wharfs, piers or aboard ships.

The deep never leaves the heart of one whose living has been connected to it. It is still shaping my present life in Algeria, near the many workers most of them coming from Asia, and the Philippines, who are here to workon an one-year contract to build bridges, motorways or gas plants. We are always present near those who are here for a long stay and far away from family, country, and church. They learn to build their future as men and fathers in a new cultural and religious environment, in a Muslim country.

It is Algeria that "offers" these Christians, coming from other continents an opportunity so that the little church here may live and be enriched with their presence by opening a space in its tent. It is Algeria that also "offers" to the handful of Christians here the pastoral care of the thousands of Sub Saharan students migrating from Africa, many of them being Christians. They come here as scholarship holders for four or five years to study and often find themselves lost and disorientated in this new environment where they must learn to carry on their future and profession. Together with the Jesuit companions from Alger, Skikda and Constantine, we are alongside them , in close contact with other friends from other congregations; we care for their future as believers in this country which welcomes them.

The deep does not always mean "going elsewhere" but rather to let oneself be on the move with others and ready to go to the deep when meeting people. The deep enlarges the heart of the Church and each other's hearts as well.

Roland Doriol sj Constantine August 15, 2012

We are in search of WW II seamen who sailed on coastwise barges and tugs during WW II and who have never been recognized as veterans under current laws. More than 10,000 seamen served on these coastwise vessels and many have never received their proper recognition as veterans. Several actions by our government have prohibited these seamen from attaining what they have so courageously earned. Orders from high authority relieved the masters of these coastwise barges and tugs from the responsibility of issuing pertinent documents now required in proving their service. Another action caused logbooks of some vessels to be destroyed. Without access to records, these seamen are prevented from gaining veteran status. Alternative actions must be put in place to correct this travesty.

The most severe action though, was to deny our women the necessary credentials allowing them the proper recognition as veterans of this nation for their service rendered. During the early part of the war women were told to leave the ships and were removed whenever a ship would stop at the next US port, despite their demand to stay and serve. Before they were removed some were KIA, POW, MIA and others severely wounded. They still served, even without approval and without credentials. They made their mark in history and should be recognized.

The first 18 months of WW II saw our ships being sunk faster than we could build them; putting success of winning the war in jeopardy. This information was kept from the press in fear the seamen would not volunteer for sure death because the casualty rates was so higher. During the first year of the war the Merchant Marine had more casualties than all services together. They ended the war with a casualty rate of 1 in 26 still higher than any other service. Therefore the media was ordered to curtail the number of ships sank. The loss of ships along the Atlantic Coast was staggering.

The high loss of our ships, to carry the war materials to our troops on three fronts, brought forth drastic measures. Various shipping companies were ordered to pull old wooden hulled barges from their graveyard pastures and put them back into service. These relics were well beyond their 25 year life span with most having been built around 1890 to 1920. Maintenance was limited as they were only expected to be needed for a short time. Not the case. Some served beyond the duration of the war.

The conditions on the barges were very primitive. Most seamen tended to steer away from the barges because of these conditions. They were without running water and electricity. They were heated by a single coal stove and illuminated by kerosene lamps. They had no toilet facilities. They leaked very badly and when loaded with their cargo, they required the bilges to be pumped 27/7 or until unloaded.

Since the younger and more able-bodied seamen preferred the large more modern ships, these barges were more or less left to others less fortunate to crew. Some elderly seamen came back to the sea and brought their families to serve as the remainder of the crew. This brought forth a resurge in a tradition in use since the beginning of this nation, barge families. Women who were refused shipping on the larger vessels came aboard as crew also. Some of these seamen were without the credentials now required to prove services aboard the vessels. The worked alongside those with credentials and were paid the same wages with taxes withheld. They performed the same work on the same vessel and were exposed to the same threats from the enemy as the certified seamen were. Yet, they cannot prove service without the proper documents other seamen were provided or they were directly denied those same documents because of their age, gender or disability. Today we call this discrimination.

We have a bill in the US House, HR 1288, "WW II Merchant Mariners Service Act" that has 117 cosponsors and led by North Carolina Representatives G. K. Butterfield, Walter Jones and Mike McIntyre, and Jeff Fortenberry of Nebraska. The remaining Representatives from North Carolina have come aboard as cosponsors to make this state unanimous. Yet, not a single Senator has stood up and offered a companion bill in the Senate. One senator says he has to hear from his constituents who served on these vessels before he will support. That same senator states the laws do not require changing for something that has no support. This same state has support from 100% of its counties and all of the US Representatives. Also, there never has been any legislation to help those women and school children or those that were physically handicapped who have always been denied their proper recognition. That senator never even addressed this issue. How can this be? That unless we can come up with constituents who will come forward and request this type of service there is no need for legislation?? Waiting for the bill to clear the House is not an option as most bills (96%) never get out.

We are now asking for anyone who served on those barges and tugs or anyone who knows of someone, perhaps some kin that served, to contact us so we can show our senators that they did indeed serve. The National Maritime Center has refused to provide any names citing the Privacy Act but we have discovered about 1100 seamen who served and about 100 of them have names usually associated with the female gender indicating they are probably women. We know they served but need help identifying them and provide sufficient data to support our claim so they can get their just due. The ages of those discovered range from 10 to 79. The average age of those that may still be with us would be about 90. Many have no knowledge that they are veterans. There may be less than 300 of these seamen left. We must locate those few that are still with us before they are consigned to oblivion and never given credit for their effort towards winning the war. We need help from all states to solve this American issue.

There is more info at a blog site (usmmv.blogspot.com) that gives more in-depth info and a petition can be provided for any state to ask for a Senate companion bill. Please contact J. Don Horton at 1 (252) 336-5553 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting FREE 1 (252) 336-5553 end_of_the_skype_highlighting of [email protected] if you wish to help. 

 The captain of an Italian luxury liner which ran aground in January is taking ship owner Costa Crociere to court for firing him and is demanding his job back, Italy's Repubblica newspaper said.

Francesco Schettino, who is being investigated for causing the shipwreck which claimed 32 lives and abandoning the Costa Concordia before everyone had been evacuated, was fired by Costa at the end of July, the report said, AFP reports.

"Costa Crociere confirms that it has concluded the disciplinary procedure against Schettino following the Costa Concordia shipwreck, ordering his dismissal,'' the company, Europe's biggest cruise operator, told Italian media.

The captain, who expects to find out next week whether he will face trial along with eight others for his role in the tragedy, has claimed his actions saved lives and insists Costa reinstate him and hand over back pay.
 

Schettino's lawyer, Bruno Leporatti, was not available for comment.

A pre-trial hearing in the Tuscan town of Grosseto on Monday will establish whether prosecutors have a case against Schettino, who is accused of performing a risky "salute'' manoeuvre close to Giglio island where the ship hit rocks.
Five other crew members and three Costa executives are also being investigated, including Roberto Ferrarini, Costa's fleet crisis coordinator, who was in regular contact with Schettino on the night of the tragedy.

The captain is under house arrest in his home town of Meta di Sorrento, near Naples, but is expected to request permission to attend the closed-door hearing, where experts will present results of analysis of black box data.