People of the Sea
Cruise ship visiting
Spring sees the start of the cruise season in Great Britain with ships capable of carrying up to 3000 passengers calling at British ports. AOS chaplains are onhand to offer pastoral care to the crews.
Cruise ship Queen Mary 2 in |
In addition to the seafarers who handle the ships, thousands of people work onboard cruise ships as stewards, chambermaids, kitchen staff, hairdressers, entertainers and in many other roles in the hospitality sector. A large proportion of hospitality staff come from the Philippines, India and Indonesia. The growth in the cruise industry means that many more women now earn a living at sea. It is a career choice which means separation from family and community, often for months at a time.
AOS chaplains who visit cruise ships report that working conditions are generally good, without the hard physical labour and sense of isolation sometimes found on merchant vessels. Often there is a vibrant sense of community. However some staff join with unrealistic ideas about cruise work and experience homesickness or relationship problems. Work can be highly pressured and the environment cramped and lacking in privacy. One chaplain reports hearing of kitchen staff having to chop onions in their own cabins.
Gaining access to cruise ships for pastoral visits is not easy. Security is a serious concern. Permission to go onboard must be requested in advance from the cruise lines' head offices. Some lines refuse to allow any welfare visitors onto their ships. But there are others who recognise the benefits to the crew of good pastoral care. After all, it is an industry maxim that the only safe ship is a happy ship.
Southampton
Southampton has long been considered the principle cruise ship port in the UK. At the start of the 2008 cruise season, there was considerable media coverage as Southampton welcomed the three "Queens of the Seas", the Queen Mary 2, Queen Elizabeth 2, and Queen Victoria, flagships of the Cunard line. Witnessing the spectacle was AOS port chaplain Fr Jack Padua who said
The scene evoked images of awesome beauty, I feel awe and a profound sense of wonder that the seas can be so vast and yet support the passengers and crew onboard the Queens. This evokes a kind of gratitude, a feeling of joyous amazement that the AOS is part of it all, however minuscule.
Fr Jack Padua |
The QE2 has just over 1000 crew of whom some 400 are Filipino. Fr Jack, originally from the Philippines himself, arranges to say Mass onboard for the crew whenever possible. However the unpredictable nature of port movements can mean last minute cancellations. But Fr Jack finds other ways of reaching out to cruise ship crews. As companies arrange shuttle buses to take crew into the town centre, Fr Jack waits at the bus stop to distribute information about the ecumenical seafarers' centre.
Many members of cruise ship crews come to the seafarers' centre to take advantage of wifi and other communications facilities. The centre is a safe and welcoming environment where there is always a listening ear for those that need it. Mass and other pastoral services can be arranged on request.
The three "Queens" in Southampton |
Harwich
Sr Marian Davey |
AOS port chaplain to the Haven ports Sr Marian Davey and her ecumenical colleague Geoff Moore of Mission to Seafarers, work together to bring pastoral care to cruise ship crews. During the 2007 season, they managed to visit 53 of the 54 cruise ships which put into Harwich. They are hoping to do as well in 2008.
Harwich is a point of embarkation. Turnaround times are short and the crew exceptionally busy as they prepare to welcome new passengers onboard. There is no seafarers' centre but a small room next to the dock offers four phonelines. Sr Marian hopes to increase this to eight this year. The AOS team undertakes practical services for the crew such as shopping. But even under such pressure of time, the human aspect of pastoral care is never neglected.
Sr Marian is supported by several local parish groups which supply clothing and faith articles such as rosaries. These are especially appreciated by Christians from South East Asia. Offering these items is a way of breaking the ice, encouraging individuals to identify themselves and their faith. Once when Sr Marian arranged for local priest Fr Michael Hazel to say Mass onboard, she asked for a jug of water from the kitchen. Fr Michael blessed it for crew members to keep in their cabins in small bottles donated by supporters. Sr Marian describes this as
keeping spiritually connected through the everydayness of life and the everydayness of God