When I was a child, I lived in a city beside the Atlantic Ocean. It seemed very mysterious and incredibly harsh environment.
Years later, when I worked in a fishing village called Tabusintac, one summer I learned that most East Coast fishermen do not know how to swim. My friend Billy used to say, "If you ever go down to the sea, you don't want to prolong the inevitable!" It was a hard life going to sea, but it seemed to Billy that there was no other life so fine and free. I wonder if that's what the modern seafarers think? Just the other week we heard from the senior port chaplain, Rev. Peter Smyth, that life on the transport ships can, and still is, very dangerous.
Torturous sea conditions, long voyages, loneliness and piracy are but a few of the perils that await seafarers these days.
Peter reminded us there are a group of dedicated chaplains who visit and meet the spiritual needs of those who travel on these vessels. Their "mission" was envisioned in the 1830s and still today their reference is from the Book of Revelation, "Then I saw another angel flying in midair, and he had the eternal gospel to proclaim to those who live on the earth - to every nation, tribe, language and people." (14:6) Located in over 200 ports around the world, these missions called "Flying Angels" are active and essential for the ministry to those on the sea. So, when you drive by, and see a ship, say a prayer for the seafarers and be a flying angel.
