Seaman's mission
Seemannsmission describes the predominantly Christian motivated care and pastoral care for seafarers . The term refers to both the individual building and the associated organization. Seafarers' missions mostly operate special leisure and social facilities for seafarers near the port, such as seaman's homes , clubs or seafarers lounges. They also visit the seafarers on their ships in the port, arrange contacts and offer help in emergency situations.
history
Seafaring missions began in England in the early 19th century . According to tradition, the founder of the first seamen's mission, the Anglican priest John Ashley , was asked by his son during a Sunday walk on the banks of the Bristol Channel how the seamen could go to church on Sundays.
The first missions were strongly inspired by the Awakening Movement and Inner Mission , which placed active charity for those in need at the center of their understanding of faith. At the same time, they responded to the special living conditions and needs of seafarers, who are often away from home for months and repeatedly call at different ports. In the course of advancing industrialization and the associated boom in maritime trade, the movement spread across the entire world around 1900, and since the 1920s there were more and more Catholic missions.
The world's largest players today are the Catholic network Stella Maris (also known as Apostolatus Maris or Apostleship of the Sea ) with over 300 stations in 60 countries, as well as the Anglican Mission to Seafarers , which operates in around 200 ports, including 120 in which they maintains its own sailors' clubs. The Protestant German Seamen's Mission currently operates 32 stations in Germany and abroad. Examples of foreign seaman's missions in Germany are the Nordic seaman's churches in Hamburg .
International Christian Maritime Association
The International Christian Maritime Association (ICMA) is an association of Christian aid organizations for seafarers founded in 1969. It includes almost 30 organizations which together operate around 450 stations in 125 countries. They look after seafarers on board and ashore regardless of their religious belief, nationality or ethnicity. ICMA is committed to improving the working conditions of seafarers and works with other organizations such as the International Maritime Organization (IMO), the International Labor Organization (ILO) and the International Transport Workers Federation (ITF).
Web links
- https://icma.as/ - ICMA website
- http://www.seemannsmission.org/ - website of the German Seemannsmission
Individual evidence
- ↑ About Us | AoS. Retrieved May 10, 2019 .