APOSTOLATE OF THE SEA. — A complex of Catholic initiatives for the religious, moral, and social assistance of seafarers throughout the world. The nature, purpose, and organization of this work arise from the special condition of seafaring people, who, because of the exceptional nature of their work, are often for long periods far from the practices of Christian life, the domestic hearth, and the joys of civil life, left to themselves and exposed to many dangers. The number of Catholic seafarers is estimated at approximately 800,000, that is, more than half of all seafarers; to these must be added male and female shipboard employees and other categories of navigators, fishermen, and lighthouse personnel.
I. History
Before the “Reformation” of the sixteenth century, religious and professional assistance for the sailors of the coastal countries of Europe, which supplied the world with most of its navigators, was guaranteed by every kind of confraternity and association. Following the industrial revolution of the nineteenth century and the impetus given to maritime commerce, a greater number of men became engaged in this profession. Many Protestant philanthropic associations then arose, particularly through English, Swedish, Norwegian, and American initiative, to assist them; these founded clubs and appointed chaplains in various ports, including those of predominantly Catholic countries such as Belgium, France, Portugal, Italy, Ireland, and Spain.On the Catholic side, the first attempts to assist sailors who shared the faith were made toward the end of the nineteenth century, chiefly through the efforts of the Society of S. Vincenzo de' Paoli and the Jesuit fathers, who, within the Apostolate of Prayer, established a special section for sailors called A. d. m. The first beginnings of the present international movement were in Glasgow, when, in 1920, at a meeting of zealots, Peter Anson, a convert from Anglicanism, proposed that, alongside religious action, work should be initiated for the moral and social assistance of seafarers. This idea was embodied in statutes submitted in 1922 by the Archbishop of Glasgow, mons. MacIntosh, President of the “Apostleship of the sea,” to Pope Pius XI, and approved by him. In that year there were no more than twelve seafarers’ assistance centers in the world, distributed among six countries and not connected with one another. In approving the A. d. m., the Pope charged it to extend ever further throughout the maritime regions of both hemispheres. Gradually, with the help of the sailors themselves, the A. d. m. became known in the various ports, and several assistance committees were formed. In 1924 the Capuchins of Rotterdam published the first newspaper for seafarers, the Recht door Zee, which, thanks to its articles written in various languages, became the principal means of international propaganda. Later, following the example of this publication, the Apostolatus Maris Magazine appeared. All the centers, old and new, joined the Glasgow Council, which, thus strengthened, held the first international Congress of the A. d. m. at Port-en-Bessin (Normandy) in 1927.
At the second international Congress, held in London in 1931 under the presidency of Cardinal Bourne, the A.M.I.C. (Apostolatus Maria internationale Concilium) was established. This international Council, composed of representatives of the various nations and of all the organizations within the Catholic Church concerned with the spiritual, moral, and social welfare of seafarers, with its headquarters, secretariat, and quarterly periodical (Quarterly) in London, became the work’s center of coordination and direction.
At the Congresses held successively until the outbreak of the war, in Hamburg (1934), Sables d'Olonne (1936), Antwerp
(1937), and Glasgow (1938), the definitive text of the A.M.I.C. constitutions was established; the autonomy of each unit of the A. d. m., placed under diocesan control while maintaining international coordination and cooperation, was clarified; guidelines were created for Catholic action among seafarers; the question of female collaboration in A. d. m. centers was resolved, with its essential nature being recognized by common agreement; and a confraternity of seafarers was established under the protection of Stella Maris.
In addition to these common international directives, the various countries have given the A. d. m. their own national character. France has developed a highly organized apostolate among fishermen and among merchant and naval seamen on the basis of Catholic Action. In Spain, particular development was given to spiritual retreats for sailors and to courses in Christian doctrine. In Holland, family circles have been fostered. In Italy, a special assistance service was established for women working on the major passenger lines, a method subsequently adopted by other countries. In the Anglo-Saxon countries—the United States, Canada, England, Australia, and New Zealand—clubs with fully equipped assistance facilities have been established. In Belgium, numerous libraries supply departing ships with books, which are exchanged upon their return. In Germany, religious and liturgical instruction had been promoted.
The fully equipped A. d. m. clubs now number (1948) about seventy, since the German ones and some French ones destroyed during the war have not yet been reconstituted; they are located in Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Canada, France, India, England, Italy, Ireland, New Zealand, Portugal, Holland, Spain, the United States, South Africa, Uruguay, and the West Indies. The A. d. m. service centers, with lay promoters and chaplains, currently number 260 and carry out their work not only in the centers mentioned above but also in various mission areas, including Africa and Scandinavia; they are rapidly increasing and, as soon as possible, are being transformed into clubs. A group of priests devotes itself to work in the major ports of the various countries. Three hundred other priests actively collaborate as honorary chaplains, together with several thousand lay co-workers. After the war, the A. d. m. received new impetus from His Holiness Pius XII, who placed the work under the supreme direction of the S. Congregation concistoriale. The maritime world thus now has its center in Rome.
II. The A. d. m. in Italy. — In Italy, the A. d. m. began in Genoa in 1925 through the efforts of Father Lucchetti S. I., chaplain to the garaventini, later assisted by the Rev. Chute and Miss Buckley. The work, however, came fully into being only in 1932, when Cardinal Minoretti entrusted the A. d. m. to a special Conference of S. Vincenzo de' Paoli, Stella Maris, which, through chaplains and laypeople, assisted seafarers in two separate centers for naval and merchant seamen on Via del Molo, founded by Count Giuliano Gambaro.
The flourishing work arranges visits aboard ships and to patients in hospitals, especially on Sundays and feast days; provides for the celebration of Holy Mass for sailors, with an appropriate brief sermon; organizes entertainments at the center for their wholesome recreation; oversees catechetical instruction, brief spiritual retreats, and the distribution of sound Catholic literature, especially the sailor’s manual; and also organizes major religious manifestations aboard ships and in the city. The attractive and welcoming center has a chapel, reading, games, and music rooms, as well as other rooms for administration and related offices.
All the various initiatives are directed by the chaplain, while the various activities are carried out through the two sections of Stella Maris, for older and younger members. The former oversees policy, administration, and the collection of members’ dues to finance the work; the latter conducts visits and entertainments, apostolic activity, and membership enrollment. A committee of patronesses, members, and supporters sustains the entire work through voluntary contributions.
During the wartime period, the A. d. m. of Genova carried out continuous, systematic work among seafarers to overcome religious absenteeism and indifference; it provided religious assistance to warships in port and to all departing cargo vessels. In the postwar period, in addition to its customary activities, it supplied free meals to many seafarers awaiting embarkation. In 1947 alone, the registered seafarers numbered 7,300; annual attendance at the headquarters was 82,000; the ships visited numbered 1,650; the sick visited and assisted, 125; and the free meals served, 75,000.
To promote the spread of the A. d. m. in Italy—which in fact exists and operates with all its initiatives only in Genova, and partially in Savona, Venezia, Bari, Spezia, Napoli, and Chioggia—there is a national consultative body under the authority of the S. Congregation of the Council, whose president is mons. M. Mimmi, archbishop of Bari, and whose director general is mons. G. Siri, archbishop of Genova. Four lay consultors are members of this body. Its headquarters are in Genova.
Arnaldo M. Lana