Adobe Stock
CV NEWS FEED // The Catholic Church in Hawaii launched the Hawaii Apostleship of the Sea Ministry last month, which deploys a ship to bring the Eucharist to seafarers who are otherwise unable to attend Mass and receive the sacraments.
Many of the fishermen are foreign contract workers from the Philippines, Vietnam, or Indonesia, and the majority are Catholic, the Hawaii Catholic Herald reported in November. Those who work out at sea can spend anywhere from months to years without access to any of the sacraments.
“They cannot come to church; therefore, we, the church, must go to them,” Deacon Marlowe Sabater wrote in the Hawaii Catholic Herald.
Deacon Sabater, who is assisting with the ministry, reported for the outlet again in December that the ship made its first voyage Dec. 14 and brought Mass to 13 fishermen. Fr. Manny Hewe, pastor of the Co-Cathedral of St. Theresa in Honolulu, celebrated the Mass under the open night sky, lit by a full moon.
The ship stopped again Dec. 21 when Fr. Anthony Tran, parochial vicar at the co-cathedral, celebrated Mass for several other fishermen. He was also able to provide the Sacrament of Reconciliation for the seafarers.
The ministry also sponsors fellowship nights and brings food and clothing from the Hawaii Foodbank, the Hawaii Catholic Herald reported in November. The December events featured potlucks in addition to the liturgies and sacraments.
Deacon Sabater added that the ministry also “embodies the meaning of the Jubilee Year, where Christ leads the seafarers toward spiritual stability by providing them with opportunities to worship as one community — as one church, often symbolized by a boat.”
