Another reason to keep sailing HAL

[HALrunner]

Is the principal reason for a Catholic priest on board mainly for the benefit of the HAL crew members who are mostly Filipino?

 

I have heard the reason HAL specifically has a catholic priest onboard is for the Filipino crew, secondarily the passengers also benefit from this. Maybe Himself can confirm or correct me, but I think the priest on board celebrates mass daily for crew. I think it would be difficult to recruit and/or retain catholic crew members if they could not practice their faith for 9-10 months.

 

We are very grateful for this accommodation. Regardless of one's religious affiliation, I hope most on the thread would agree it is very considerate of HAL to provide this for the hard working crew that is away from their culture (87% Catholic, per Wiki) and family for so long.

[avian777]

Is the principal reason for a Catholic priest on board mainly for the benefit of the HAL crew members who are mostly Filipino?

Yes, that is my understanding.

 

I have heard the reason HAL specifically has a catholic priest onboard is for the Filipino crew, secondarily the passengers also benefit from this. Maybe Himself can confirm or correct me, but I think the priest on board celebrates mass daily for crew. I think it would be difficult to recruit and/or retain catholic crew members if they could not practice their faith for 9-10 months.

You are correct.

The Apostleship of the Seas of the USA (AOS) is a Catholic charitable organization that provides many religious and social services to seafarers of all religions. AOS operates the Cruise Ship Priest Program under which AOS finds, schedules and provides priests on HAL cruises. Although I cannot speak for HAL, I feel reasonably confident that HAL would make similar accommodations for any other religion willing and able to provide clergy for HAL cruises in the same manner as AOS does and has done for more than 100 years.

For more background info on AOS, you may find these links helpful:

http://www.aos-usa.org/store/pg/7-About-Us.aspx

https://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/priests-of-the-sea-faith-is-always-on-board-where-there-are-cruise-ship-cha

https://marystar.org/maritime-ministryapostleship-of-the-sea

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apostleship_of_the_Sea

When visiting the AOS web site, be sure to click the "Donate Today" button in the upper right hand corner.

Smooth sailing +++

[sail7seas]

I'\ll state theo bvious thathere is some personalrresponsibility to take care of one's own rreligious oservation needs. Cruising is not for everyone. If one cannnot be promised there will n be clegfy of their preference, maybe they should either plan an itineraery that will have them in port looking or ah ouse of worship on appropriate days and not put the whol oblifgagtion on thre cruise line to gratify thei indcividual wishes.. It should not fully rest with the tthe c cruis line. If soomeone must have a service, they need to decicde if taking that cruise is in their best interest.

 

If someone wants a Rabai on passover, thehy mightnot so well to cruise that week. etc etc etc

Edited February 9, 2017 by sail7seas

[AV8rix]

If someone wants a Rabai on passover, thehy mightnot so well to cruise that week. etc etc etc

 

I've never cruised on Pesach, but suspect that there is a rabbi on board. I have been on Yom Kippur and Rash Hashanah twice and both times there was a rabbi...each of whom brought his/her own shofars, which caused startled reactions from folks in the hallways passing by the venue :).

 

Oneg shabbat, however, has always been conducted by the passengers themselves except on those cruises during the High Holy Days when there was a rabbi aboard anyway...at least since 2010, which is when I started sailing on HAL.

 

Now, having said all that, I'll be interested in what happens starting this year, when so many cutbacks are implemented. I'll be sad if no rabbi is available if I'm sailing again during the High Holy Days.

[navybankerteacher]

While it does seem selective, there is a certain common-sense rationale for HAL to have Catholic priests on most sailings. Aside from the many Filipino crew who are overwhelmingly Catholic, a lot of HAL's passengers ( the "nearly dead" of the proverbial "newly wed and nearly dead" typical HAL passengers) who are Catholic are very interested in being able to attend weekly, if not daily, mass. Certainly, Catholics in the US are more likely to see regular attendance at services as mandatory than are other main stream Christian denominations -- and the "nearly dead" among them are much more likely to see such attendance as important.

[avian777]

I'\ll state theo bvious thathere is some personalrresponsibility to take care of one's own rreligious oservation needs. Cruising is not for everyone. If one cannnot be promised there will n be clegfy of their preference, maybe they should either plan an itineraery that will have them in port looking or ah ouse of worship on appropriate days and not put the whol oblifgagtion on thre cruise line to gratify thei indcividual wishes.. It should not fully rest with the tthe c cruis line. If soomeone must have a service, they need to decicde if taking that cruise is in their best interest.

 

If someone wants a Rabai on passover, thehy mightnot so well to cruise that week. etc etc etc

Good points, all.

Additionally it should be noted that Catholics (in the US, Canada & throughout most of Europe) have provided for their own religious education needs by operating (and paying for) Catholic schools, while at the same time supporting public education by paying taxes at the same rates as non-Catholics do. So, if non-Catholics want to have their own clergy on board, they certainly have the right to establish their own AOS-like operation, much the same as Catholics have done with education.

As a Catholic, I'd gladly welcome the day when all religions were represented on board HAL cruises, as I believe that could make for a better (nicer) class of cruisers. JMO/YMMV

In any event, all cruisers are welcome to attend Catholic services on board, although none will be pressured to do so.

Smooth sailing +++

[Tennessee Titan]

I woInterdenominarional Really?

 

I wonder jjust how interdenominatrional one could acc urately call a it when there is no Rabbbi for Sabbath service, no Rrb abi fo Passover, f or Yom kippur, eeRosh Hashanah?

 

What about having an Imam? Do Thy ever? for Ramadan ?terdeonominaltrrional was like at the recent Inauguration whereer there were clergy form mots of the major faiths.

I have sailed on Passover, Rosh Hashanah, and Yom Kippur,. and there has ALWAYS been a Rabbi on board. I have heard the a rabbi is usually aboard

for Hannukah. I have heard NOTHING about any cutback which would change this policy. Also, I would like to comment on crew religion. It is my understanding that most of the crew ( cabin and dining stewards) are Muslim from Indonesia. Appropriate religious services and dietary accomodations are provided for them.....

[tiff2]

It would seem to me, as a Jewish person, that cruising on the major Jewish holidays such as Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur and Passover ones expectations for clergy presence should be more realistic. If you are so very sincerely observant, you belong at your synagogue or temple, supporting this institution and participating in appropriate services conducted by a Rabbi. You should be in your own community if celebrating these holidays is of such great importance. Cruising, and expecting to celebrate these holidays in any meaningful way is, in my opinion, not compatible.

[bUU]

Perhaps, but the expectations regarding routine weekly religious practice are not signally different between devout Catholics and devout Jews.