Taiwan Church News
3467 Edition
October 8 – 14, 2018
Church Ministry
SFSC To Host ICMA World Conference 2019 And Its 50th Anniversary At Kaohsiung
Reported by Lin Wang-ting
PCT Seamen’s/Fishermen’s Service Center(SFSC) is elected to hold ICMA(International Christian Maritime Association) World Conference 2019 and its 50th anniversary at Kaohsiung from October 21 to 25, 2019. It is estimated that over 200 ICMA chaplains from over 125 countries and 450 seafarer centers will arrive at Kaohsiung to celebrate this remarkable ecumenical ministry after an half-century endeavor.
Founded in 1969 and registered in England and Wales as a Charity, charity number 1176633, ICMA is a famous not-for-profit Christian organization working ecumenically for the welfare of the seafarers.
PCT Seamen’s/Fishermen’s Service Center was once forced to leave ICMA in 1994, due to a political motion raised by Michael Chin(a Finland-Chinese, then acting as ICMA’s general secretary), but finally accepted once again as an official ICMA member in the annual conference at Berlin in 2011.
In contrast to most ICMA members, serving seafarers of merchant ship, cruise ship or ocean liner whose seafarers relatively are better treated in salary, working conditions and holiday, SCFC’s ministry is mainly focused on those seamen or fishermen whose daily utilities like clothes, boots and gloves have to rely on charity donations, according to a Taiwan Seamen Report by Mrs Wen Hsiu-chin(SCFC director) and Ms Lai Hui-jung(SCFC specialist) in ICMA World Conference 2018 at Malmö, Sweden.
At the conclusion of her report of SCFC’s ministry to ICMA World Conference 2018, Ms Lai addressed to the attendees that a question asked by a Tanzania seafarer to her: “Why everything you(SFSC) offered here is free?”. “Because we receive these things free from God’s love, we wish you to have His wonderful love in the same way!”, Ms Lai replied.
Translated by Peter Wolfe
