Pope Francis has decided to send — through the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development — a financial contribution to all the families of the crew members of the M/V Gulf Livestock 1 ship (39 Filipinos, 2 Australians, and 2 New Zealanders) which sank in the Sea of Japan close to the Amami Oshima Island last September 2, after having experienced the failure of the main engine while typhoon Maysak was raging. The ship was navigating from New Zealand’s Napier port to China’s Jingtang port, Tangshan.
The financial aid, in collaboration with the Apostolic Nunciature and the Stella Maris <Centers> of the Philippines, Australia, and New Zealand, will be delivered personally to the families of the missing and to two survivors, together with a small personal gift of Pope Francis, to express his closeness and solidarity.
From the first days of the misfortune, this contribution has been accompanied by the spiritual, psychological, and personalized support offered to the Filipino families, on the part of a team of professionals, chaplains, and Sisters of the Nation’s Stella Maris Centers. The support, which in consideration of the COVID-19 restrictions has been implemented through the use of social media and a digital platform, will continue for some months. May this endeavor, entrusted to Mary, Stella Maris, Protectress of seafarers, infuse courage and strength in all family members to face the future without uncertainties but with trust and serenity.
[Original text: Italian] [ZENIT’s translation by Virginia M. Forrester]
