On Sea Sunday, celebrated in 2025 on 13 July, churches all over the world come together to remember seafarers and pray for them, their families and those who support them.
Let us remember all those who work and live from the sea, among them sailors, fishermen, women and their families. Away from family and friends for many months at a time, working long hours and navigating some of the world’s most dangerous stretches of ocean, seafaring can be a tough, lonely and hazardous career. On this Day of Prayer for Seafarers, we pray especially for these hardworking men and women who are often forgotten.
Pause
Take a moment to still yourself. Take a deep breath and ask God for a renewed sense of presence with you in this moment.
Readings of the Day
Deuteronomy 30:10-14: “If only you would heed the voice of the LORD, your God, and keep his commandments and statutes.”
Psalm 69:14, 17, 30-31, 33-34, 36, 37: R. Turn to the Lord in your need, and you will live.
Colossians 1:15-20: For in him were created all things in heaven and on earth, the visible and the invisible.
Alleluia Alleluia! Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life; you have the words of everlasting life.
Luke 10:25-37:“You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your being, with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.”
Gospel Meditation
So, who is our neighbour? Our neighbour does not just mean someone who lives near us; it also means strangers we meet. And when seafarers arrive in a port, they are strangers in a foreign land. Their home can be thousands of miles away. They do not know the locals. Often, they do not speak the language. And they do not know how to do many of things that we take for granted where we live. Where can I find a shop to buy toiletries? How do I get there? How can I access the internet to contact my family? Where is the nearest church?
It is the stranger that Stella Maris port chaplains and volunteer ship visitors are there to help when they go on board a ship. Like the Good Samaritan in the Gospel, they are concerned for the welfare of those they meet.
Stella Maris chaplains help foreign seafarers with friendship and to find necessary healthcare, and they support them until they have recovered from injuries or illnesses. Chaplains also help to find dental care, and even mental health resources. The help Stella Maris chaplains give might include providing a mobile phone top-up, warm clothes in the winter, or arranging for seafarers to attend Mass or Confession or both. At other times, it might mean helping a seafarer resolve an issue with their employers over working conditions or pay.
The Gospel calls us all to help the stranger. Stella Maris chaplains and ship visitors do this every day in ports around the UK and the world.
Reflection from StellaMaris.co.uk
Prayers of Intercession
Let us ask God to protect all seafarers and fishers, who work hard on the perilous sea, to bring us so many of the goods that we rely on in our daily lives. We pray especially for those affected by conflicts around the world, particularly in the Red Sea, Ukraine and Israel and Palestine. LORD, HEAR US.
Let us pray for all those who feel abandoned, neglected or exploited, both in our own communities and among seafarers and fishers around the world. LORD, HEAR US.
Let us pray for Stella Maris and its mission to be the hands and feet of Christ, bringing love, kindness and compassion to all those who visit our ports and shores. LORD, HEAR US.
We pray for Pope Leo XIV and all who lead the Church: that, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, they may continue to guide and shepherd us along the right, just and true path of faith. LORD, HEAR US.
We pray for all who have died, especially members of our own family and community, and for all those lost at sea. LORD HEAR US.
May the grace of the Jubilee Year reawaken in us a yearning for the treasures of Heaven. May that same grace spread the joy and peace of our Redeemer throughout the earth. May the hope of the Jubilee inspire us, our parish community, and seafarers and fishers around the world. LORD HEAR US.
Prayers from StellaMaris.co.uk
Closing Karakia
Heavenly Father, we give thanks to you for your creation and all the beauty in this world. We thank you for the ocean, in its abundance, and for the people who toil on its surface. Without our brothers and sisters who are seafarers, we would not be able to enjoy all the blessings of this world. Enfold them in your fatherly love, guide their passage through storm, swell and darkness. May we always be mindful of our Global Family and be truly grateful for the sacrifices seafarers make each day.
Amen.
Prayer from the National Liturgy Office