In Odesa, the Regional Conference of the International Christian Maritime Association has ended

In Odesa on April 8-11, the regional conference of the International Christian Maritime Association (ICMA) was held. Participants were maritime chaplains of four Christian associations, who serve in the ports of the Mediterranean and Black Seas and the Near East, as well as invited representatives of trade unions, state and community organizations that work in the maritime area.

UGCC participants included the conference organizer, Rev. Oleksandr Smerchynsky from Odesa and Rev. Mykhaylo Milchakovsky from Kerch.

The conference opened with an ecumenical prayer, headed by Bishops Vasyk (Ivasiuk), UGCC Odesa-Crimea Exarch and Bronislaw (Bernatsky) from the Roman Catholic Church.  The conference dealt with many current issues of the maritime world (piracy and adequate responses to it, economic crisis, urgency of upholding the rights of sailors, readiness to adopt new rules (ML 2006, etc.) and ways of responding to these by the Christian maritime missions.  A separate topic was an agreement of norms for a closer ecumenical collaboration in the spreading of the Good News in the maritime world.

Towards the end of the conference, as traditionally done, the election of a regional coordinator for the next five years, took place.  UGCC chaplain, Rev. Oleksandr Smerchynsky was selected.

Information provided by Rev. Constantin Penteley