Fremantlebiz - Paul's Letter from Australia

Sea Sunday at Fremantle - 2008

Yesterday was 'Sea Sunday'. At many ports around the world ancient and young mariners and their families gathered in churches to acknowledge all those who go down to the sea in ships, plus the many others involved in maritime activities. In Fremantle there was an afternoon service at St John's Anglican Church in the centre of town.

The church was built from local limestone during the latter 19th century. I've put a series of eight photos from yesterday on my Picasa site:

St John's Anglican Church - Fremantle

My wife and I attended the event to watch our Sea Scout son participate in the 'Colour Party.' This was a solemn procession of banners and flags (colours) with some form of historic maritime connection. They followed the Sanctuary Party (clergy) into the church though the main entrance, then were temporarily placed near the altar for the duration of the service. Afterwards the Colour Party took them outside again, followed by the Rector and his attendants.

Many Anglican Churches have an quasi official role in Australia as the ritual stewards of such commemorations. The Anglican Cathedral in Perth and a church at Guildford a few kilometres to the east of Perth have a strong ceremonial affiliation with military colours.

At yesterday's event there was plenty of music, supplied by the church organist and the scarlet jacketed Victoria Park Brass Band. I enjoyed adding my voice to a variety of stirring nautical hymns, but in my opinion the most beautiful performance was a solo rendition of The Lord's Prayer by a male baritone and former seafarer Derek Sloan. He was pretty sensational.

A lot of maritime-associated Fremantle citizens contributed to the service by reading a paragraph from the Bible. Amongst them was the Mayor Peter Tagliaferri. He opened up with Genesis 1:20-22. God said, "I command the ocean to be full of living creatures... So God made the giant sea monsters and all the living creatures that swim in the ocean..." I like Genesis.

One of the ancient mariners present was Jack Edwards, brother of heroic Australian wartime pilot Hugh Edwards, who is commemorated with a bronze statue located near the church.

Mr Edwards delivered an address about his own adventurous life in the Merchant Navy. He started out at the beginning of WW2 by signing on as a boy with a Norwegian tramp steamer at Fremantle. They dumped him in Ceylon because he'd messed an officer's uniform by throwing some slops into the wind.

Luckily he was able to sign on with an English ship. He had many close shaves on a variety of merchant vessels throughout WW2. He lamented that Australian governments had refused to effectively memorialise the Merchant Seaman of Australia who'd lost their lives while engaged in their essential wartime role. His view was later endorsed by the Rector on behalf of the Church.

Absent yesterday was the Labor Member for Fremantle Melissa Parke, who was parachuted into the 'safe seat' at the last Federal election. She's become the original invisible woman as far as the Fremantle electorate is concerned. She sent along an aide-de-camp.

I compiled a high-definition four-photo composite image of the northern side of St John's yesterday for Panoramio. I've long been interested in the honesty and beauty of hand crafted stone buildings and this one displays quite a bit of it. You can tell it's a composite panorama because my wife who was wearing a brown coat appears twice. Once in the centre and the other time with a group of Scouts at the right. Magic.

After the service we went to an enjoyable buffet tea at Fremantle's Flying Angel Club - this is an Anglican mission for visiting seamen. The present building opened in 1966, but there is a rich tradition of church-led missions for seafarers at Fremantle dating back into the nineteenth century. There are affiliated Flying Angel Clubs at ports throughout Australia.

© MMVIII Paul R. Weaver.

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Original still photographs are stored online in a cache at my Panoramio website or my Picasa site. Most of them have a brief description and a link back to a relevant essay. Images on Panoramio can usually be enlarged several times by clicking them.

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