Ports have always been (and are still) very important MEETINGPLACES. Therefore the importance of SEAFARERS CENTRES. They are places where seamen can call on them for many things and where they find, more or less, "a home" far from their family..
In Antwerp, we find two sorts of Seafarers' centres :
the national and the international.
The national centres are concerned particularly for their own nationality.Those are the from the Scandinavian Churches : the Swedish, Finnish, Norwegian and the Danish.
The international centres are as follows :
1° -I.Z.A. (International Seamens' hous Antwerp) at the Falconrui, in management by the town of Antwerp.
2° -A.S.C. (Antwerp Seafarers' Centre) at the Italiėlie, better known by the name Stella Maris, in management by the Apostleship of the Sea with :
Apostolatus Maris , Roman Catholic.
B.IS.S. (British Int. Sailors' Society) Presbyterian.
D.S.M. (Deutsche Seemansmission) Lutheran.
M.T.S. (Missions to Seamen) Anglican.
Those are Seamenchurches from four different Christian denominations and three different languages, working together in their apostleship for Seamen. The ecumenical character was chosen to show that neither language, race or religion are of no importance. As human creatures, we must have interest for everybody who put in at the port and certainly it is more Evangelical to go as one Church to the non-Christians, than from four different Churches.
