Finding Religion On a Cruise

It comes as no surprise that in or near most ports and destination cities, you can find cathedrals or ancient temples, including in stops primarily known for their sunny beaches like Mazatlán and Cabo San Lucas.

That's not to say that you will necessarily choose to go there rather than riding a wobbly banana towed behind a speed boat or chasing whales in a water taxi.

However, did you realize that aboard cruise ships, there are usually church services on Sundays?

On our recent Ruby Princess cruise to Cabo, we attended the non-denominational service in the Explorer's Lounge.

Often, these services are held in the little chapel used for romantic and simple weddings at sea, but apparently James, the officer who served as our minister, regularly draws a good crowd on Sundays, one that didn't fill the 700 seats but enough to overflow a small venue.

We had previously learned that several passengers, usually snowbirds, had signed up for back-to-back-to-back cruises, leveraging their long flights.  Like my ballroom dancing friends Brion and Rita, they apparently cruise for the onboard experience more than to see new destinations.

Undoubtedly noticing a few repeat attendees from the previous Sunday, James began by saying he is not a professional minister, and that every week he delivers the same sermon.

But it's a good one.  The service was interspersed with congregational singing of inspiring old favorites like "Morning Has Broken" and "Holy, Holy, Holy."

I must confess I like this type of song much better than some unknown dirge with archaic meaning.

As with most cruise ship church services, this one was short and sweet, lasting a little over a half hour.  Without the usual local announcements and offertory segments of your neighborhood church service, it nonetheless seems very complete.

The message was simple but one that can never be repeated too frequently.

Thoroughly appreciate the wonders you see when on vacation with gratitude, and share that joy you find when you return home.

As James pointed out, less than 1% of the world's population can afford to travel for pleasure.

I like to say that historically, we live in a very unique time and place.  Being free citizens of a free country --- in our case the United States but many of our fellow travelers on this voyage were from Canada plus a few from assorted other nations --- allows us to experience more wonder and beauty than the wealthiest royalty of prior centuries.

Thank God!