Tales of a Seasick Doctor : Life Aboard a Mercy Ship

The doctor on the Anastasis, a hospital ship, recounts the refurbishing of the vessal and its missionary voyages to Guatemala, Mexico, Ghana, and Fiji

Australian doctor Christine Aroney-Sine has lived much of her professional life on board the M/V Anastasis, one of the Mercy Ships sponsored by Youth With A Mission International. Mercy Ships bring volunteer teams of medical professionals (along with enthusiastic evangelists) to destitute people all over the world. Signing on in the early days of the program, Dr. Aroney-Sine chronicles the determination, physical labor and commitment that brought the Anastasis out of the graveyard of an Athens harbor and through into its re-birth as a full-fledged hospital ship. As the adventurous volunteers travel the world, Aroney-Sine expresses her conviction that ministry to the poor and needy is an integral part of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Conversely, encountering different value systems and the joyful faith of many in the face of adversity benefits those who serve. Through many difficult and challenging experiences, including the chronic seasickness of her title, this ship's doctor found her own life greatly changed and enriched, and hers is a tale well worth reading.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Dr. Aroney-Sine had been in general practice in Christchurch, New Zealand, for five years when, in 1979, she heard about the Christian mercy ship Anastasis. She soon joined the medical vessel's crew, and she describes the medical and religious growth of herself and the rest of the Anastasis team during the following 12 years. The crew did much of the refurbishing that turned a grimy, rusting ship into a clean, functional one on which the medical team performed surgical and dental procedures that brought psychological and work opportunities to many in Guatemala, Mexico, Ghana, and Fiji. Aroney-Sine served as crew physician, construction supervisor, outreach coordinator, fund-raiser, and volunteer recruiter. She has a delightful sense of humor and the mature ability to see herself and others clearly, nor does her uplifting, often deeply moving account shy away from disagreeable and monotonous times. William Beatty