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This article opens a window on the world of chaplains supporting seafarers, which has largely been neglected by the literature. Shipping happens in ports, which are often far away from urban centres. It is thus removed from everyday experience making seafarers an invisible population and, with them, the chaplains who assist them. The article proposes to view chaplains' service to seafarers as a form of 'embodied' hospitality. It is an offer of a relationship as well as of assistance. The angle of hospitality sheds light on the dynamics of the relationships between seafarers and chaplains, the tensions and opportunities for exchange. The ethic of chaplains' hospitality that emerges from the observation and interviews is one of 'compassion' requiring openness to and acceptance of the other. Compassion, here, is the recognition of the dignity of the other based on a shared humanity.

Post-Christian Britain is characterised by a rejection of doctrinal and morally conservative religion. This does not reflect solely the experience of those with 'no religion' but can be found in the narratives of 'new Quakers,' those who have become members or attenders in the past three years. New Quakers contrast Quaker sense of acceptance, freedom from theological ideas and freedom to be a spiritual seeker with conservative Christian churches, which have often been experienced as judgmental and doctrinal. Quaker liberal morality also affords inclusivity to those who have felt marginalised, such as disabled and LGBT people. The way new Quakers articulate their identity shines a light on the contemporary transformation of religious forms and society. Their emphasis on individual spirituality and rejection of theological doctrine reflect the profound cultural shift towards a post-Christian Britain, which is religiously diverse, more open to individual spiritual seeking and more liberal morally and socially. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]