Pastor, labor advocate, seafarer, biker: Texas priest does it all

Published: 2008-07-01

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- Father Sinclair Oubre, like many priests, has multiple responsibilities. They include being pastor of a parish and administrator of a mission in the Diocese of Beaumont, Texas; running the Apostleship of the Sea office for the diocese and serving on the apostleship's national board; being Web site administrator of the Catholic Labor Network and sponsoring meetings in Washington in conjunction with the annual Catholic Social Ministry Gathering; and being on the board of directors of Interfaith Worker Justice. Now, what could a man like that do that would combine all of those interests and avocations? Would you believe working one month every year as a seafarer -- using his accumulated vacation time from priestly ministry to do so? Father Oubre, 50, first started working on boats as a seminary student during the summer to help pay for tuition. Now he does it to keep active his membership in the International Seafarers' Union, and as a change of pace from parish life. "When my watch (on the ship) is over with, I'm finished," said the priest, pastor of St. John the Evangelist Church in Port Arthur, Texas. "There's nobody coming to the door asking for the key to the hall."

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