Christian ‘book ship’ docks on Cork's Kennedy Quay

Cork’s Kennedy Quay is this weekend hosting the MV Logos Hope, an ocean liner run by Christian missionaries and billed as the world’s largest floating book fair.

A remodelled car and passenger ferry, the Logos Hope is run by German non-profit GBA (Good Books for All) Ships on behalf of Operation Mobilisation, an evangelical Christian organisation.

The bookshop lives up to its billing, and fills a cavernous space, although those seeking purely secular fare are likely to be somewhat underwhelmed by the more worldly books on offer.

The huge space opens with a small, non-religious selection of books, offering excellent value in children’s picture books and out-of-copyright classics, many selling for €2 and €3, and a very limited smattering of contemporary novels.

However, that initial section quickly gives way to increasingly more overtly Christian books, broken by selections of books on science, cookery, and travel.

The more obviously religious offerings include treatises on marriage, family, parenting, devotion, and Christian studies, as well as children’s picture books of Bible stories.

Selection of Bibles

There is a truly astonishing selection of Bibles, which seems to span approximately a fifth of the floor space, with thousands of different versions and variations of the Good Book on offer.

A picture trail at the back of the bookshop allows the visitor to walk through an extremely lengthy audio-visual diorama depicting the parable of the prodigal son, and it illuminates his fall from grace with illustrations entitled Casino and Girls.

A spokesperson told The Echo that the ship’s mission is “to share knowledge, help, and hope with people all over the world”.

They added that theirs is a non-denominational Christian organisation and it works with local partners such as NGOs, churches, and communities.

The spokesperson was unable to say which groups it works with in Cork.

Crewed by volunteers

The ship is crewed entirely by a rotating roster of volunteers, with a crew of around 350 faith-based workers who commit to either short-term or long-term placements on board.

The Logos Hope was constructed in 1973 and first named the Gustav Vasa. Originally built as a ferry, it operated North Atlantic routes before a 1983 change of ownership saw it renamed the Norröna, and it shuttled between the Faroe Islands and Denmark.

In 2004, GBA Ships bought the Norröna and renovated it as its new “book ship”, renaming it Logos Hope.

The word Logos is Greek, and is traditionally translated as “word, thought, principle, or speech”.

Since the Logos first set sail in its current guise in 2007, it has visited more than 150 countries and received in the region of 49m visitors on board.

The ship is visiting Cork until Monday, and is open to the public from 10am until 10pm Friday and Saturday, and 1pm to 10pm on Sunday.

It is due to set sail for Belfast on Monday.