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Themes Response to the Gospel THE BAD CHOICE It was midnight. The moon was behind the clouds. The sails of the San Jago were full and taut in the driving wind. The salty spray slapped the face of the Pilot. The sea air filled his lungs as he stared into the darkness. The San Jago was the admiral (flagship) that left Portugal in May of 1585. After it rounded the Cape of Good Hope it sailed toward Mozambique on the south east coast of Africa.. Earlier that evening the Pilot decided that they were beyond the dangerous coral reefs. The Shoals of India were large areas of clear coral in black, white and green colors. It was an extremely dangerous area because clear coral is very hard to see. The Master and the Chief Boatswain wanted to wait until morning, but the Pilot was in charge and he commanded the Master to hoist the sails. The first moment of tragedy always takes forever. The crunching and screeching hung in the air like the echo of a scream. The lurching and rocking of the ship gave evidence that they were not beyond the Shoals of India. The ship rammed into the sharp coral and was split in two. The Pilot's error in judgment endangered the lives of the five hundred people aboard. Crying, yelling and screaming mingled with prayers for help. The coral cut the ship in two. The keel and two orlops (decks) were stopped by the base of the reef. The upper part was driven further and finally stuck in the coral. The force of the impact also broke the mast. The Admiral, whose name was Fernando de Mendoza, the Master, the Pilot and ten others retrieved a small life boat. They promised those left behind that they would look for a dry place on the reef on which to make rafts from the wood of the broken ship. That little lifeboat never came back. Despair dampened any shred of hope as the remaining people searched the waves for the return of the life boat. Grimoaldo, an Italian, saw that another larger lifeboat was being freed from between the orlops by the crashing waves. Ninety people climbed into that life boat and it pushed away into the night. Others tried to hang on but were brutally disabled and left to drown in the blackness. The Pilot's mistake resulted in death to over 440 people that night. The pride of the Portuguese sailing fleet was split in two and left in the midst of the sea. Both life boats from that big ship made it to the mainland but never again would there be another San Jago. Do not make a serious mistake like the Pilot. He should have known better. You have heard the message of salvation many times and you know the details. The Lord Jesus died on the cross for sinners. It is up to you to accept the Savior. "This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners" (1 Timothy 1:15).
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Peter Orasuk
