2012-04-04 13:01:22

Analysis: impact of Papal trip to Cuba


Pope Benedict XVI’S three day visit to Cuba has generated much speculation regarding what sort of impact the journey may have on the formerly atheist nation. Commentators have remarked that one of the first signs that Pope Benedict’s visit was a success came with the announcement by Cuban authorities that they would grant the Pope’s request that Good Friday be made a national holiday.

For some insight into the impact of the papal visit to the island nation, we spoke to Bishop Luis del Castillo Estrada, S.J., the retired bishop of Melo, Uruguay who serves as a parish priest in Cuba.

He told Vatican Radio it is important to understand that the Pope’s visit was pastoral in nature though it did have wider impact.

Tens of thousands of Cubans – what bishop Castillo Estrada calls “rivers” of people – celebrated the 400th Jubilee of the finding of the statue of Our Lady of Charity of El Cobre as it was carried through towns, cities, and rural areas for veneration by Christians and non.

He says as many people are coming into the Catholic Church in Cuba, there is an important challenge to be met: the lack of prepared catechists. And, Bishop Estrada notes an additional need to re-catechise older generations of Catholics who left the Church or were dissuaded from practicing their faith over past decades.

Bishop del Castillo Estrada points out that one of the most important social challenges facing Cuba today is that it must import 80% of all food products – an unsustainable situation that is generating a growing movement inside the country calling for change.

Another dimension of the Pope’s visit, he continues, should be seen in the context of an improving relationship between the Church and different religious convictions, and the government.

When studying relations between Church and State, says Bishop Estrada, one should take into account an important speech given by Raoul Castro to the National Assembly on August 1, 2011.
In this report by Tracey McClure, Bishop Estrada explains why:
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