Havana (Reuters) – the visit of Pope Benedict XVI to Cuba this week marked another milestone in the cautious efforts of the Catholic Church to increase its role in the Communist island’s Government.
The Cardinal of Havana, Jaime Ortega, called it “a spring of the faith”.
Although it is not clear if the three days spent the Pope in Cuba will change something, or how it could do so, analysts agree that any notion of “Cuban”Spring”in terms of political change is still away.
Still, the papal visit seems to have cemented the growing influence of the Church in Cuban society and politics, a change potentially positive in the balance of forces in the Socialist country.
“The Catholic Church in Cuba has taken a greater role.” “For the first time there is a direct dialogue with the Government, which has to do with national politics,” said Philip Peters, expert in Cuba and Vice President of the Lexington Institute, who was present at the mass on Wednesday in Havana.
“The Church is pressing for greater and deeper economic reforms.” “And also for a political opening,” he added.
The Church hopes that the journey of the Pope will help mainly to revive faith in Cuba, where the religion was stigmatised for decades after the 1959 Revolution.
Nevertheless, the Church, although very diminished, he survived and remains the largest and most influential outside of government institution a fact that Cuban leaders seem more willing to recognize now, and perhaps, to reward.
The Pope used the trip to deliver in his discussions with President Ra̼l Castro a list of demands as the restitution of the holiday of good Friday Рfor the remainder barely a week Рand a greater access to the media and schools and universities.
In fact, the Church has taken in recent years some steps in the field of education offering after-school in a handful of churches, as well as the Spanish Catholic order the Piarist college classes.
Last year, the Government even allowed the Church open a program of Master of business administration part-time at a seminar in Havana, with the help of professors from the Catholic University of Spain.
The home of warmth
Benedict XVI’s visit takes place 14 years after the historic trip of John Paul II, which many Cubans see as the beginning of rapprochement between Church and Government.
While Fidel Castro warmly received the Polish Pope in 1998, his brother and President Raúl Castro has been even more vigilant, participating in the two masses officiated Benedict XVI seated in the first row.
Critics, especially the cubano-estadounidenses exiles in Miami’s hardline and some activists of human rights in Cuba, consider improvements in the Church‑State as an ill-fated marriage of convenience.
Also accusing Catholic leaders of not doing enough to defend civil liberties dissident groups on the island, regarded by the Government as mercenaries in the pay of United States.
But the Church responds that its relationship with the Government is an inescapable acceptance of the Cuban political reality.
“The Church will not reject outright a political system.” “The Church always work within the limits of a system to find ways to improve human life and dignity”, said Father Juan Molina, director of Latin American Affairs of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.
But the Church has not set aside the democratic opening.
“while improving relations are of interest both for the Catholic Church and the Cuban Government, also is clear that the Church would like to see a political reform on the island,” said Geoff Thale, analyst for the Washington Office on Latin America, a liberal group from the capital of United States.
“May not see human right issue changes in Cuba immediately” as result of the Pope’s visit, said Thale, adding that it has “strengthened the ability of the Church to open spaces for dialogue and debate (which) is essential to build a climate conducive to human rights”.
The need of “authentic”, essential freedoms to build a society “renewed and open” repeated several times in his public speeches in Cuba, Holy Father.
Areas of agreement
Raúl Castro seemed to have no problems with that and in his final comments before the departure of the Pope remarked that he found “many and deep” matches with the message of the Bishop of Rome, though, “naturally”, not on all the issues.
For Cuba, the visit offers much-needed legitimacy in his international search for acceptance, even more so as his main ally commercial and political, Hugo Chávez, struggles against an uncertain diagnosis cancer before the hard-fought elections in October in oil nation.
The need for economic changes that raise the standard of living on the island is a key area of overlap between the Church and the Cuban Executive.
Since that he took the reins of Government to convalescent brother almost six years ago, Raul Castro has introduced timid but more ambitious economic reforms to loosen the rigid Soviet-style centralized model, including the reduction of the bulging State payroll and the opening of some private small business scale.
Recognizing that these reforms are a difficult fit for Cubans, accustomed to decades of total economic and social direction, the Pope offered the “constructive” support of the Church to support “a spirit of dialogue to avoid traumas”.
The message of renewal and reconciliation rang out on Cubans who seek change.
“the country needs economic reforms and a physical reconstruction, but there is as well a hard moral reconstruction work.” “Christianity can help us”, said Oscar Espinosa Chepe, a moderate voice among the Cuban dissident movement who was imprisoned in 2003 for “crimes against the State” and freed 18 months later for health reasons.
Some Cubans are still skeptical about the role of the Church.
“The Church needs no greater weight in society.” I believe that society works well as it is. “We have (free) health and education,” said hope Gonzalez, a retired 66-year-old Professor, who came to the mass of the pontiff in the capital.
“We are ready for reconciliation, but I do not think that the Miami exiles want to,” he added.
But the message of the Pope is permeating among the Cuban exiles that although dreaming changes more rapid and profound, also recognize the obstacles.
“Not is changed from a totalitarian society to an open society without a lot of pain and a lot of sacrifices”, said Carlos Saladrigas, a Cuban businessman who resides in Miami, who traveled to the island for the masses of his Holiness.
“what the Church is advising us is that we need to do what we can to facilitate an easier change to all Cubans”, he added.
In the words of the Archbishop of Miami, Thomas Wenski, who led a pilgrimage of hundreds of cubano-estadounidenses to Cuba week: “the interest of the Holy Father and the Church here in Cuba is that, whatever the type of transition to occur, there is a soft landing”.
/Por David Adams /
