Cuba - New Hope

Since the collapse of the communist bloc in Eastern Europe the Cuban people have been living in what is known as the "periodo especial." Fidel Castro harangues his fellow-citizens with slogans like "socialismo o muerte" (socialism or death). Death has already been the lot of many of them. Hundreds have died in prison, others from starvation, or from the breakdown of health-care services.

Cuban friends in Mayari have repeatedly told us what their life before the revolution was like. It is hardly imaginable today that the town of Mayari was once a thriving small trading center with many shops and even supermarkets, in which one could - assuming one did not belong to the poorer classes - buy practically everything produced in the USA. A good deal is no doubt idealized in retrospect, yet the present reality is frightening. in the whole town one will look in vain for a single grocery store.

Food coupons do exist for all Cubans, but frequently they receive their daily bread ration in the form of a tiny loaf of bread. Even basic foodstuffs such as rice or black beans are not received by the people in the officially prescribed quantities. After standing in line for hours in the sweltering heat they are sometimes lucky enough to obtain a couple of eggs or, even more seldom, some ground meat.

To head off mounting disaffection among its citizens, the State has for several years allowed the possession of US dollars. Now Cubans too can finally make purchases in the stores that had previously been reserved for foreigners. In the provincial capital of Holgufn there exist shops of this kind where one can buy with US dollars just about everything the heart desires, not only foodstuffs, rum and articles of person hygiene, but also television sets and video recorders. There no longer seems to be a shortage, although many Cubans have long stopped working. The harvest is often poor; sugar no longer finds a market abroad. The domestic economic system has disintegrated completely. Even medicine can no longer be produced, because the basic ingredients are lacking.

However independent Fidel Castro still wants to be, he is now dependent on all the things that are coming from abroad, from countries that circumvent the US embargo. The country's own currency, the Cuban peso, is worthless. Occasionally one can still buy something with pesos from small private farmers. Since the majority of people only earn Cuban pesos, a twoclass society has once again come into being, which seemed at one time to have become a thing of the past. Some Cubans do earn something in US dollars if they are lucky enough to work in a hotel or in a factory whose co-owners are foreigners. This situation sometimes leads to the absurdity of a skilled engineer or doctor preferring to work as a taxi driver than practice his profession. A Cuban salary corresponds to only a few US dollars, but only with dollars can one survive. Cuban family members who live in the USA are now permitted to send money to Cuba. But what help is that to people who have no relatives in the USA!

Divine Word Missionaries work in the island as the bearers of hope. They experience, together with their parishioners, the anxieties and cares of everyday life. Ten years ago a few children started coming to church. With the children the communities began to pray and sing. The aim was to enable them to experience some light and warmth in a hopeless environment in which everything was regulated by the State: childcare and kindergartens, socialist propaganda in the schools, access to higher education. No Christian could be a party member, and that in turn brought many disadvantages. A young woman from Mayari, who was and still is active in parish work, was denied the chance to continue her studies and her job in a bank has also long ended. Others, on account of their faith, were languishing in prison, received no papers to enable them to emigrate abroad and continue to this day to eke out their existence as best they can; they are permanently blacklisted, without any hope of finding a job. And despite all this, they have not renounced their faith and continue to declare themselves Christians.

The development of the SVD-run parishes is astonishing. Today church services are well attended, even by adults. Parish councils have been formed. Caritas groups are supporting the poorer members of the parish community. infant baptisms and church weddings are still not the order of the day, but efforts are being made to form discussion groups and to train catechists. After so many years of atheism everything needs its time. Religious feeling is nonetheless gaining ground among the people. Hundreds of faithful accompanied Cuba's national patroness, Our Lady of "El Cobre," during her procession through the parishes and communities of the Divine Word Missionaries in November 1997. This pilgrimage served to prepare for the papal visit. Parishioners visited the sick with the prayer intentions of the Holy Father to give them some comfort and hope in an apparently hopeless situation. The SVD missionaries and (since two years ago) also the Holy Spirit Missionary Sisters have found a place in the hearts of the people.

The papal visit of January 21-25, 1998 undoubtedly was a turning-point in the life of Catholics. It took them out of the Cuban isolation and placed them in the spotlight of the world media. Thousands attended the papal functions in the big cities. The Divine Word Missionaries traveled with their parishioners for hours aboard a truck to attend the papal Mass in Santiago de Cuba. In spite of exhaustion, hunger and stifling heat, those hours spent on the road were unforgettable.

Perhaps the visit of John Paul II was a big media event aimed at bolstering the person of Fidel Castro, whose rule over Cuba is no longer uncontested. But undoubtedly this visit was also essential for practicing Catholics. People in Cuba would like to get over their fears; perhaps the Pope may have been able to help them to do so. Many perhaps picked up their ears when the Pope spoke about the values of Christianity. Only with time will one be able to tell whether a transformation has become possible. Only the future will show whether the Cubans were only seeking comfort and support or whether they are truly on the road to becoming professing Christians.