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Cuba to Allow Construction of First New Catholic Church in 55 Years
Does the path to ending the embargo go through the Catholic Church?
http://latindispatch.com/2014/10/28/cuba-to-allow-construction-of-first-new-catholic-church-in-55-years/
Cuba’s government has sanctioned the construction of the first Catholic church to be built in the country in 55 years, the latest development in a continued trend of growing acceptance of religion on the island.
The church, to be funded by members of the U.S.-based exile community in Tampa, Florida, will be constructed in Sandino, a town located in the province of Piñar del Rio on the island’s western coast.
The church’s construction indicates a growing connection between the Cuban diaspora and their homeland — a connection that could shift long-deadlocked U.S. policy. The government’s agreement to the project fits a broader trend of a slow softening toward religion, which was relegated to the background of Cuban society by the 1959 revolution.
Since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, Cuba’s policies toward religion have evolved. Pope John Paul II’s 1998 visit to the island was the first papal visit since the revolution. In anticipation of that visit, leader Fidel Castro declared Christmas a national holiday for the first time since 1959.
~ snip ~
The church, to be funded by members of the U.S.-based exile community in Tampa, Florida, will be constructed in Sandino, a town located in the province of Piñar del Rio on the island’s western coast.
The church’s construction indicates a growing connection between the Cuban diaspora and their homeland — a connection that could shift long-deadlocked U.S. policy. The government’s agreement to the project fits a broader trend of a slow softening toward religion, which was relegated to the background of Cuban society by the 1959 revolution.
Since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, Cuba’s policies toward religion have evolved. Pope John Paul II’s 1998 visit to the island was the first papal visit since the revolution. In anticipation of that visit, leader Fidel Castro declared Christmas a national holiday for the first time since 1959.
~ snip ~