Cuba prepares for Christmas with early gift from Obama

[Zorro]

Cubans prepared Wednesday to celebrate Christmas, a resurgent holiday banned for 38 years by the communist government, with an early gift from US President Barack Obama: a historic rapprochement.

Across the island, houses, restaurants, supermarkets, hotels and state-run stores have put up Christmas decorations, embracing a holiday eliminated by Fidel Castro soon after he came to power in the Cuban Revolution in 1959 and declared Cuba an atheist state.

"El Comandante" restored Christmas in 1998 after a landmark visit by pope John Paul II.

After an initially hesitant revival, the Christmas spirit is once again booming on the island.

http://news.yahoo.com/cuba-prepares-christmas-early-gift-obama-173737467.html

[flamingdem]

1. Christmas decorations have been used in Havana since the mid 90s

Been there, seen it. Before the Pope's visit by the way.

But it does make a nice narrative to say Christmas is back in communist Cuba!

[Judi Lynn]

2. Ha! That's a hot one, isn't it? They're out for stories, even if they have to make them up!

I have heard that, and had seen photos long ago of Cuban Christians, as in Cuban holy-rollers, whooping it up in church years before then. It made me a little ill realizing the dumbest, and most primitive of US fundamentalists had already made inroads in Cuba. Creepy!

After the Pope made his official visit, even Fidel Castro made his official statement that Christmas would be observed in Cuba, all "formal" and all.

Christmas to be observed in Cuba
December 15, 1997
Web posted at: 4:36 a.m. EST (0936 GMT)

HAVANA (CNN) -- Cuban President Fidel Castro has declared Christmas a national holiday this year -- an unprecedented gesture of goodwill in honor of Pope John Paul II's upcoming visit to the communist nation.

"The pope is our guest. ... We will do everything to the hilt to ensure that the visit will be historic," Castro said during a three-hour speech broadcast Sunday on national television.

The Cuban president said he would present the proposal to those in charge of organizing next month's papal visit. The proposal is sure to be accepted because the organizing committee is made up of Castro appointees.

In Sunday's speech, Castro pledged to make every effort to ensure that the pope's visit -- the first papal visit in Cuban history -- is a successful one. Cuba is the only Spanish-speaking country in Latin America the pope has not already visited since ascending to the papacy in 1978.

~ snip ~
Family parties, decorations, and religious services have become more common at Christmas since the Cuban government lifted restrictions on religion in 1991. Prior to that, since 1962, Cuba was officially atheist, and Christmas observances aroused suspicions from party officials.

More:
http://www.cnn.com/WORLD/9712/15/castro.christmas/

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So glad to see your post! Trolls have been trying to work the forum to resemble Free Republic, haven't they? Sheesh!

[flamingdem]

3. Good info about when it actually happened

It's possible, since I arrived to Cuba around that date I don't remember whether there was a year without xmas decorations. Scraggly trees were around that year though since I have one in a photo I'm sure!

Not so scraggly at the Hotel Nacional, they had a lovely one there in the lobby, if memory serves..

The evangelicals have made huge inroads into Cuba. They fulfill a need for sure because they help materially, some funds coming from US churches, now that's planning! I found it interesting that in Matanzas the church was fine with people practicing Santeria and attending their church. I asked about it and was told "es Cuba" lol. They just would prefer that people keep the Santeria necklaces under their clothing for services.