The 1959 revolution led by Fidel Castro installed an atheist, Communist government that sought to replace the Catholic Church as the guiding force in the lives of Cubans. But religion seems omnipresent in Cuba 65 years later.
The 1959 revolution led by Fidel Castro installed an atheist, Communist government that sought to replace the Catholic Church as the guiding force in the lives of Cuba ns. But religion seems to be everywhere in Cuba 65 years later. Buddhists, Catholics, Jews, Muslims and Afro- Cuba n Santeria practioners often gather to pray, sing and worship across the Communist-run island.
Some academics and religious leaders say more strides toward full religious freedom are needed, such as easing the process to build houses of worship, allowing access to state-owned media to spread their faith-based messages, and reestablishing private religious schools. But significant progress has been achieved; some call it a time of a Cuban religious revival.
“There’s a very unique religiosity,” he said. “In Cuba, it’s not uncommon that someone goes to meet a babalao in the morning and can visit a Pentecostal temple in the afternoon, and at night goes to Mass – and doesn’t see any type of conflict in its spirituality.”together on altars in homes, with the Virgin Mary sharing space with a ceramic Buddha and a warrior spirit from the Afro-Cuban faith.
Church-state relation began to warm three decades later when Castro met with dozens of evangelical leaders and representatives from the local Jewish community. In 1992, the government dropped its constitutional references to atheism. The first papal visit to the island in 1998 marked a turning point that led to government acceptance of some outdoor religious events and the celebration of Christmas outside churches for the first time in more than three decades.
The Catholic Church still wants to eventually be allowed to operate religious schools and broadcast on state-run television and radio. “We have a long way to go,” Suarez said. “They came in terrible conditions ... but in their hair and their humble clothes, they brought snail shells, collars and other parts of the essence of their religion,” said Gloria Esperanza Reyes, historian of the Yoruba Association.
“We, the young ones, we’re learning from the elders,” said Alena Ferro, a dancer and Yoruba faith devotee who often lights candles and flowers honoring her orishas at a home altar. As the sun set on a recent Friday, about 100 members of Beth Shalom gathered for the Sabbath to pray. Several later joined hands in a Israeli dance infused with Cuban rhythms.
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