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Cuba: The Church Lives.
Vast crowds of up to 5,000 gathered in Santa Clara city last week as Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone opened the structure which includes a statue of the late Pope standing under a shelter next to a bell tower.

The memorial, which was part-funded by the Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need, is the first monument of Pope John Paul II to be built on public land.


('Open the doors to Christ - Pope John Paul IIs prophetic call from his1998 Cuba visit is engraved on the wall of the monument)

Speaking to Aid to the Church in Need, Bishop Arturo González Amador said: "The celebrations to open the monument send out a message that the Church is truly alive."

He added: "This is the first historical monument of its kind. When we saw the crowds beginning to come, we just could not believe it."

The ceremony, on 23rd February, which formed part of the celebrations marking the 10th anniversary of Pope John Paul IIs visit to Cuba, coincided with the resignation of Fidel Castro and the emergence of his brother, Raúl, as his successor.

At the ceremony in Santa Clara, Cardinal Bertone said: "The monument is a sign that to this day Pope John Paul IIs pilgrimage continues to enlighten both the Church and the Cubans who yearn for the highest spiritual values."

The monument in Santa Clara is close to where the former Pope celebrated his first Mass on the opening leg of his Cuba visit.

Engraved on a wall beside the monument are the words: 'Open the doors to Christ, Pope John Paul IIs slogan during his Cuba visit.

The monument features a bell taken from the ruins of an old church - one of many across the island which were seized by Fidel Castros regime after the 1959 Revolution.

The Government largely refuses to return the confiscated buildings.

But about 15 miles from Santa Clara in Calabazar de Sagua stands one such church which was eventually given back to the diocese almost 20 years after the first request was made to the regime.

The church is being rebuilt, and ACN has been sending funds for the purpose since 2004.

Officially, the Catholic Church in Cuba is barred from building new churches and accessing the media or education.

But last week Cuban state-controlled television broadcast live a Mass celebrated in Havana cathedral square by Cardinal Bertone.

Meanwhile on 26th February, Granma, Cubas state-controlled national newspaper, published a statement by the Catholic bishops urging Government action on the countrys problems.

According to the Catholic Churchs Statistical Year Book, Catholics in Cuba make up nearly 60 percent of the islands 11 million population, up from just over 40 percent in 1990. But comparatively few Catholics are regular church-goers.

Most years, ACN gives nearly $1.5 million to help the Church in Cuba, concentrating on help for transport for clergy and lay people working in very poor areas, seminarians and novices, church building work and support for poor priests (Mass offerings).

(members4.boardhost.com)

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