The Cuban Church Asks Spanish Catholics for Help in the Face of Difficulties on the Island

A campaign is launched to collect donations to “support priests and the religious” EFE/14ymedio, Madrid, 5 September 2024 — The power cuts and the shortage of fuel, medicines and other basic goods hinder the work of the Catholic Church in Cuba, according to the bishop of Holguín, Emilio Aranguren, who this Thursday asked for help … Continue reading “The Cuban Church Asks Spanish Catholics for Help in the Face of Difficulties on the Island”

The Cuban Church Denounces at Least 50 Robberies in Catholic Temples Since March

Some 34 parishes and religious houses in the country have been affected by theft and vandalism 14ymedio, Havana, July 5, 2024 — In Cuba, at least 50 robberies have been recorded in 34 Catholic parishes and religious houses since March of last year, according to the Catholic news channel EWTN. The thieves, who often vandalize … Continue reading “The Cuban Church Denounces at Least 50 Robberies in Catholic Temples Since March”

Leandro Naun, a Priest in the Mountains of Santiago de Cuba

To many mothers “God seems deaf” because they don’t see a way out and they become desperate 14ymedio, Havana, 16 June 2024 — Leandro Naun, a Catholic priest, ministers to a handful of rural communities in Santiago de Cuba. With the end of the month fast approaching, word is spreading that delivery of the basic … Continue reading “Leandro Naun, a Priest in the Mountains of Santiago de Cuba”

Priest Alberto Reyes Rings the Bells of His Cuban Parish in Protest Against the Blackouts

The ringing broke out in the darkness of the small town of Esmeralda, with less than 30,000 inhabitants, in Camagüey 14ymedio, Havana, 18 May 2024 — The bells of the Esmeralda parish, in Camagüey, tolled this Friday during the blackout. The warning of the Catholic priest Alberto Reyes was fulfilled, who promised to protest with … Continue reading “Priest Alberto Reyes Rings the Bells of His Cuban Parish in Protest Against the Blackouts”

‘We Don’t Even Have Bread for Communion’ Says a Priest in Cuba

14ymedio, Natalia Lopez Moya, Havana, 3 November 2022 — The monastery of the Discalced Carmelite nuns of Saint Teresa in Havana produces most of the communion wafers, or “hosts,” consumed by the island’s Catholics. On Wednesday the nuns announced in an online statement that they would not be able to manufacture or sell any more … Continue reading “‘We Don’t Even Have Bread for Communion’ Says a Priest in Cuba”

July 11th (11J) Was a ‘Bright Day’ Three Cuban Priests Agree

14ymedio, Xavier Carbonell, Salamanca, 14 July 2022 — The oldest man in the cells wears a clerical shirt and a bandage on his head. Four stitches have been sewn over the wound. In the midst of the tumult of 11J in Camagüey, between the sweat and the cries for freedom, a hitman unloaded a bat … Continue reading “July 11th (11J) Was a ‘Bright Day’ Three Cuban Priests Agree”

Cuban Priest Alberto Reyes Will be in the Civic March Despite the Ban

14ymedio, Havana, 15 November 2021 — Camagüey priest Alberto Reyes, who has demonstrated on many occasions against the Cuban Government, has released a video in which he claims to have been warned that priests like him who participate in the Civic March for Change called by the Archipelago opposition collective will be arrested. “They have called … Continue reading “Cuban Priest Alberto Reyes Will be in the Civic March Despite the Ban”

‘We do not want to see the police beat their own people again,’ Say Cuban Priests

14ymedio, Havana, 10 November 2021 — “We do not want to see the police beat their own people again,” 15 Cuban Catholic priests say in a letter released this Wednesday, with less than a week remaining before for the Peaceful March for Change. “We do not want blood to be shed again,” or “to hear gunshots again,” insist the priests, “that is … Continue reading “‘We do not want to see the police beat their own people again,’ Say Cuban Priests”

“The Spring of a New Cuba Is Coming and It Is Unstoppable,” Says Cuban Priest

14ymedio, Havana, 28 February 2021 — Camagüey priest Alberto Reyes has once again issued harsh criticisms of the situation Cubans are currently experiencing. In a text published this Sunday on his Facebook account, the priest warns that “this people has been giving signs for a long time that it does not want continuity.” Reyes describes the Cuban … Continue reading ““The Spring of a New Cuba Is Coming and It Is Unstoppable,” Says Cuban Priest”

Cuban Priest Censures Leaders Who ‘Cling to Outdated Ideas, Already Obsolete’

14ymedio, Lorey Saman, Mexico, 26 December 2020 — The voices of Cuban priests have made themselves heard with great force in recent months. This December 24, as Christmas was being celebrated, Deacon Maikel Gómez, from the Parish of San Juan Bosco, in Havana, gave a homily in which he reflected on freedom within the Island. … Continue reading “Cuban Priest Censures Leaders Who ‘Cling to Outdated Ideas, Already Obsolete’”

The President of the Catholic Clergy Denounces the ‘Injustice’ of Dollarization

14ymedio, Havana, 7 November 2020 —  The Cuban Conference of the Clergy (Concur) points to the list of voices of the Catholic Church that have recently criticized the plight of the island. In a letter that circulated this Friday, its president and superior of the Daughters of Charity in Cuba, Sr. Nadieska Almeida Miguel, expresses her concern … Continue reading “The President of the Catholic Clergy Denounces the ‘Injustice’ of Dollarization”

Cuban Priests Are Tired of ‘Two Types of Dictatorships: The Ecclesiastical and the Governmental’

14ymedio, Olea Gallardo, Havana, 5 November 2020 — Fernando Heria, a priest of the Ermita de La Caridad, in Miami, spread a message on his social networks in which he expressed his solidarity with Father Alberto Reyes, parish priest of the church of San Jerónimo, in Esmeralda, Camagüey. On November 1 Father Reyes published  a text on his Facebook wall in which he … Continue reading “Cuban Priests Are Tired of ‘Two Types of Dictatorships: The Ecclesiastical and the Governmental’”

Cuban Communist Party Blocks Religious Procession Honoring Cuba’s Patron Saint

14ymedio, Havana, 1 September 2023 — On Thursday, Catholic priest Alberto Reyes accused the Communist Party of Esmeralda, a town in Camaguey province, of preventing a procession honoring the Virgin of Charity from taking place on the night of September 8. Without explanation, officials said the event must instead take place at 6:00 PM. “Under … Continue reading “Cuban Communist Party Blocks Religious Procession Honoring Cuba’s Patron Saint”

Cuba: ‘The Excessive Sentences for July 11th Protestors are an Injustice and They Must Be Reversed’

14ymedio, Reinaldo Escobar, Havana, 5 March 2022 — Since September 2019, Catholic priest Alberto Reyes Pías (born 1967) serves 10 towns in the municipality of Esmeralda, 120 kilometers from the provincial capital, Camagüey. Masses, baptisms, visiting the sick, and above all, listening to problems consumes part of his daily life. Furthermore, he is engaged in … Continue reading “Cuba: ‘The Excessive Sentences for July 11th Protestors are an Injustice and They Must Be Reversed’”

‘Calling People to Pray in Parks is a Pre-Criminal Activity,’ According to the Cuban Authorities

 State Security summoned priest Kenny Fernández for his call for peace in Venezuela 14ymedio, Havana, 12 August 2024 — The call to pray for peace in Venezuela made by Cuban priest Kenny Fernández Delgado on August 2nd set State Security in motion within a few hours. This weekend, seven days after an official summoned him … Continue reading “‘Calling People to Pray in Parks is a Pre-Criminal Activity,’ According to the Cuban Authorities”