EFE (via 14ymedio), Havana, 17 December 2023 — Faith, health and a better country are the requests of many of the Cuban devotees of San Lázaro who are arriving this Sunday, after a pilgrimage that in some cases started the day before in the rain, at the sanctuary of El Rincón on the outskirts of Havana.
The road that leads to the temple, a place of worship for the Cuban patron saint of miracles, is less traveled than in previous years due to inclement weather and adverse forecasts. The difficulties in the daily lives of Cubans after three years of serious economic crisis lead them to continue the pilgrimage to the saint on his day.
The rain does not prevent people like Regla Mercedes from going “to fulfill” their promise. “I asked him for health and to take into account the Cuban people for the things we are going through,” this 52-year-old librarian told EFE while she carries a medium-sized version of San Lázaro.
The rain does not prevent people like Regla Mercedes from going “to fulfill” their promise. “I asked him for health and to take into account the Cuban people for the things we are going through”
On her way to the sanctuary, this lady regrets that “such a beautiful and human country is like this; it makes me want to cry,” in reference to the economic crisis that hits the most humble Cubans every day, who, like her, cling to their faith to “endure.”
There is a small influx of pilgrims who on foot, knees and even crawling down the street reach the temple that stands on the grounds of an old leper house.
However, the faithful who decide to take the path and fulfill their promises fill the streets dressed in purple, the color that represents this saint and also the “orisha” Babalú Aye, the Afro-Cuban deity with which San Lázaro is identified.
This is how Dariel Alejandro Ortega is dressed, wearing brown and purple clothes, carrying a basket with a very small San Lázaro, and smoking what is left of a cigar.
“I come to ask for health, but also an improvement because everything is a mess,” he explains to EFE, while asking to be “collaborated” with some money.
“I have a lot of faith in him. He is a miraculous saint and that’s what Cuba needs now: a miracle,” says the 40-year-old man.
“I have a lot of faith in him. He is a miraculous saint and that’s what Cuba needs now: a miracle”
At his side is Osmany Fuentes with his wife while he carries his little girl in his arms. He also says that he will continue to attend these pilgrimages every year to “thank the saint for keeping my family together, despite the problems.”
As is traditional, there are also those who travel several miles dragging huge stones tied to their feet, and others who walk kneeling regardless of the dirt in the road.
The pilgrimage concludes inside the sanctuary where those who finish the trip barefoot light white and purple candles and thank the miraculous saint with cigars and flowers. On Sunday, first thing in the morning, there is a Christian celebration to receive all the pilgrims.
They say that some have lost consciousness due to so much sacrifice and that they can no longer reach the altar.
Translated by Regina Anavy
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