Search results for: Cardinal Jaime Ortega

The Papal Mantle and The Red Mass – Reflections on the Pope’s Visit to Cuba / Yoani Sanchez

The miter leans slightly with the rhythm of the ritual, leaving his back exposed to the stone face of José Martí. On the table of the Mass, the chalice rests and reflects from its golden surface a relief of Che Guevara mounted on the facade of the Ministry of the Interior. Benedict XVI officiates mass … Continue reading “The Papal Mantle and The Red Mass – Reflections on the Pope’s Visit to Cuba / Yoani Sanchez”

Detention of Antonio Rodiles: Guilty of the Free "Estado de Sats" / Ángel Santiesteban

When the funeral cortege left the chapel in Cerro with the body of the political leader Oswaldo Payá, having barely advanced a few yards, it was stopped for some twenty minutes. Something happened at the beginning of the caravan. Several people got out of the car to find out what; we feared the worse although … Continue reading “Detention of Antonio Rodiles: Guilty of the Free "Estado de Sats" / Ángel Santiesteban”

The Path Depends on Ourselves / Pablo Pacheco Avila

The most important month of the calendar for me is July.  Firstly, it is when my only son was born and second, it was the month that I left Cuba. Life, without one choosing, imposes change on us.  Many times, these changes are too rough to handle, like crosses hanging over our backs, but human … Continue reading “The Path Depends on Ourselves / Pablo Pacheco Avila”

Payá Yes, Bishops No / Orlando Luis Pardo Lazo

World: Death on the island The death of Oswaldo Paya in Cuba has impacted the dissidence and sowed suspicion. This is the story and tribute from a Cuban writer and photographer from the ranks of the opposition. By Orlando Luis Pardo Lazo, from Havana 26/07/2012 Oswaldo Payá Sardiñas (1952-2012) has died like they kill the … Continue reading “Payá Yes, Bishops No / Orlando Luis Pardo Lazo”

Pope Benedict Didn’t Look Behind the Scenes / Yoaxis Marcheco Suárez

In Cuba there is the habit of arranging or accommodating things so as to keep up appearances, while the reality and the truth remains behind the curtain. So it usually happens in businesses, offices, agencies and ministries. Lying is so natural and inventing figures and adulterating statistics so common, that we can now say that … Continue reading “Pope Benedict Didn’t Look Behind the Scenes / Yoaxis Marcheco Suárez”

Requiem for Oswaldo Payá / Rebeca Monzo

Yesterday, around for in the afternoon, the coffin with the body of Oswaldo Payá arrived at the Chapel of the Savior of the World Parish, on Peñón street in the municipality of Cerro, after having completed the formalities of forensic medicine. The old 19th century church, recently restores, was literally packed. Some of those attending … Continue reading “Requiem for Oswaldo Payá / Rebeca Monzo”

Oswaldo Payá on the Altar of the Nation / Ángel Santiesteban

Oswaldo Payá has died and left us, this man who with his “Varela Project” taught my generation and Cuba that freedom is possible. We were very young then and our idea was to shout liberty through literary works, which, from our naivete, we thought was the most direct path to democracy, and that this was … Continue reading “Oswaldo Payá on the Altar of the Nation / Ángel Santiesteban”

Rosa María Payá Honors Her Father Oswaldo Payá: “We do not seek revenge, but we thirst for the truth” / Yoani Sánchez

About five hundred people accompanied the body of Oswaldo Payá to his final resting place in the Colon Cemetery. Family members, activists, Ladies in White, foreign correspondents and diplomats based on the island gathered at eleven in the morning. Dozens of dissidents traveled from the central and eastern provinces to the capital in Havana to … Continue reading “Rosa María Payá Honors Her Father Oswaldo Payá: “We do not seek revenge, but we thirst for the truth” / Yoani Sánchez”

Car and Bag / Pedro Argüelles Morán

After I read and reread the editorial in the latest edition of the journal Lay Space, the publication of the Archdiocese Lay Council of Havana, entitled: “Commitment to Truth,” it left a nasty taste in my mouth, because the editorial echoed the same accusations — against the peaceful internal Cuban opposition — as Castro’s totalitarian … Continue reading “Car and Bag / Pedro Argüelles Morán”

THE PRICE OF RECOVERING CELEBRATIONS / Mario Barroso

In my previous post, “Recovered Celebrations,” I alluded to the concessions that the Cuban regime has granted to the Catholic church in regards to Christmas and Good Friday. Although the latter has been recognized and adopted by Catholics, it also serves as a way for many Christians throughout the world to remember Christ’s suffering on … Continue reading “THE PRICE OF RECOVERING CELEBRATIONS / Mario Barroso”

Ladies in Black, An Ignored Antecedent / Dimas Castellano

In 1915, the wives of the members of the Independent Party of Color managed something the Ladies in White have been denied in the 21st century. Article originally published in Diario de Cuba. Marking the 100th anniversary of the crime committed against black Cubans in 1912, data and facts previously relegated to history have come … Continue reading “Ladies in Black, An Ignored Antecedent / Dimas Castellano”

Apocryphal Editorial From Granma / Reinaldo Escobar

In response to the Editorial in the May 2012 issue of the Cuban Catholic church’s journal Lay Space, group of journalists from the newspaper Granma created, as a joke, this apocryphal editorial, supposedly in response to the official text from the lay Catholics. This is only a joke, that former colleagues sent me, but I … Continue reading “Apocryphal Editorial From Granma / Reinaldo Escobar”

Response to Catholic Church’s Editorial in Lay Space: “Commitment to the Truth” / Estado de Sats

By Alexis Jardines and Antonio Rodiles The most recent editorial in the Cuban Catholic Church’s journal Lay Space (Espacio Laical) put on the table for discussion, once again, several critical points regarding the course that should be taken in the Cuban transition. First, we have to say that we find it most interesting that the … Continue reading “Response to Catholic Church’s Editorial in Lay Space: “Commitment to the Truth” / Estado de Sats”

Another Pope, Another Cuba, Another Church / Mario Barroso

The scenario is different. The visitor also. When the Polish Pope, John Paul II, Karol Wojtyla, visited Cuba in 1998 he found Monsignor Pedro Claro Meurice Estiu as archbishop in Santiago de Cuba, and in him, the loudest Cuban voice rose among those who had such a possibility. The Pope’s “Let Cuba open itself to … Continue reading “Another Pope, Another Cuba, Another Church / Mario Barroso”

Writing What my Conscience Dictates (II and Final) / Pablo Pacheco

I arrived at the Matanzas prison known as ‘Aguica’ on April 29th.  I was kept there in solitary confinement for 17 months.  The Head of Penitentiaries applied a special regiment on us: family visits were only allowed every 3 months and could only last 2 hours, they only allowed 2 relatives and their underage children, … Continue reading “Writing What my Conscience Dictates (II and Final) / Pablo Pacheco”