Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Havana (Fides Service) - “Missionary Christmas celebrated in all 11 Catholic dioceses in Cuba as a conclusion to the Missionary Year was a special blessing for many of our local families” says National Director of the Pontifical Mission Societies in Cuba Fr. Raúl Rodríguez. The Missionary Year 2005 with the slogan “Let us walk with Our Lady of Charity to share the Good News of the Gospel” was organised by the Church in Cuba in view of new evangelisation and to spread awareness that every Christian is called to be a missionary.
Fr Raul highlighted three important events of the Missionary Year: 1st National Mission Assembly held in Havana 24 to 28 May (see Fides 20 and 30 May 2005); 2nd National Holy Childhood Congress held in Camaguey, 29 to 31 July and Missionary Christmas to close the Year. Missionary Christmas initiatives included door to door visiting of families and distribution of holy pictures of the Infant Jesus. The 350,000 pictures, were provided by the Catholic aid organisation Aid to the Church in Need. “The people were moved to tears to receive the holy pictures, devotion to the Infant Jesus is deep lying among Cubans expressed gratitude to the Catholic community for this appreciated initiative” said Fr. Raúl -. In some parts of the country parish priests received letters of gratitude from Protestant pastors who said the initiative was most appropriate in Cuba where public Christmas festivities were banned and Christmas was taken off the state calendar from 1970 to 1997. It was only in view of the history making visit by John Paul II to Cuba, 21 to 25 January 1998 that the festivity was restored as a national holiday”. (RG) (Agenzia Fides 9/1/2006 - righe 22, parole 329)
