Blog Entry

Rebuild What You Have, Because You Can’t Build Anything New

The Church in Cuba has not been able to build new churches in 50 years. This is a problem since the population has grown and many people live in areas where there are no churches for miles around. The hurricane damaged many of the small chapels. With help from the Collection for the Church in Latin America, chapels were repaired [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LirVqKgoDNY] and in some cases rebuilt [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lz5ARRpDy_Q] so that people can gather and celebrate mass. People are creative in Cuba! This group of sisters converted their garage into a meeting place where mass can be celebrated and CCD classes can take place [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=emzATp1rH9A]. The Head of the U.S. Interests Section, Jonathan Farrar even acted as a bridge so that the Collection could support those Churches that needed most help. [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=inNOaW_jVBk]

The storms destroyed over half a million homes as well as crops and food supplies leaving millions of people scrambling for shelter and sustenance. Complicating the recovery effort was the difficulty in getting help to Cuba from the United States. Through the Collection for the Church in Latin America, administered by this office, over $850,000 was sent to Cuban church officials to help with the clean up.