Cuban Marxists and Christians meet

Cuban Marxists and Christians meet

SANTIAGO — Leaders of the Cuban Communist Party and some 50 leaders and lay persons from Protestant Churches in the eastern province of Santiago de Cuba met on April 30 under the slogan, "For hope and unity".

The gathering was part of a dialogue that started two years ago between Cuban Christians and Marxists, and was co-chaired by the region's party first secretary, Esteban Lazo, and the Reverend Orestes Gonzalez, president of the Cuban Ecumenical Council.

Speaking with the press, Gonzalez said church and state relations are improving with each passing day, and new forms of cooperation are being explored by both sides.

Meanwhile, the US State Department denied Cuban Methodist Bishop Joel Ajo a visa to visit the United States. Ajo was scheduled to attend the Methodist Church's International Bishops' Conference, which opened on April 30 in Lexington, Kentucky. On previous occasions, the State Department has denied visas to Cuban personalities in the arts, sciences and other fields.
[From Radio Havana/Pegasus.]

From GLW issue 55