This was the celebrations for the day of the Virgin of Charity of Cobre, Patroness of Cuba

This Sunday, from early hours in the morning, the events for the day of the Virgin of Charity of Cobre. Devotees, lay people and the people in general lit their candles in honor of the Patron Saint of Cuba, Oshún among the Yorubas.

The epicenter of the celebrations took place in the National Shrine of the Virgin, located in the eastern province of Santiago de Cuba, specifically, in the humble town that sits next to the oldest mine on the Island: El Cobre.

Images and videos of the pilgrimage - and subsequent mass - were shared on social networks by different attendees, who claimed that the Santiago temple had become “crowded.”

“A large number of pilgrims remained outside the sanctuary and listened to the amplified Holy Mass in the surroundings of that sacred place from where the Virgin of Charity of Cobre, in Santiago de Cuba, guides the Cubans,” the Cuban journalist wrote on Facebook. Yuzdanis Vicet.

Acts in honor of the "Virgen Mambisa" were also registered in other territories of the country, such was the case of the municipality of San Antonio de los Baños, in Artemisa and the town of Bayamo, in Granma.

The veneration of “Cachita”, as some parishioners affectionately sing to her, is not an exclusive act of islanders who reside within the national territory. The feast of the Virgin of Charity is one of the most important traditions of the Cuban Catholic community in South Florida.

As happens annually, during this day, the events will begin at 4:00 p.m. (local time). Devotees will travel from the Ermita de la Caridad, in Coconut Grove, to the Watsco Center at the University of Miami, in Coral Gables. The mass, on the other hand, will be officiated by Monsignor Thomas Wenski and will begin at 8:00 p.m.

According to reports from Univision, this year commemorates the 40 years of episcopal ordination of Monsignor Agustín Román, the first Cuban bishop of the United States, who died in April 2012. The image that is venerated today in Miami was brought from Cuba in 1961 and is a replica of the original found in the Basilica del Cobre.

Unquestionably, the Virgin of Charity, whose story has been told in books, songs and liturgies, has devotees on all continents. It is still difficult to find a Cuban who is not able to recognize her image among thousands of saints.

However, this year's celebrations coincided with the repression, by the communist government, towards members of the Patriotic Union of Cuba (UNPACU), who took to the streets of Santiago de Cuba carrying sunflowers.

The demonstration took place "on the occasion of the celebration of the Joint Council between the dictatorship and the European Union in Cuba" and in the midst of an "increase in the regime's repression against the peaceful opposition and citizens."