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A multitude of faithful attended this Saturday in Havana the funeral of Monseñor Silvano Herminio Pedroso Montalvo, bishop of the Diocese of Guantánamo-Baracoa and the first Afro-descendant bishop in over five centuries of Catholic Church history in Cuba, in a day that the Press Office of the Diocese of Santa Clara described as "a massive day of prayer and gratitude to a shepherd who knew how to walk alongside his people."
The funeral services took place at the Santa Catalina de Siena parish, located at Paseo corner 25, in Vedado, Havana, where requiem masses were held from 10:00 a.m. onwards, in front of numerous faithful who came throughout the day to bid farewell to the prelate.
The first Mass was led by Mons. Arturo González Amador, Bishop of Santa Clara and President of the Conference of Catholic Bishops of Cuba.
In the afternoon, the Eucharist was presided over by Mons. Eloy Ricardo, Auxiliary Bishop of Havana, and concelebrated by Cardenal Juan de la Caridad García —the highest authority of the Catholic Church in Cuba— along with Bishops Antoine Camilleri, Matjas Router, Juan Gabriel Díaz Ruiz, and Arturo González Amador, as well as priests from the Archdiocese of Havana and the Diocese of Guantánamo-Baracoa.
After the Mass, the bishops accompanied the casket to the main entrance of the temple, from where the procession set out, traveling along 25th Street to the Necrópolis de Colón, the main cemetery in Havana.
After the final blessing in the cemetery chapel, Mons. Silvano was laid to rest in the Bishops' Pantheon.
Pedroso Montalvo passed away in the early hours of Saturday at the age of 73, due to an oncological illness that was diagnosed in February 2026 during the ad limina visit of the Cuban episcopate to Rome.
He returned to Havana on June 3 and remained under the care of the Daughters of Charity until his death.
Born on April 25, 1953 in Cárdenas, Matanzas, Pedroso studied Geography at the University of Havana before entering the Major Seminary of San Carlos and San Ambrosio in 1987.
He was ordained as a presbyter on June 12, 1995, and appointed bishop of Guantánamo-Baracoa by Pope Francis on March 29, 2018, taking possession of his diocese on June 9 of that year at the Cathedral of Santa Catalina de Ricci in Guantánamo.
CELAM highlighted after his passing his "discreet and approachable service" to the community.
The U.S. Embassy in Cuba expressed its condolences, noting that Pedroso "dedicated his life to the service of God and the Cuban people" and that they extend "their deepest condolences to the Catholic Church and to all who mourn his passing."
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