Father Leandro Naun Hung, the parish priest of San José Obrero in the Archdiocese of Santiago de Cuba, publicly acknowledged the limitations of his solidarity dining room in a video shared this Tuesday on Facebook and TikTok, where he admitted that the demand from hungry individuals has surpassed the capacity of his mission to respond.
The video, lasting one minute and 25 seconds, shows the priest and two collaborators in a rustic space with a zinc and wooden roof that serves as a community kitchen, surrounded by tropical vegetation. The women, wearing white aprons with religious images, describe a situation that has become unsustainable.
"Life in the communities has been disrupted because, being good and generous while trying to help so many in need..." the video begins.
One of the women at the shelter explains that the dining area has reached its maximum capacity: "I have 106 diners, and the Father told me, that's it. I can't accommodate anyone else. What am I supposed to do? What am I supposed to do?"
"And we can't say no on Sundays. But the truth is that the shelter is starting to feel cramped. Really cramped," said another woman in the video, describing how the pressure doesn't let up.
In light of this situation, Father Naun Hung calls for a reorganization of charitable work: "We need to outline new strategies. Because charity must be practiced in an organized manner."
The priest candidly acknowledges the limits of his work: "We are not going to be able to feed so many hungry people," and adds, "to provide that service of love effectively and in an organized manner, we need to set a limit to what we can do; beyond that, we cannot."
The video is produced in the context of the worst humanitarian crisis Cuba has faced in decades, exacerbated by the passage of Hurricane Melissa in November 2025 and the extreme scarcity of food and fuel. The Catholic Church has become an important channel for the distribution of international aid.
Despite this flow of aid, the demand in local communities exceeds the capacity of the parishes. On Monday, the archbishop of Santiago de Cuba publicly acknowledged the people's distress, in a statement that reflects the same diagnosis now expressed by Father Naun Hung from the ground.
The priest's dining hall not only faces the pressure of demand. According to a report from Diario de Cuba last February, the Cuban regime ordered the demolition of the community dining hall that operates under its parish, representing a direct threat to its assistance work for the most vulnerable.
In June, Mexico and Belize sent 1,700 tons of aid to Cuba, and Colombia added another 100 tons, but distribution within the communities remains inadequate in light of the magnitude of the crisis.
Father Naun Hung concluded the video with a biblical reference that encapsulates the helplessness in the face of a need that surpasses any human effort: "How many blind, mute, leprous eyes were in Jerusalem? Jesus did not heal them all."
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