"Cuba has the right to be free. No people was created by God to live on their knees," stated the Bishop of Palm Beach, Monsignor Manuel de Jesús Rodríguez, in a message sent from Rome to the Cuban community in South Florida on the occasion of the feast of Our Lady of Charity of El Cobre.
The Cuban prelate, who is currently at the Vatican participating in courses for new bishops, made a strong appeal for the freedom of the island during the event held on Tuesday in West Palm Beach.
"Cuba has the right to be free. No people was created by God to live on their knees, and no chains are eternal before Him who breaks all bonds," expressed Rodríguez in a message directed to the Cubans, read by the parish priest of the Santa Juliana church, P. Ducasse François, during a mass presided over by P. Alfredo Hernández, according to ACI Prensa.
The 52-year-old bishop, the first of Hispanic descent in the history of the Diocese of Palm Beach, also requested prayers for those who remain imprisoned for political reasons and for Cuban families affected by the crisis and exile.
"Let us pray for the prisoners of conscience who remain incarcerated for defending the truth; for the mothers who await news of a son; for the families divided by exile; for a people who have suffered hunger, fear, and silence for far too long," he/she stated.
Her words come amid increasing statements from figures within the Catholic Church regarding the situation in Cuba. Human rights organizations report over a thousand political prisoners on the island, while the Conference of Catholic Bishops of Cuba called in January for "structural, social, economic, and political changes" in light of the severe national crisis.
The very own Rodríguez visited Cuba in March, on his first return to the island in over 25 years, to attend the installation of Osmany Massó Cuesta as bishop of Bayamo-Manzanillo. After the trip, he described what he found as a "deepening and urgent humanitarian crisis," marked by food shortages, long lines, and difficulties in accessing medications and medical care.
The bishop's message coincided with a new wave of pressure against the Ladies in White. On September 8, while Cubans celebrated their patroness, activists reported a police operation aimed at preventing members of the movement from attending religious celebrations in Havana.
During his stay in Rome, Rodríguez also met with Pope Leo XIV, to whom he presented a bandana from the Diocese of Palm Beach as part of the preparations for the World Youth Day 2027 in South Korea, which the diocese plans to bring around 700 pilgrims.
The presence of Cuba also reached the Pope through another means. The Cuban bishop Osmany Massó Cuesta gave him a photograph of the Virgin of Charity of Cobre, created by the Santiago photographer Rubén Aja Garí.
Rodríguez concluded his message by once again focusing on the future of Cuba: "Let us ask the Virgin of Charity, who has accompanied Cubans in every dark hour of their history, to hasten the day of freedom, reconciliation, and return."
The bishop also announced that he hopes to join a pilgrimage to the Hermitage of Charity in Miami on September 19, alongside around a hundred faithful from Palm Beach.
"I eagerly look forward to joining you," the prelate expressed, assuring that the day will be devoted to praying for Cuba and for "that new day we all long for."
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