A Reflection on Cuba

By the Rev. David Henson, Associate Rector at Trinity Episcopal Church, Asheville

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During a weeklong pilgrimage to Cuba, God was at work among us as we built relationships and learned from each other about what it meant to bridge not only cultural and language divides, but the very real divides that are still enacted by our government and were enacted for decades by The Episcopal Church. The reconciling work of Spirit was made manifest through something as simple as friendships, dancing to music on rooftops together, and visiting with church members in the community.

 

The Cuban people were generous, welcoming, kind-hearted, and brimming with vibrant faith as our 15 youth and 5 adults spent time at St. Francis Episcopal Church in Cardenas and at the Cathedral in Havana.  The bonds our group forged, particularly with the other teenagers, were both real, holy, and meaningful. There is something profoundly moving about seeing a bunch of Cuban and American teenagers tearfully saying goodbye to one another after only a few days together. The presence of God was indeed palpable as they insisted with deep emotion and across a rigid political divide enforced by our nations, that this would not be the last time they saw each other.