Archbishop Gallagher in Cuba for 90th anniversary of Holy See diplomatic ties

Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, the Vatican’s secretary for relations with states, meets with Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel on June 5, 2025, in Cuba. / Credit: Vatican Secretariat of State

Vatican City, Jun 6, 2025 / 11:53 am (CNA).

The Vatican’s foreign minister is in Havana this week, where he met with local Catholics and political authorities during a visit marking 90 years of diplomatic relations between Cuba and the Holy See.

Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, secretary for relations with states, spoke Thursday at the Palacio de la Revolución, the house of the Cuban government and the office of the first secretary of the Cuban Communist Party, after meetings with President Miguel Díaz-Canel and Prime Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz, earlier in the day. He also met Foreign Minister Bruno Eduardo Rodríguez Parrilla on June 4.

According to a post on X by the Secretariat of State, Gallagher’s presentation at the conference June 6 was on the diplomacy of the Holy See, “animated by evangelical values in the promotion of peace and human dignity, as an expression of the very catholicity of the Church.”

Cuba and the Holy See established diplomatic relations on June 7, 1935. Despite the 1959 Cuban Revolution, when Prime Minister Fidel Castro embraced Marxism-Leninism and imposed state atheism, diplomatic ties between the two states have never been broken.

According to the Vatican, 60% of Cuba’s population of over 11.2 million people is Catholic. There are over 300 parishes and more than 2,000 pastoral centers across three archdioceses and 11 dioceses.

On June 4, Gallagher met the bishops of Cuba, of which there are around 15 resident in the country, and celebrated Mass in Havana’s Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary.

In his homily, according to Vatican News, the archbishop emphasized the valuable role the Catholic Church plays in Cuban society, saying “truth makes peaceful relations and constructive dialogue possible.”

He also indicated that peace, justice, and truth are principles that guide both the pastoral action and the diplomatic work of the Holy See, and noted that these principles can serve as a basis for cooperation with state institutions.

“The Church perpetuates this mission of caring for the flock that the Spirit has entrusted to her,” he said. Gallagher also mentioned that the Holy Father’s presence in the life of the Church in Cuba has been manifested not only through the apostolic nuncios but also through the visits of Popes John Paul II, Benedict XVI, and Francis.

Bringing the greeting of Pope Leo XIV to the Church in Cuba, the archbishop called on Mary, that she “who infused the radiance of heavenly light into Cuban souls, [may] turn tears into smiles, and may she return peace to those who are sad, so that the power of charity may live on among us.”

“The pope invites us to the ‘Hour of Love,’ where charity — not as alms but as love that gives life — must prevail. It is a pillar, along with peace, justice, and truth, of our action in society. Therefore, the Holy See reiterates its collaboration with Cuba for the common good,” Gallagher said, according to the website of the Cuban bishops’ conference.

Bringing the message of the Holy Father, the diplomat added: “Pope Leo XIV asked me to assure you that bishops, priests, seminarians, religious sisters, and all Cubans have ‘a little corner in his heart.’ He prays that, united with the successor of Peter, we may live our faith with a missionary spirit and achieve the peace that Christ left us.”

The Vatican’s secretary for relations with states also referred in his homily to the role of religious figures linked to Cuba’s spiritual history, such as Blesseds Olallo Valdés and José López Piteira, and Venerable Félix Varela, whom he described as “a great propagator of love among Cubans and among all people.”

According to the Cuban bishops’ conference, the Mass was attended by members of the Communist Party of Cuba, including Vice President Salvador Valdés Mesa and Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla.

Representatives of the Orthodox Church and other Christian denominations also participated, according to official Cuban newspaper Granma.

On the last day of his June 4–6 trip, Gallagher was also scheduled to visit the nursing home Hogar de Ancianos San Francisco de Paula.

Victoria Cardiel of CNA’s Spanish-language news partner, ACI Prensa, contributed to this report.