|
January 18, 1998
The New York Times
Pope John Paul
II has visited many dictatorships, but few of his trips have carried the
expectations of this week's visit to Cuba. Anyone hoping that the visit will
make Cuba much freer or shorten Fidel Castro's rule is likely to be
disappointed.
Only a few previous papal trips have had political reverberations, and those
have taken place in circumstances very different from those in Cuba today.
The closest the Pope usually comes to discussing secular politics is his
embrace of religious freedom and other human rights and his insistence on
policies that help the poor. He is known as an anti-Communist, but he also
criticizes what he calls savage capitalism and opposes economic embargoes, two
views that match those of Mr. Castro.
The Pope, however, is above all an evangelist. He travels to minister to
Catholics, win more rights for Catholicism, and strengthen and discipline the
church. His political effect is greatest when the church itself has a major
political role, which is not the case in Cuba.
The best example, of course, is Poland, where the Pope's contribution to the
rise of Solidarity in August 1980 and the fall of Communism was unmistakable.
Karol Wojtyla visited his country eight months after his election as Pope John
Paul II in 1978. At the time, Communism was weakening and the opposition, led
largely by the church, was growing bolder. The Pope's visit, which drew crowds
of up to two million, gave Poles moral and physical courage. Without directly
criticizing the state, the Pope provided a challenge to Communism.
In recent years, the Pope's most political trip was an 11-hour visit to
Sandinista Nicaragua in 1983. The Catholic Church was split, always a situation
of great concern to the Pope. The Cardinal was the de facto leader of the
political opposition, but leftist priests served in the Government. The Pope
rebuked the Sandinista priests, whose "liberation theology" he has
long considered insubordinate and overly political.
Since the division inside the church so closely mirrored the nation's
political debate, the Pope's disapproval was widely taken as a devastating
criticism of the Sandinista Government.
Cuba's Catholic Church has become a more active voice against the Government
in recent years. The papal visit may embolden it further and win some of the
freedoms it still lacks, such as re-establishment of Catholic schools and more
visas for visiting Latin American priests.
Often the Pope's biggest effect comes before he arrives. Just before the
Pope's visit to Chile in 1987, Gen. Augusto Pinochet allowed the publication of
independent newspapers. Mr. Castro has eased his harsh restrictions on the
church since talks began with the Vatican about a possible trip. In June 1996,
the regime allowed a public mass for the first time in 25 years. Last month
Cubans got a public holiday on Christmas and Havana's Cardinal recently gave a
television address for the first time since Mr. Castro took power. In this
sense, the Pope has already put his imprint on Cuba.
Copyright 1998 The New York Times Company |