Religion

Devout Cubans of La Caridad del Cobre celebrate in the rain

Miami, Sep 8 (EFE).- Hundreds of devotees of the Virgen de la Caridad del Cobre gathered Thursday under the open sky and in the rain at the Ermita de la Caridad, a Catholic temple of the Archdiocese of Miami dedicated to the patron saint of Cuba, to express their faith.

After several days of celebrations, which began on Aug. 30, a Thursday procession made way for the Hermitage to the image of the Virgen de la Caridad, a sculpture that has also been venerated and serenaded by mariachis, according to the religious institution’s Facebook page.

The image of the virgin was placed outdoors in the area of ​​​​the Malecon that borders the sanctuary and overlooks the waters of Miami’s Biscayne Bay, but a torrential downpour fell while some worshipers stood in the rain.

“We have chosen as the central theme for this year ‘There is no Homeland without Charity,’ a message that urges us to put God at the center of the new Cuban homeland that we all dream of, through the help and intercession of the Virgin of Charity, the Patron, Queen and Mother of Cuba,” the Hermitage of Charity National Shrine in Miami reported in a statement.

One of the background posters on the grounds of the Hermitage bore the title of the song “Homeland and Life,” the soundtrack of the popular protests of Jul. 11, 2021 and that has received, among others, the Latin Grammy for best song of the year.

Yotuel Romero, Beatriz Luengo, Descemer Bueno, Luis Manuel Otero Alcantara, Maykel Osorbo, Alexander Delgado, Randy Malcom Martinez, and DJ El Funky are the authors of the song that has become an anthem for the opposition inside and outside of Cuba.

Popularly known as “Cachita,” the Virgen de la Caridad del Cobre is one of the invocations of the Virgin Mary. Her appointment as Patron Saint of Cuba was proclaimed by Pope Benedict XV in 1916.

“Each day they will be reflecting on some of the virtues of the Virgin Mary and the liturgy will be animated by different parishes of the Archdiocese of Miami,” the Hermitage said in its festivities program this year.

As part of these days, a procession with the Virgin departed from the Hermitage on Saturday and passed through “iconic points” of Cuban exile, such as the Versailles and La Carreta restaurants and the monument to the Bay of Pigs martyrs.

According to the program, the Archbishop of Miami, Thomas Wenski, was scheduled to preside over a solemn mass in this temple. EFE

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