Sick Castro Regains Interest in Catholisism

Sick Castro Regains Interest in Catholisism
Posted on August 23, 2006

By The Universe's Rome Correspondent Gerry O'Connell: Fidel Castro,
Cuba's revolutionary leader, once asked two of Brazil's most well-known
liberation theologians to be with him when he died.

The relationship between the Holy See and Communist Cuba has thawed in
recent years and new reports in the Italian press suggested Castro had
regained an interest in his Catholic faith.

He attended a Catholic school and has been described in the past as
being a religious child. Italian daily Corriere delle Sera reported that
some years ago Castro had asked Frs Frei Betto and Leonardo Boff to be
at his bedside at the hour of his death.

"One day Fidel told us: 'Betto and Leonardo, I want you both here at my
side on the day of my death,'" Boff revealed last week.

In the early 1970s, when Latin American liberation theology was at its
height, Castro became profoundly interested in the growing role of
believers in the liberation movements in Central America and invited the
two theologians to visit him in Cuba. They became frequent visitors to
Havana.
Much of their discussion took place before 1984 before the Congregation
of the Doctrine of the Faith, at the instruction of Pope John Paul II,
issued a document which was highly critical of certain aspects of the
Latin American brand of liberation theology. However Castro continued to
meet Boff and Betto up to recent times.

"If I find faith again it will be thanks to you," Castro told them at
the end of one of those meetings, Boff said.

Boff, 68, revealed that the Cuban leader had read a vast amount of
theology books, including books written by Betto, who is a close friend
of Cardinal Claudio Hummes of Sao Paolo and an advisor to Brazil's
President Lula, and himself.

Betto, 62, visited Havana during the period when Castro was in hospital
and had a three-hour conversation with his brother Raul.

"Certainly his openness to religion has increased in recent years,"
Betto stated. "But if it is a case of a personal travail, frankly I
cannot say," he added.

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