Pope Francis in Cuba: Pontiff Arrives in Santiago - As It Happened

The Guardian
September 21, 2015

http://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2015/sep/21/pope-francis-in-cuba-pontiff-to-hold-mass-in-holguins-revolution-square-live

Summary

It is Pope Francis’s penultimate day in Cuba before heading to the US for his first ever visit to the country. Francis is credited with playing a key role in the easing of relations between the two countries, though the US economic embargo against Cuba remains.

The pontiff will deliver a homily at a Santiago church tomorrow before heading to Washington DC.

Here are some of the highlights of his trip from today:

Pope Francis arrived in Santiago, Cuba’s second-largest city, in the late-afternoon. He then traveled to El Cobre to pray with bishops. Tomorrow morning, he is due to give a homily at the village’s Our Lady of Charity church.

He blessed the city of Holguin from Loma de la Cruz, a hill that is topped by a wooden cross. After the blessing, he and his entourage took the papal plane to Santiago, a short flight south.

After giving a homily in Holguin‘s Revolutionary Square, Francis held an open mass for a crowd of hundreds of thousands of people who braved temperatures of 104 degrees fahrenheit.

Francis’s homily focused on a favorite theme of his, mercy. “May we learn to see them as Jesus sees us. Let us share his tenderness and mercy with the sick, prisoners, the elderly and families in difficulty. Again and again we are called to learn from Jesus, who always sees what is most authentic in every person, which is the image of his Father.”