Country of the Day: Cuba

Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. Most Americans are aware of Cuba's location because, well, it's right off the Floridian coast. Cuba is known to be a Communist nation, with a history of disagreement towards the US. The United States put an embargo on Cuba in 1961, which is still in place. Therefore, without the ability to trade with its powerful neighbor and with the collapse of the Soviet Union (which had supported Cuba for years), Cuba's economy has suffered greatly. No one, as far as I could see, has any consistent information on the amount of poverty in Cuba. Some reports say Cuba has almost no poverty; others say there are tons of suffering people. If I was the betting type, I'd be willing to say that Cubans are probably fairly poor. The rest of their economy is in trouble, and if the economy is down, logic says the people are without money, too.

Overall, the population of Cuba is 11,477,459. The nation is relatively HIV/AIDS free, but does have an "intermediate" risk of disease, including hepatitis A and dengue fever.

As with China, Cuba's Communist government makes religion tricky to figure out. Prior to the Cuban Revolution and the Communist takeover, 85% of Cuba was Roman Catholic, with other branches of Christianity filling in most of the rest of the population. The revolution was over 45-50 years ago, though. Now, much of the population claims to have no religious beliefs. This is in direct result of a life of Communist teaching. The past decade or so, much like what we found in China, has featured an increase of religious tolerance. Pope John Paul II visited Cuba in 1998, and since then the Church has suffered less. Protestantism, particularly the Baptists, Methodists and Presbyterians, have increased in number in the past few years. Still, some other religions stay strong, too, as Jehovah's Witnesses and the African religion Santeria have faithful and growing followings.

Father, we pray for the people of Cuba. They have been raised in a nation of atheistic values and don't know you. We pray that the believers of Cuba are able to spread the news of your Word to everyone on that island, and that your love penetrates the souls of Cuba. We pray for the Cuban government, that they are able to loosen their grip and learn to follow you, not reject you. We pray for the economic and physical health of Cuba, and we pray that you help heal both. In your Son's name, amen.