A Cuban pastor has called on Christians across the island to join a 1,000-hour prayer initiative, asking God to intervene in the country’s worsening economic and social crisis.
The pastor of the Evangelical Pentecostal Church of Puerto Padre, in the eastern province of Las Tunas, said he and his congregation have already begun the prayer effort in partnership with the local presbytery. He released a video message urging churches and Christian councils nationwide to join the campaign, describing it as a spiritual response to Cuba’s deepening hardship.
“We want to ask all Christians in this country, every church, every council in Cuba, to join the prayer we are carrying out here,” he said, stressing the urgency of the moment.
The pastor cited the increasingly difficult reality facing Cubans — daily blackouts, food and medicine shortages, and a rising sense of despair — as the reason for the call. He said many can no longer endure “the life we are living” and called believers to “humble themselves in the presence of God” and pray persistently, trusting that “God will do something in this land.”
He described the effort as a plea for “supernatural intervention over Cuba that will bring the radical answer to all our needs and problems.”
The message also emphasized collective responsibility, encouraging every Christian, pastor and church to respond and reject indifference. For many, the prayer effort has become a source of hope for both spiritual revival and practical relief in the face of hardship.
Cuba’s crisis deepens
Cuba is in the grip of one of its worst socioeconomic crises in decades. The government says the economy shrank in both 2023 and 2024, while inflation remains very high, eroding household purchasing power.
Nearly the entire population faces shortages of basic goods, including food, fuel and medicine. Blackouts lasting many hours a day and lack of running water for nearly one million people have become common.
Tourism, once a crucial source of foreign currency, has not rebounded since the pandemic, worsening the shortage of state revenue. The government has responded with price controls, budget cuts and continued food rationing for thousands of families.
Wages remain very low, leaving most Cubans with little ability to cover basic needs. The resulting hardship has fueled a historic wave of migration, with more than one million Cubans leaving the island since 2020.
Cuba remains under one-party Communist rule, with no independent media or formal political opposition. Protests broke out across the country in March 2024 over shortages and blackouts. President Miguel Díaz-Canel pledged to restore power and secure food supplies, including accepting Chinese rice donations, but also blamed the United States and “capitalist media” for fomenting unrest. International groups report that arbitrary arrests and summary trials of dissidents continue.
For many Cubans, the prayer campaign represents not only a cry for divine intervention but also one of the few remaining avenues to voice collective hopes for change.
Original reporting by Diario Cristiano, Christian Daily International's Spanish edition.
