EDITOR’S NOTE (Nick Stamatakis): All of us, history lovers, have long understood that it is often the little historical details that write the most glorious pages – and not the big battles or political revolutions.  Such is the case of building an Orthodox Church, the Church of Saint Nicholas, in communist Cuba, on a piece of land donated by Fidel Castro.  Who convinced Communist Fidel to proceed with such an act?  His close advisor, a devoted Christian, Eusebio Real, and direct intervention by Fidel’s friend, the late former King Constantine of Greece…

Below we have translated the story from exapsalmos.gr (by Sotiris Tzoumas), who refers to the fantastic report by palmosev.gr which includes amazing photos (some posted here)

=============

How Did the Late King Constantine Convinced Fidel Castro To Built Saint Nicholas In Havana!

By Sotiris Tzoumas – exapsalmos.gr

In 1991, Fidel Castro wanted to give a new image of Cuba to the outside world in terms of religiosity in his country, and for this reason, he invited the then Pope, John Paul II, to visit Cuba, and welcomed him to the Church of Saint Francis of Assisi in Old Havana. Soon, however, she realized the Papal cunning and, of course, did not invite him again.

Then a friend of his advised him: “If you want to fix the image of your country and have a real blessing from God, give back the Orthodox Church that you ruined.” In Havana, there was an Orthodox Church of Saints Constantine and Helen built by Greek sailors, which Castro destroyed in 1985 and replaced it with a playground. Thus, the thirty-five Greek families living in Havana found themselves without a temple.

He liked his friend’s idea, and so he sent an official document to the Greek Government, informing it that he intended to build a Holy Church in honor of Saint Nicholas this time, the patron saint of sailors and that he wanted, after the Church is built, to invite the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew to inaugurate him.

For this reason, he allocated a plot of land next to the Church of Saint Francis, in old Havana. The Greek Government then, thanking Fidel Castro, decided to allocate a fund of 100,000 Dollars for the construction of the Church. However, the Cuban leader replied that the costs of building the Church would be covered by the Cuban government. So the money was allocated for the interior decoration of the Church, icons, icons, etc. The Temple was built very quickly and on January 25, 2004, a delegation from Greece and Constantinople arrived in beautiful Havana to inaugurate the Temple. Of course, among them, the first of this “miracle”, Fidel’s friend and his family.

For about a week, the heart of Greece was beating in Havana. All the Greek media were there. The journalists, who were there, surrounded Fidel’s friend and, among many other questions, expressed their blessed question: “How come you, a former king, and a Communist leader have such a friendly relationship”? And the answer of Konstantinos (he was Castro’s friend): “These are perceptions of the last century. We have been friends with the President for many years and look what this friendship has brought.”

The sequel, of course, was amazing. A baptistery was built in front of the Church, in which, until 2010 approximately 10,000 Orthodox Christians had been baptized. Today there are several Churches in Cuba. After the Church, Castro also built an Orthodox Theological Seminary, where children from Cuba and 29 other Latin American countries can study.
Anyone who wants can refer to the archives of all the news media of those days, January 2004, for more details.

Dear friends, I do not know the deeds and days of politicians and kings. In Cuba, however, there are families of happy people who are amenable to everyone with a sense of humor and speak perfect Greek. For THAT Konstantinos, the friend of Kastro, I have to say one “God forgive him, and may God rest his soul”. The rest is the work of God and History.

================

Πως έχτισε ο Φιντέλ Κάστρο τον Άγιο Νικόλαο στην Αβάνα

Του Σωτήρη Τζούμα

Τὸ 1991 ὁ Φιντὲλ Κάστρο θέλησε νὰ δώσει μιὰ νέα εἰκόνα τῆς Κούβας πρὸς τὸν ἔξω κόσμο ὅσον ἀφορᾶ τὴν θρησκευτικότητα στὴν χώρα του, καὶ γι᾿ αὐτὸ κάλεσε τὸν τότε Πάπα, Ἰωάννη Παῦλο Β’, νὰ ἐπισκευθεῖ τὴν Κούβα, καὶ τὸν ὑποδέχθηκε στὸν Ναὸ τοῦ Ἁγίου Φραγκίσκου τῆς Ἀσσίζης στὴν παλιὰ Ἀβάνα.
Σύντομα ὅμως ἀντιλήφθηκε τὴν Παπικὴ πονηριά του  καί φυσικά, δὲν τὸν ξανακάλεσε. Τότε ἕνας  φίλος του τὸν συμβούλεψε: «Ἂν θέλεις νὰ φτιάξεις τὴν εἰκόνα τῆς χώρας σου καὶ νὰ ἔχεις καὶ πραγματικὴ εὐλογία ἀπὸ τὸν Θεό, δῶσε πίσω τὴν Ὀθόδοξη Ἐκκλησία ποὺ χάλασες.»
Στὴ Ἀβάνα ὑπῆρχε Ὀρθόδοξη Ἐκκλησία τῶν Ἁγίων Κανσταντίνου καὶ Ἑλένης χτισμένη ἀπὸ Ἑλληνες ναυτικούς, τὴν ὁποία ὁ Κάστρο κατέστρεψε τὸ 1985 καὶ στὴ θέση της ἔκανε παιδικὴ χαρά. Ἔτσι, οἱ τριανταπέντε οἰκογένειες Ἑλλήνων ποὺ ζοῦν στὴν Ἀβάνα βρέθηκαν χωρὶς ναό.
Ἡ ἰδέα τοῦ φίλου του τοῦ ἄρεσε κι ἔτσι ἔστειλε στὴν Ἐλληνικὴ Κυβέρνηση ἕνα ἐπίσημο ἔγγραφο, μὲ τὸ ὁποῖο τὴν ἐνημέρωνε ὅτι προτίθεται νὰ κτίσει Ἱερὸ Ναὸ πρὸς τιμὴν τοῦ Ἁγίου Νικολάου αὐτὴ τὴ φορά, προστάτου τῶν ναυτικῶν, καὶ ὅτι ἐπιθυμοῦσε ἀφοῦ κτισθεῖ ὁ Ναός, νὰ καλέσει τὸν Οἰκουμενικὸ Πατριάρχη κ. Βαρθολομαῖο νὰ τὸν ἐγκαινιάσει.
Γιὰ τὸν λόγο αὐτὸ διέθεσε οἰκόπεδο δίπλα στὸν Ναὸ τοῦ Ἁγίου Φραγκίσκου, στὴν παλιὰ Ἀβάνα. Ἡ Ἑλληνικὴ Κυβέρνηση τότε, εὐχαριστῶντας τὸν Φιντὲλ Κάστρο, ἀποφάσισε νὰ διαθέσει ἕνα κονδύλι 100.000 Δολλαρίων γιὰ τὸ κτίσιμο τοῦ Ναοῦ. Ὅμως ὁ Κουβανὸς ἡγέτης ἀπάντησε ὅτι τὰ ἔξοδα ἀνέγερσης τοῦ Ναοῦ θὰ τὰ καλύψει ἡ Κουβανικὴ κυβέρνηση κι ἔτσι τὸ κοντύλι διατέθηκε γιὰ τὴν ἐσωτερικὴ διακόσμηση τοῦ Ναοῦ, τέμπλο, ἐικόνες κ.λ.π.
Ὁ Ναὸς κτίσθηκε πολὺ γρήγορα καὶ στὶς 25 Ἰανουαρίου 2004 μία ἀποστολὴ ἀπὸ τὴν Ἑλλάδα καὶ τὴν Κωνσταντινούπολη ἔφτασε στὴν ὄμορφη Ἀβάνα γιὰ τὰ ἐγκαίνια τοῦ Ναοῦ. Φυσικά, μεταξύ αὐτῶν, ὁ πρωταίτιος αὐτοῦ τοῦ «θαύματος», ὁ φίλος τοῦ Φιντέλ μὲ τὴν οἰκογένειά του.
Ἐπὶ μία ἑβδομάδα ἡ καρδιὰ τῆς Ἑλλάδας χτυποῦσε στὴν Ἀβάνα. Ὅλα τὰ Ἑλληνικὰ μέσα ἐνημέρωσης ἦταν ἐκεῖ. Οἱ δημοσιογράφοι, ποὺ ἦταν ἐκεῖ, περιτρυγύρισαν τὸν φίλο τοῦ Φιντὲλ καὶ μεταξὺ πολλῶν ἄλλων ἐρωτήσεων ἐξέφρασαν τὴν εὐλογώτατη ἀπορία τους:
«Πῶς γίνεται ἐσεῖς, ἕνας πρώην βασιλιᾶς, καὶ ἕνας Κομμουνιστὴς ἡγέτης νὰ ἔχετε τέτοια φιλικὴ σχέση»; Καὶ ἡ ἀπάντηση τοῦ Κωνσταντίνου (αὐτὸς ἤταν ὁ φίλος τοῦ Κάστρο): «Αὐτὰ εἶναι ἀντιλήψεις τοῦ περασμένου αἰώνα. Μὲ τὸν Πρόεδρο εἴμαστε πολλὰ χρόνια φίλοι καὶ δέστε τί ἀπέφερε αὐτὴ ἡ φιλία».
Ἡ συνέχεια βέβαια ὑπήρξε θαυμαστή. Μπροστὰ στὸν Ναὸ φτιάχτηκε βαπτιστήριο, στὸ ὁποῖο μέχρι τὸ 2010 εἶχαν βαπτισθεῖ περίπου 10.000 ὀρθόδοξοι Χριστιανοί. Σήμερα ὑπάρχουν στὴν Κούβα ἀρκετοὶ Ναοὶ πλέον. Μετὰ ἀπὸ τὸν Ναὸ ὁ Κάστρο ἔφτιαξε καὶ ὀρθόδοξο Θεολογικὸ Σεμινάριο, στὸ ὁποῖο μποροῦν νὰ σπουδάζουν παιδιὰ ἀπὸ τὴν Κούβα καὶ ἄλλα 29 κράτη τῆς Λατινικῆς Ἀμερικῆς.
Ὅποιος θέλει, μπορεῖ νὰ ἀνατρέξει στὰ ἀρχεῖα ὅλων τῶν μέσων ἐνημέρωσης ἐκείνων τῶν ἡμερῶν, Ἰανουάριος τοῦ 2004, γιὰ περισσότερες λεπτομέρειες.
Ἀγαπητοὶ φίλοι, δὲν γνωρίζω ἔργα καὶ ἡμέρες πολιτικῶν καὶ βασιλιάδων. Στην Κούβα όμως ζουν οικογένειες χαρούμενων ανθρώπων καταδεκτικών προς όλους με χιουμορ που μιλούν αψογα Ελληνικά .
Γι᾿ ΑΥΤΟΝ τὸν Κωνσταντίνο το φίλο του Κάστρο ἔχω νὰ πῶ ἕνα «Θεὸς σχωρέσ᾿ τον, Καλὸν Παράδεισο καὶ καλὴ ἀνάπαυση νὰ ἔχει ἡ ψυχή του». Τὰ ὑπόλοιπα εἶναι δουλειὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ τῆς Ἱστορίας.
ΕΙΣ ΜΝΗΜΟΣΥΝΟΝ, ΓΙΑ ΤΟΥΣ ΜΙΚΡΟΨΥΧΟΥΣ… ΠΟΥ ΘΑ ΣΠΕΥΣΟΥΝ ΞΑΝΑ  ΝΑ ΜΟΥ ΕΠΙΤΕΘΟΥΝ ΛΕΓΟΝΤΑΣ ΟΤΙ ΕΙΜΑΙ ΑΚΟΥΣΟΝ ΑΚΟΥΣΟΝ ΔΟΥΡΕΙΟΣ ΙΠΠΟΣ ΤΩΝ ΒΑΣΙΛΙΚΩΝ!!!

6 COMMENTS

  1. Though Mr. Tzoumas has done an excellent job and great writing (he is truly a great writer)- perhaps there was another side I missed.

  2. I congratulate Mr. Tzoumas for great reporting; when the church was built, there were rumors falsely (allegedly) circulated of another nature, regarding $$. Thank you for bringing a new twist to this; King Constantine? Was he there? Any of his family there?

  3. What’s honorable or virtuous or Christian about accepting a gift of expropriated land from the Catholic Church? That’s the truth.
    The Greeks and their church had no shame and pandered to an atheist, communist, murderous dictator who toyed with an exiled monarch like a plaything.

    • Have we read the same text? Castro had destroyed an existing Greek Orthodox Church in Cuba… Also, there is something to be noted when a church is built in a tough communist regime, something very laudable… Castro himself was a devout Catholic at a young age and his mother was always a Christian… Finally, there was always a revolving door between Christianity and the communist ideology: at age 18-23 I met quite a few young communists, students at the University of Athens, some very extremist, who, disappointed by the failure of applying their ideology, turned to monasticism and went to Mount Athos. I can name a couple of them in leading positions in some monasteries. One day I will write more about this issue…

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here