The following homily was delivered by Cardinal Michael Czerny, S.J., the prefect for the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, at a Holy Mass for Peace and Social Development in Cuba. The Mass was celebrated at the Church of St. Ignatius of Loyola in Rome on May 15, 2026. 

We have heard the Word of God that the liturgy offers us on this Friday of the sixth week of Easter. A Word imbued with perseverance and hope. In the passage from the Acts of the Apostles, we see Paul weary, tried and faced with misunderstanding and rejection. Yet the Lord says to him: “Do not be afraid; keep on speaking and do not be silent.” It is a word that sustains the believer’s heart in the difficult times of history. A word that preserves trust when everything seems fragile and precarious.

In the Gospel according to John, we have heard another powerful image: that of the woman suffering the pangs of childbirth who then, at the birth of the child, experiences a new joy, capable of transfiguring the pain she has endured. Jesus speaks thus to his disciples to prepare them for the time of trial, teaching them that the suffering of history is not alien to God’s work and that every authentic human journey toward peace and justice requires patience, discernment and spiritual courage.

Dear brothers and sisters, dear institutional representatives, ambassadors and authorities present here, this evening we bring before the Lord’s altar the sufferings, hopes and expectations of the Cuban people. We do so with respect, with sincerity, with deep affection for a land that cherishes a history rich in dignity, culture, sacrifice, faith and resilience.

The church’s social teaching clearly reminds us that true peace is founded on moral and spiritual pillars even before political or economic ones. In “Pacem in Terris,” St. John XXIII identified truth, justice, freedom and love as the indispensable conditions for a form of human coexistence worthy of the human person. These words retain an extraordinary power even in our own time.

Justice demands concrete attention to those who suffer most. 

Freedom calls for real opportunities for participation, listening and shared responsibility.

Truth becomes a form of sincere dialogue, capable of overcoming propaganda, hardening attitudes and mutual mistrust. 

Love opens the way to solidarity, to the sharing of material, cultural and spiritual goods amongst peoples.

From this perspective, any logic of constant confrontation risks exacerbating the burden already weighing on ordinary people, especially the poorest, the elderly, the sick and children. Pope Leo XIV, in his recent appeals to the international community, has reminded us that no stable order can arise from the force of arms or from pressure that humiliates peoples; human development, on the other hand, grows through dialogue, international law, cooperation between nations and the safeguarding of the dignity of every human being. In the same spirit, humanitarian aid should arrive in sufficient quantities and without hindrance and must never be exploited for political or geopolitical ends. 

During his 2015 apostolic journey to Cuba, Pope Francis also emphasized, in his historic homily at the Plaza de la Revolución in Havana, the urgent need to place the concrete person at the center of social and political life, especially the vulnerable, the wounded and the poor. He said that service “is never ideological,” because it arises from genuine attention to the face of the other; “we do not need ideas, but people.” Those words remain highly relevant today.

The appeal of St. John Paul II still resonates with prophetic intensity: “May the world open up to Cuba, and may Cuba open up to the world.” It was not a political slogan. It was a spiritual and human invitation to break down walls of misunderstanding, to create spaces for mutual trust, and to allow peoples to meet without fear.

We are here this evening above all to pray. In a short while, the Eucharist will make present the Paschal sacrifice of Christ, the crucified and risen Lord who bears within himself the suffering of peoples and the wounds of history. Before him we entrust Cuban families, young people in search of hope, those in positions of authority, those who suffer, and those who await more peaceful days.

The Gospel offers us a promise: “Your sorrow will turn into joy.” This is no naive promise. It is the Christian certainty that God continues to work within human history even when darkness and confusion prevail. The Holy Spirit continues to raise up men and women capable of building fraternity, reconciliation and paths of peace.

Let us pray, then, that the beloved land of Cuba may know days of greater serenity, of authentic human and social development, of harmony and hope. Let us pray that every political, economic and international decision may be guided by wisdom, prudence and a sincere search for the good of all people. Let us pray that the Lord may turn the hearts of men and women towards universal brotherhood.

And we ask the Virgin of Charity of El Cobre, so dearly loved by the Cuban people, to accompany this nation’s journey with her maternal protection and to watch over all her children in peace.

Cardinal Michael Czerny, S.J., leads the Vatican’s department for social justice and human development. He is also the co-author of the new book Siblings All, Sign of the Times: The Social Teaching of Pope Francis.