Havana (Fides Service) – On 25 October Archbishop Luis Robles Diaz took leave of the Island of Cuba, where he had been Apostolic Nuncio since Marchy 6, 1999, to take office in the Vatican as vice president of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America. Appointed by Pope John Paul II on 4 October this year Archbishop Diaz succeeds Archbishop Cipriano Calderon Polo who resigned for reasons of age and the Mexican born prelate will be the Commissions’ first Vice President of Latin American origin.
During the solemn Mass presided by Cuban Cardinal Jaime Ortega y Alamino, Archbishop of Havana in Havana cathedral on October 16, to give thanks to God for 25 years of Pope John Paul II’s pontificate, Archbishop Diaz thanked all who had assisted him in his mission: “I received much more than I gave and I carry with me the memory of a joyous, hospital people” EFE News Agency reports. Mgr Diaz also affirmed that “Cuba has a Christian soul” and that the Church in Cuba “has a great heart”. For his part the Cardinal thanked the Nuncio on behalf of the Cuban Bishops’ Conference underlining his gifts of “commitment, understanding and humility”. (S.L.) (Fides Service 25/10/2003 – lines 14; words 192)