Cuba - Ocean Park Baptist Church

Light to the Nations 110,861 sq km
The largest island in the Caribbean.
“I will make you as a light to the nations,
that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.” Isaiah 49:6
Cuba
The Cuban
Revolution
of 1953
Cuba
Cuba
Cuba
People – 11 million
Hispanic 98%.
Growth .02%
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White Hispanic 62%
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Mixed race 25%. Mestizo and
Mulatto.
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African 11%.
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Asian 1%
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Other 1%. Haitian, Russian,
Palestinian.
Official language Spanish.
Literacy 99.8%
Cuba
Economy
Sugar production, along with the rest of the
economy, collapsed with the Soviet meltdown
as aid and subsidies dried up. The US trade
embargo, devastating hurricanes, repressive
centralized socialist planning, corruption and
poor productivity hamper progress.
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Agriculture – Sugar, Tobacco, Citrus,
Coffee, Bananas, …
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Tourism – Is continuing to grow.
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Exports - Services and Merchandise
Income/person $2,300 (5% of USA
Cuba
Politics
Fidel Castro is what defines
Cuban Politics. Whether that
is a good or bad thing is
certainly up for debate.
Cuba is an Independent
Socialist Republic with only
one political party, the
Cuban Communist Party.
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Fidel Castro was the longest serving head of government, serving from 1976 up until he became ill and
stepped down in 2008, a total of 49 years of power.
Fidel’s brother Raúl Castro is the current head of government.
The Ministry of Armed Forces (MINFAR) is almost completely self-supported because the government hasn’t
been able to fund it since before the 1980s.
In 2008 elections, both Fidel and Raúl Castro were reelected along with 614 unopposed candidates.
Cuba
Religion - Strict control of all church activities and religious freedom in earlier
years of Communist rule, but since 1990 the degree of pressure has lessened. A
secular rather than atheist state, discrimination against Christians is illegal.
•  Christian 56%
§  Catholic – 48%
§  Evangelicals – 9%
Yearly Growth – 3.5%
•  Non-Religious – 25%
•  Ethno religious 18%
New growth is of a grass roots
nature. Maybe the best kind!
Cuba
§  Answers to Prayer
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Lack of facilities – has not hindered
the lost from finding Christ.
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The militant atheism ended 20
years ago – evangelicals have grown
from 70,000 to 1 million, filling the
spiritual vacuum.
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The economic problems – have
caused people to find reliance in
something other than the
government. God and church
families have helped fill that void.
Cuba
Challenges for Prayer
•  Cuba faces a difficult future. Pray for the following needs:
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Political - The continued influence of Fidel Castro, his President brother, Raúl Castro
stifle real change. Pray for new leadership.
Economic -The current model is simply unsustainable in the long term, despite
substantive assistance from Venezuela, China and Bolivia.
Demographic. Cuba has a top-heavy population, with large and increasing numbers of
aged dependent on too few in the younger generation for support.
•  Evangelical churches were devastated by waves of emigration to the USA
as well as by persecution. Recovery has taken a long time. Pray for continued
growth.
•  Leadership for the churches remains an urgent need. Many fled or were
expelled following the revolution. Pray for pastors, teachers, and Bibles.
•  Recent reports show that persecution is back on the increase. Beating of
pastors and lay workers, arbitrary detentions, church closures, and demolitions
have been reports. www.worldmag.com