Cuba Approves Pope Benedict XVI is Visit

Havana, Mar 12. – Cuba will receive "with affection and respect" Pope Benedict XVI, who will visit the island on March 26 at the invitation of the government and the National Conference of Catholic Bishops.

"Our country will be honored to welcome His Holiness with hospitality and to show Cubans' patriotism, culture, and solidarity and humanist vocation, supported by the nation's history and unity," Granma newspaper reported on Wednesday.

We will also receive thousands of travelers who will be together with us during those memorable days, with the friendship that characterizes us, states the text.

The daily recalled the visit paid 14 years ago by Pope John Paul II, who talked about the "deep impression" left on him by his stay in Cuba, and expressed gratitude for the "friendly hospitality, a genuine expression of the Cuban soul."

The visit of His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI to Cuba, from March 26 to 28, will take place on the occasion of the 400th anniversary of the discovery of the image of Our Lady of Charity (Virgen de la Caridad del Cobre), Cuba's patron saint.(Prensa Latina)