224 Chapter 9
tional actors that have remained in Cuba have afforded Cuban church
leaders a sophistication in dealing with the system—they have become
adept at validating the Cuban reality while promoting both their theo-
logical vision and democratic principles. They have been seeking new
media outlets and access to existing outlets in the hopes of reestab-
lishing a public moral voice. The Catholic Church occupies a unique
space in Cuba as the one national institution independent of state
control. This status has given Catholic leaders the opportunity to take
on the roles of mediators during regime transitions in other cases in
Latin America and Eastern Europe. The Polish church nurtured and
aided the Solidarity movement in the 1980s and was able to play the
role of mediator between the old communist guard and the ascendant
democratic parties during that country’s transition years. The Brazilian
and Salvadoran churches abandoned radical postures to return to a
church-state model of power-brokering with the political elite follow-
ing turbulent transitions from militaristic authoritarian regimes. This is
a role that Cuban church leaders could assume without changing polit-
ical positions, rather, they could legitimate such a process in a new
democratic environment by pointing to their previous stances against
the Cuban government and their calls for political pluralism during
the revolutionary years. The Cuban Catholic Church does not have
the numbers of faithful nor the institutional reach of the other cases
mentioned here. But, the résumé of the Cuban Catholic Church could
be boosted by its efforts to keep its relationship cordial with the
Cuban government, even as tensions have simmered and occasionally
rose to the surface. In a situation where public protest against the
regime was more widespread and volatile, an institution that sup-
ported dissident movements with material or logistical support would
be favored as a mediator (as in Poland). But the Cuban Catholic
Church has been careful to endorse ideas—political pluralism, auton-
omous civil society—rather than actual groups and organizations.
This catalogue of indirectly confrontational statements could be the
church’s most valuable resource in a transition setting, along with the
moral weight it carries as a spiritual organization promoting distinct
moral values. Additionally, its faithful are being encouraged to be