Cuban churches take bold step

Churches in Cuba are planning a co-ordinated mission programme across the country on a huge scale.
The Baptist World Alliance has reported that the Baptist Convention of Eastern Cuba is planning to reach out to 500,000 people and the Western Convention aims to plant 1,000 house churches by 2010. Whereas parts of the Christian community in Cuba have struggled to grow in the past, recent reports suggest that the last decade has seen some growth.Open Doors (a charity which works for persecuted Christians worldwide) lists Cuba as the 24th country in its 'world's top 50 worst persecutors of Christians', and suggests that there is "periodic harassment of Christians" and that "it is almost impossible to register churches". It also claims that "there are about 900 legal and 15,000 illegal house churches" in Cuba.
However, it also states that since 1990 government pressure on churches has lessened and the 1992 constitution declared discrimination against Christians illegal, although how much this has been upheld is questionable. Nevertheless, one Cuban church leader described the hope of the latest drive by the Baptist conventions in Cuba, saying, "these are very exciting times for the church in Cuba . . . We used to think people should come and we would make disciples. Now, we are going into our towns and villages and reaching people to make disciples".