Many Cubans Seek Freedom in Pope's Visit

Family and freedom were the themes that Roman Catholic Pope John Paul II brought to a country where religious expression has been limited for three decades under communist rule.

On his second day in Cuba yesterday, the anticommunist pope celebrated a mass with tens of thousands of people in Santa Clara. The event was allowed to be broadcast on Cuba's state-run TV.

On his arrival Wednesday, the pope and Cuban leader Fidel Castro staked out their positions, finding some common ground. The pope called for the world to "open itself" to Cuba, while Mr. Castro criticized the United States economic embargo of the island nation.