Miami Archbishop Thomas Wenski is planning a historical pilgrimage to Cuba this spring to coincide with Pope Benedict XVI’s visit. 

Wenski will lead a group from Miami to Cuba in honor of the spirit and spiritual people of the island nation and the jubilee 400th anniversary of its patron saint, Our Lady of Charity. 

“Cuba needs the joy of faith, and certainly the Holy Father will bring that joy to Cuba,” Wenski said. 

The pope will be in Cuba on March 26, received in Santiago de Cuba by President Raul Castro, then will hold Mass in Antonio Maceo Revolution Square. Pope Benedict XVI will also visit the shrine of the patron saint in El Cobre and bring his faith to another Mass in Jose Marti Revolution Square. 

"The state tried to pretend that they could organize society and live as if God didn’t matter. The pope will go with the message and say that God does matter," Wenski said. 

It is the first visit by a pope since Pope John Paul II’s first historic visit in 1998.

Wenski was there then and understand the importance and the controversy of the visit now, despite the protests of some. 

"This past year, 400,000 Cuban-Americans traveled to Cuba, and that didn't legitimize the government, so a trip of pilgrims will not do so, either," Wenski said.