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 Francis and Castro discussed religion and world affairs at the
89-year-old retired president's home, just hours after the pope
warned Cubans of the dangers of ideology and the lure of selfishness
as their Communist-ruled country enters a new era of closer ties
with the United States.
Vatican spokesman Father Federico Lombardi said the meeting, which
also included Castro's wife and other family members, was "very
relaxed, fraternal and friendly."
Francis, 78, gave Castro several of his official papal writings, two
books on spirituality and a book and CD on the writings of Father
Armando Llorente, a priest who taught Castro in Jesuit prep school
more than 70 years ago.
Castro, who wore a blue-and-white track suit jacket, gave him a copy
of "Fidel and Religion," a 1985 book of interviews with a Brazilian
priest which lifted a taboo on speaking about religion in Cuba, then
officially atheist.
The pope has drawn widespread praise in Cuba for his
behind-the-scenes role in supporting negotiations last year that led
to a historic rapprochement between the United States and Cuba.
 His visit is aimed at further improving ties between the government
and the Roman Catholic Church, and encouraging a more open society
in Cuba.
On Sunday morning, he sprinkled his mainly religious homily with
criticism of "elitism" and ideology.
"Service is never ideological for we do not serve ideas, we serve
people," he said at the Mass, attended by President Raul Castro -
Fidel's younger brother - and top government officials.
Francis has avoided calling for greater political freedoms in Cuba
but the issue is never far below the surface on this and previous
papal visits.
An estimated 50 government opponents have been detained and
prevented from attending papal events since Francis arrived on
Saturday, according to the dissident Cuban Commission for Human
Rights and National Reconciliation.
Two prominent dissidents said they were stopped by state security
agents for a second straight day on Sunday, when they were trying to
reach the pope's evening prayers service in Havana's cathedral.
The two women, Miriam Leiva and Martha Beatriz Roque, said they had
been invited to the service by the Vatican's diplomatic envoys. A
Vatican spokesman said some Cubans had been invited but he could not
confirm their names.
Earlier on Sunday, four dissidents who tried to deliver a letter to
the pope were detained near Revolution Square after police knocked
them to the ground and confiscated leaflets printed with prayers.
One of them got close enough to make physical contact with Francis
in his open-sided popemobile.
The Patriotic Union of Cuba (UNPACU), the country's largest
dissident group, said the four were still in jail late on Sunday
while 17 other detained activists were released.
REVOLUTIONARIES
As he celebrated Mass, Francis spoke beneath huge portraits of
revolutionary leaders Ernesto "Che" Guevara and Camilo Cienfuegos
built into the facades of state buildings in Revolution Square. To
welcome the pope, a similarly giant poster of Jesus Christ was hung
nearby.
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In what government foes could see as criticism of party bureaucracy,
the pope said Jesus' apostles foolishly argued about rank and he
compared it to "those who climb the ladder most quickly to take the
jobs which carry certain benefits".
He also appeared to appeal to Cubans to look after each other as the
country faces social changes and new economic opportunities.
He said they should continue to be "at the service of the frailty of
your brothers and sisters" and "not neglect them for plans which can
be seductive, but are unconcerned about the face of the person
beside you".
Later on Sunday, the pope held a rally with young people, putting
aside his prepared comments and clearly enjoying the chance to
improvise and tell jokes in Spanish, their common native language.
He told them to have the courage to think outside the box after
hearing one of them say Cuba's youth were united in their desire for
"profound change" in the country.
Francis also went to the Palace of the Revolution for an hour-long
private meeting with 84-year-old President Raul Castro.
An atheist like his brother, Castro surprised the pope by giving him
a sculpture of a life-sized Jesus Christ nailed to a cross made of
oars and adorned with fishing nets.
While the Castro brothers repressed the Catholic Church in the early
decades of their revolution, they have both eased off in the last
two decades, allowing more religious freedoms and more space for the
Church to operate and even run schools.
The changes have helped improve the government's image and some
dissident groups complain the Church has not pushed hard enough for
greater political freedoms on the island.
Since arriving on Saturday, Francis has exhorted Cuba and the United
States to deepen their detente, and encouraged Cuba to grant more
freedom to the Church.
Francis will celebrate Mass in Cuba's eastern cities of Holguin and
Santiago before he flies out on Tuesday to the United States, where
he will meet with President Barack Obama and address both the U.S.
Congress and the United Nations.
(Additional reporting by Nelson Acosta, Andrew Cawthorne, Anahi Rama
and Marc Frank; Editing by Daniel Trotta and Kieran Murray)
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