Rabbi Shmuel Szteinhandler of Chile, representing The United Synagogue, brought siddurim, tallitot, kippot, a ner tamid and other ritual articles necessary to establish the new congregation.

The Sefer Torah entered the sanctuary under a chuppah held by prominent members of the Cuban Jewish community. Rabbi Szteinhandler covered his head with his tallit and blew the shofar. Witnesses said it was a sound heard for the first time in 30 years in Santiago.

"These joyous events in the Cuban Jewish community demonstrate the vitality of the emerging Conservative Jewish presence in Cuba," said Alan Ades, international president of the USCJ.