Cuban President Raul Castro attended the opening of the San Carlos and San Ambrosio Interdiocesan Seminary of the Catholic Church, about 20 kilometers (12.4 miles) southeast of Havana.
The seminary, an institute for training Catholic priests, was previously located in the historical district of Old Havana, and very close to the Havana Cathedral.
An institution is born which is a continuation of that one, Havana City Historian Eusebio Leal said at the opening.
Addressing a public of high-ranking officials of the State and the Church and foreign guests, Leal commented on the seminary's tradition and its role in training eminent men for this country.
The archbishop of Havana, Cardinal Jaime Ortega, expressed gratitude to the country top leaders for their support in building the seminary, whose cornerstone was blessed by Pope John Paul II during his visit to Cuba in 1998.
Pope Benedict XVI sent a message that was read aloud during the opening, in which he wished "a renewed vigor in the commitment to ensuring a diligent human, spiritual and academic preparation for those in that institution who are on the way to the priestly ministry."