Karol Darmoros
During the opening ceremony, the Apostolic Nuncio shared a personal reflection on the value of the written word. He admitted that although as a literature lover he looks with admiration at the offer of Polish publishers, the language barrier is a challenge for him. “For me, who loves books, it is a certain torture to see them here and not be able to read them, only to flip through them,” said Archbishop Filipazzi. At the same time, the hierarch expressed deep appreciation for the work of publishers, noting that “a Catholic book and a book in general is a certain indicator of the degree of civilizational development.”
Challenges of contemporary communication
Archbishop Filipazzi diagnosed the difficult situation in which publishing houses and traditional readership find themselves today. He pointed out that contemporary audiences are “distracted by new means of communication, they do not care about books.” According to the nuncio, this state of affairs is “a great challenge for society, but also a pastoral task.” In Archbishop Filipazzi’s assessment, an element of the Church’s mission should be to convince younger generations to return to in-depth reading.
The book as an answer to chaos
The President of the Republic of Poland, Karol Nawrocki, referred to the mission of building a culture of the word in his letter, alluding to St. Augustine’s call: “take up and read.” The President pointed out that shared engagement with outstanding works over the years “constituted an irreplaceable platform for meeting and dialogue with another person,” which is particularly important in the face of societal atomization and the power of social media – “flickering with the chaos of moving images.” The Apostolic Nuncio, recalling the words of St. Augustine, wished the creators that their work would bear fruit in the form of renewed care for readership.
Feniks Award
This year’s edition of the Catholic Publishers’ Fair gathers about one hundred publishers from Poland and abroad. The mission of the event remains to spread the Good Word through books, to point to righteous ideas, and to promote values based on the teaching of love brought by the Gospel. A special highlight of the program will be Saturday’s Feniks Award gala, which will honor the best publications of the past year.
