“I have lived a thousand lives. I have walked on distant worlds and I have seen the end of time. Because I read” – George R.R. Martin.

Do people read books anymore and do they read good ones? I asked some young people, but they did not give me an answer. Then, I reflected in silence as to why people do not read anymore or are not happy to read decent books.

I believe that, because they are heavily dependent on the media and their mobile phones, people leave books on their shelves. Our forefathers deemed a book a mine of richness, which embellishes our heart and opens horizons of intelligence, creativity, culture, and knowledge. Nowadays, however, people prefer to choose the TV for information, which leads viewers to an easy way of becoming lazy and dependent on a fake and misleading life.

I truly wonder whether people buy books anymore. Some do only as decorations or not to leave the shelves empty.

But what type of books do those who read go for? Do most of them simply look for dirty and pornographic literature? Do readers distinguish between a good and a mediocre book? What role does the book play in the formation of our young generation? Does the book have an important impact on the character, the mind, and the emotions of the young?

The bottom line is: do we really believe that a good book is a friend, which fills the heart and the mind, helps in choosing one’s direction in life and spurs one to seek what is good and avoid what is bad?

Don Bosco, who founded the Salesians, loved books, borrowed books, wrote books and published books. He read even during recreation time and enjoyed reading during the night. No wonder there was deep harmony between his heart, mind, life and the book.

French Salesian Joseph Aubry noted: “Don Bosco wrote and published a great deal and… the dissemination of popular reading matter was one of his main pastoral concerns.”

Don Bosco lived at a time when illiteracy was rampant in Turin. He dedicated his life first of all to the education of ‘his’ children, teaching them to appreciate culture, beauty and religion. He was convinced that the most dangerous person was the one who did not listen, think, and observe.

To acquire the habit of loving and reading books is to construct for yourself a refuge from the miseries of life. To build your project of life steadfastly, you have to build on solid principles. Our reality is more important than ideas.

In Malta, we read newspapers, which do not always report the truth and don’t present the real situation. Where there is no truth, lies are misleading, cause ambiguity and destroy the dignity of man. Albert Camus wrote: “The modern mind is in complete disarray. Knowledge has stretched itself to the point where neither the world nor intelligence can find any foothold. It is a fact that we are suffering from nihilism.”

The book is a precious gift, it has a charisma- Fr Charles Cini

The book is a precious gift, it has a charisma. It talks to your heart and, in silence, transmits a deep message for the situation you are living. It fills the emptiness of our heart. It guides you towards the dimension of the mystery of being a human being, the mystery to go in search of the true dignity of a human being, profoundly immersed in the discovery of the beauty of eternity.

Solitude with the book opens new horizons: richness of how you live and how to fight the crisis every day. The Church has been meritorious of art and culture and always promoted in the world the love of books.

I meet many young people who say they are no longer happy living in Malta. They say they do not feel safe and that their dignity as a human being is being abused.

A young university student sent me this letter: “No harmony, no unity, people are jealous, and everyone is in search of making money and power, behind each other’s backs.

“God doesn’t form part of their lives anymore. Priests play with statues, band marches, spending excessive money on feasts. God is not part of my life anymore. I don’t know how to pray.

“We lost our smile, our serenity, we are dissatisfied. We need to eradicate violence from our heart and to find our dignity as human beings again.

“Our battle against others springs from deep within our heart. It is our turn to write a new page, recovering the faith our parents passed on to us, so that our dream becomes a reality, and we can rebuild a different Malta and Gozo.”

Mahatma Gandhi used to say: “It has always been a mystery to me how people can respect themselves when they humiliate other humans.”

I sign off with a quote from the Italian dramatist and novelist Luigi Pirandello.

“Before judging my life or my character, before putting on one’s shoes, I walk along my journey. Live my pain, my doubts, my forced laughter. Live the years I lived and fall where I fell but rise back again as I did.”

Fr Charles Cini is a member of the Salesians of Don Bosco.