The Catholic University of Lublin opens up to Brazil - John Paul II Centre for the Study of Polish Culture established in Porto Alegre

"John Paul II used to emphasise that culture and spirituality unite people. I might add that the university and science do, too," said Rector of the Catholic University of Lublin during the official inauguration of the John Paul II Centre for the Study of Polish Culture in Porto Alegre. The Centre was set up jointly with the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS). This event furthermore begins the activities of the Catholic University of Lublin's Centre for the Polish Diaspora in Brazil and Latin America.

As a research unit, the John Paul II Centre for the Study of Polish Culture aims to promote and teach the Polish language, disseminate Polish history and culture in Brazil, as well as safeguard Polish cultural heritage, which is present in numerous places across the country. "The inauguration of the John Paul II Centre for the Study of Polish Culture in Brazil offers a meeting place to those who want to enrich one another. As the oldest Catholic university, the Catholic University of Lublin is undertaking the teaching of the Polish language, desk study in archives and the use of their resources. We must also be mindful of the cultural, didactic, and scientific support for the numerous Polish Diaspora in Brazil," said Rector of the University, Fr. Prof. Mirosław Kalinowski.

Fr. Prof. Kalinowski received the invitation to Brazil 3-4 years ago in an e-mail. "When I arrived in Brazil, I thought it was necessary to identify and merge the archives related to Polish emigration, " recalls Fr. Prof. Kalinowski. And that is what has been done. The Centre carried out the project "Polish History for the Polish Diaspora in Brazil". "It is a synthesis of Polish history with a special emphasis on Polish culture. It depicts the history of Poland from the perspective of the Brazilian Polish community," says historian Professor Arkadiusz Stasiak from the Catholic University of Lublin, coordinator of the Centre. The book has been translated into Brazilian Portuguese.

First activities

Classes for PUCRS students started in mid-March as part of the Polish Agency for Academic Exchange project Promotion of the Polish Language and Culture in Brazil. The four-month course includes Polish language classes and three series of academic lectures: in linguistics, concerning the "Specificity of Polishness in Language and Culture" (Prof. Magdalena Smoleń-Wawrzusiszyn), in history on the "History of Poland" (Prof. Arkadiusz Stasiak), and in sociology on the "Polish Success Culture" (Dr. Wojciech Wciseł).

The Centre’s target group

As Fr. Prof. Kalinowski points out, the activities are meant to attract anyone who wants to make an effort to study the Polish language, learn about Polish history and culture, also in the context of both countries. "These are the students of the University of Porto Alegre, Polish youth, as well as other students and Brazilian youth who have any links with Poland," adds the Rector of the Catholic University of Lublin.

During the opening ceremony of the John Paul II Centre for the Study of Polish Culture, PUCRS Rector Irmão Evilazio Teixeira expressed his gratitude to all those involved in the project. He added that a university is born out of dialogue with knowledge and culture. "We want to create the best possible collaboration between our universities," said Irmão Evilazio Teixeira.

One of the Centre's inauguration highlights was the opening of an exhibition "John Paul II - Poland's Gift to the World". Hosted by the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio Grande, the exhibition was part of a project carried out under the auspices of Poland's National Agency for Academic Exchange.

Porto Alegre is a large centre of the Polish Diaspora, who have lost their native command of the Polish language through generations (mainly due to former policies of the Brazilian authorities). Polish as an inherited language is spoken by few people and at very different levels of proficiency. Young people often do not speak Polish, although many express a desire to learn the language and strongly profess a sense of Polish national identity. "These links with our homeland are still alive and strong among the Brazilian Polish community, and they do not go hand in hand with the teaching offer they can receive in their city and region of Rio Grande do Sul," concludes the Centre's coordinator, Prof. Stasiak.