The Cultural Movement - Antelias launched the Lebanese Book Festival in its 40th edition titled "Culture of Freedom and the Third Centenary of the Antonian Presence in Antelias," during a celebration at its headquarters in the Mar Elias Monastery. The event was attended by the caretakers of the media and culture ministries in the caretaker government, Ziad al-Makari and Judge Mohamed Wissam al-Murtada, MP Edgar Traboulsi, President of the Lebanese University Professor Bassam Badran, Mayor of Antelias Eli Abu Joudeh, as well as representatives of security leaderships and various official, political, judicial, spiritual, intellectual, and educational figures.
The Secretary-General of the movement, Nayla Abi Nader, affirmed that "the word is light, and thought is a path to freedom, and this approach is a resistance against ignorance, intolerance, and confinement in darkness." She stated: "Amidst the raging waves, the Cultural Movement of Antelias resolved to reclaim its breath and consolidate its forces, deciding to venture after a three-year hiatus into an experience it had begun over four decades ago. With the intensification of anxiety, loss of direction, and the growing fear for our destiny, culture and writing become a delayed and much-desired luxury. Nevertheless, we hastened to send invitations that were responded to by several publishing houses and those interested in book affairs; they are our partners in facing the current significant challenges."
Minister of Information Ziad al-Makari commented, "A body grows only through sports and food, and a mind only through reading and thinking. This is what a German proverb says. In Lebanon, we add: the book is the joy of thought, the sustenance of the mind, and the engine of culture." He added, "The book deserves to be celebrated at a festival every year, just as the Antelias Cultural Movement deserves our fondest salute for its constant commitment to this cultural and civilizational tradition that shines brightly in the darkness of this nation."
He continued, "The political horizon is narrowing as if it will never widen again, while the cultural horizon is expanding as if it will never narrow. This is the paradoxical equation in my country. No matter how desperate the scene appears, there are those who struggle against crises, fight hardships, and fill the void with intellectual weights and everlasting cultural baggage; this is our brilliant history that will remain radiant and extend to our present and future. How could it not be, when the cultural movement in Antelias is the eternal guardian of our heritage and the wise entrusted steward of our writings and our letters, which are our craft?"
He remarked, "When crises intensify and tighten their grip on a country that birthed the letter and founded the oldest educational institutions, the remedy must come from the book, from which everything began. Here, just a few steps away from the popular streets of Antelias and in the heart of the book festival within the cultural movement, we feel that we are gathering glory from all its edges."
He further expressed, "Some may argue that the book belongs to a bygone era, and some may question its relevance in this age of digitization, colossal technological advancements, smart tablets, and rich applications… The answer is one and spontaneous: there is no value that matches the value of a physical book that encapsulates genuine thought born of deep research and solid science, which does not rush toward quick fame or a multitude of followers. The book resides in our consciousness, no matter how technology evolves and fingers hasten to scroll on smartphones and tablets. Yes, it resides in our consciousness even if it is on the shelves of libraries, content with its own self, its literatures, sciences, and history. The smell of its pages is intoxicating, and its texture between the hands enriches the mind and pleases the eyes. Is not the book the root of all sciences and the foundation of all thought? It is the constitution, the dictionary, the history, the literature, the culture, the Gospel, and the Quran! The book is everything. If it were not for the book, there would be no derivatives or digital offshoots that added to it rather than negated it, as some might believe."
He added, "Today, we celebrate the book festival, and today we rejoice along with Gibran Khalil Gibran, Mikhail Naimy, Michel Chiha, Charles Malek, Said Aql, Ghassan Tueni, Amin Maalouf… and the list is long, and the discourse about the people of the pen, thought, science, and the book does not end. Here is Lebanon, the bright and glorious face, Lebanon of the word and the letter, which will remain golden no matter how fierce the flames burn and consume; gold is tested in fire. Congratulations to the cultural movement in Antelias on its new intellectual season, and congratulations to all of us for this refined movement and its intellectual creation enshrined in books characterized by permanence for all eternity. We will meet every day with a new cultural product that enriches our libraries and records our sciences and literatures."
He went on to mention that there was a project with the cultural movement - Antelias, as this year the Arab League decided to make Beirut the capital of Arab media. "When I represented Lebanon at the Arab Media Ministers' Council meeting in Cairo, I did not hesitate to accept this challenge despite all the circumstances we have reached. When I was in Egypt, the dollar price was around thirty thousand, and today it has reached ninety thousand, and we are still following up on the matter."
Al-Makari added, "Here is Beirut; therefore, I agreed. We are distinguished from our surroundings because we are not devoid of cultural, literary, artistic, media, and advertising activities and everything related to culture, journalism, and the significance of this country among Arab nations—a fact that the newspaper Al-Ahram documents with the significant contributions of Lebanon."
He said, "The Cultural Movement will remain a partner, even after the opening date was postponed, which was set for the twenty-fourth of last month, following the earthquake in Turkey and Syria and the rising dollar prices. The circumstances were no longer favorable, especially as colleagues in Arab countries wished for this matter to be postponed until after Ramadan."
In conclusion, al-Makari stated, "May we remain partners with you, the dedicated ones in the Cultural Movement - Antelias, and may it be a year filled with the most beautiful events for beautiful Beirut."
Finally, Minister of Culture Mohamed Murtada remarked: "On a hill not far from here, the Prince of Poets Al-Akhtal Al-Saghir once stood, gazing at the sea towards Beirut, and sang a poem for the capital city in which he says: 'All the minarets have been redeemed; it is a beacon in the mouth of the world, guidance and a smile. I did not come to you except by your guidance, a mentor above the pulpits, or a passionate song.' In a nearby home, the Rahbani brothers erected their musical steps and set to this poem a magnificent melody sung by Fairouz, the icon of Lebanese creativity."
He added, "And here, for decades, the cultural movement in Antelias has been holding the annual book festival, as if this land of Lebanon is destined for culture, in all its dimensions, so that the weddings of letters, melody, and color are intertwined in days and nights, reflecting the truth of Lebanon… The homeland of the alphabet and the message."
He continued, "Thus, our generation and the generations before us realized Lebanon's role: it is the printing house of the Arab world, a phrase we heard and saw its action in the intellectual crowd of libraries, publishing houses, and newspapers before the invasion of the digital society and before the book's retirement and its transformation into part of household furniture, dusted off only when needed."
He added, "There is no doubt that the era of reading established by Beirut through book fairs laid the foundation for Lebanon's cultural reference, as it turned—thanks to the freedom space within it—into a refuge for thinkers, writers, and publishers in the Arab world, and a source of awareness spreading throughout the East."
Murtada stated, "When the time of the digital civilization came, which is a natural course of contemporary modernity, it became apparent that despite its great benefits and ease of consumption, it may lack the objectivity of sources and vary in accuracy of the information and thoughts it presents, making it mandatory to return to printed references in pursuit of truth."
He added, "I'm not saying this as a bias towards printed books, although I truly favor them, but to address a new issue we all suffer from, which is that we have started producing generations that do not read, neither in printed nor in digital books. This responsibility begins in school chairs, passes through the home environment, and reaches the roles of central and local administrations, and civil society as well, in establishing traditional and electronic public libraries and activating reading by all means, especially among the youth. Their migration from books has led to a significant decline in the Arabic language's usage on tongues, in the media, and on social media, where Arabic letters have become signs and numbers, necessitating us to put a plan to protect the language from this decline; and reading and books are the best means for that."
He continued, "The book is also the most effective weapon in the battle of awareness being fought against our identity. The enemy aims to defeat us through ignorance. The more our knowledge decreases, the more our intellectual and national immunity weakens. The enemies of Lebanon target Lebanon's radiating and pluralistic role, as expressed by the role of the book and the publishing movement in our country."
He stated, "The book fair in Antelias is a significant cultural beacon in its history, showcasing its resilience despite the troubled economic situation. The fair has maintained its continuity, spreading the values of pluralism and freedom, transforming into a creative and responsible cultural incubator, wherein its activities represent a knowledge-based phenomenon across the entire country, harmonizing ideas across various fields of knowledge: politics, economics, poetry, novels, history, and documentation. Therefore, we commend the organizers' efforts and acknowledge the state's shortcomings in supporting and accompanying this fair, and we hope that once the storm passes over our troubled present, the fair will be at the core of a comprehensive national cultural plan that restores glory to our country and creates incentives for publishers, books, and thinkers in Lebanon."
He added, "On the occasion of this fair, which represents an event of great cultural importance, we announce that the Ministry of Culture, in cooperation with the Lebanese Publishers Union and in coordination with Arab and international entities, will, God willing, organize an international book fair in early next fall."
He concluded, "Blessed be this fair, and thank you to those responsible for its establishment, along with future cultural events despite all the challenges."
After cutting the opening ribbon, Al-Makari and Murtada toured the exhibition sections, which will be open daily until the 12th of this month, from three in the afternoon until nine in the evening.
