We Are What We Read

^{Originally published in The Way on March 1, 1941.}

“We are what we read.” This is a startling statement. It is a rather strong statement, but it is true. What do you read? What are you?

You need no strong lengthy arguments to convince you that this is a reading age. To be convinced all you need is to watch the maneuvers of men and women on street cars, busses, trains and airplanes. Some people even read while walking. What are the people reading?

America has 2,167 daily newspapers; 10,805 weeklies. Out of this number only 9 dailies and 126 weeklies are Catholic. Limiting it further, we find the Ukrainian Catholics have no daily and only one weekly, a very young weekly and one which, as yet, lacks the support of many who should support it.

What does this tell you? It seems to indicate that we Ukrainians are not very conscious of our ideals, of our duty to our Church, to our people.

Perhaps it may seem that the comparison of the Ukrainians to the general American public, or general Catholic readers is not quite fair. It would be more fair to compare the Ukrainians and their press to other immigrant groups and their press. Let us do so.

The non-English Catholic dailies are divided linguistically as follows: Polish 4; Slovenian 1; Lithuanian 1; Bohemian 1; French 1. The Polish paper has the largest circulation of some 30,000. Even here we do not make a good showing. We have no daily and our weekly — perhaps can boast of 3,000 readers, perhaps as yet it can’t!

We have one Ukrainian Catholic weekly — THE WAY.

THE WAY is edited especially for people like yourself, people whose interests reach beyond the limit of their own parish or community; people interested in the Catholic news of the world, the nation, the diocese; people interested in their own rite, in their own national group.

THE WAY cannot compete with the secular dailies or even weeklies in speed or in local news . . . but neither can these compete with THE WAY in news of general Ukrainian Catholic character.

Each has its separate function.

THE WAY is a Ukrainian Catholic weekly out to serve its Church and its people. It is independent with regard to political tendencies and is out to provide a leavening of Ukrainian Catholic thought and attitude to offset the worldliness of the general press and at the same time to acquaint its readers with the great amount of the news of their church, rite and people entirely lacking in other papers. It is out to preserve Catholicism and Ukrainianism in this country, and it is the obligation of every Ukrainian Catholic to support this effort.

We are what we read. If we do not read Ukrainian Catholic publications, how long can we, can our descendants, remain Ukrainian Catholics? You know the answer. Preserve your own by reading THE WAY.