“In Poland,” Herbert once stated, “we think of the poet as prophet;
he is not merely a maker of verbal forms or an imitator of reality. The poet expresses the deepest feelings and the widest awareness of people….
“The language of poetry differs from the language of politics. And, after all, poetry lives longer than any conceivable political crisis.
“The poet looks over a broad terrain and over vast stretches of time. He makes observations on the problems of his own time, to be sure, but he is a partisan only in the sense that he is a partisan of the truth. He arouses doubts and uncertainties and brings everything into question”
Quoted on the From the Editors page at the UCity Review.
Chris Cocca 
Polish poet Juliusz Słowacki [1809-1849] became more noticed around the world in 1978, when Pole John Paul II became pope. It was then recalled that the poet had written (in 1848) a very surprising, visionary poem which speaks of the arrival of a ‘Slavic Pope’who would be a sort of prophet of modern times . This poem had a very important and lasting impression not only on a multitude of believers, but also on the entire Polish society and beyond. For them, this poem was another argument that John Paul II is the authentic, true messenger of heaven. That the Pope’s advice and instructions were in line with God’s will… And John Paul II (who was also a poet himself ) consciously used it to increase his influence. So the poet’s idea of the “Slavic Pope” played an exceptional role even at the political level. John Paul II used it to trigger a whole avalanche of great events: the creation of the first free trade union “Solidarność” in the Eastern bloc, the overthrow of the communist dictatorship, in Poland and then in other countries of the Eastern bloc, and finally the fall of the Berlin Wall. Does anyone know a better example of the power of poetry in the real life? Some even assume that Słowacki‘s poem became the basis of the “program” of the pontificate of St. John Paul II. This is the beginning of the poem :
“In the midst of all the disagreements, Lord God rings A huge bell, For the Slavic, here is the pope He opened the throne. For this Slavic Pope, he won’t escape Like this Italian, He will fight boldly, like God, with swords; The world is dust to him! His face, is beaming in a word, A lamp to the servants, The rising tribes will follow himInto the light, where God is. For his sake and order Not only the people If he commands, the sun will come to a stop, Because power is a miracle!…”
(see: https://lyricstranslate.com/en/papie%C5%BC-s%C5%82owia%C5%84ski-slavic-pope.html-0)
Best regards,
Edward Maliszewski