Verlagshaus Speyer closes, pilgrimage publisher takes over book program!

Verlagshaus Speyer closes, pilgrimage publisher takes over book program!

The Evangelical Church of the Palatinate gave up the “Speyer Verlagshaus” in the summer of 2024. This decision marks a significant change in the area of ​​church publications. Jochen Krümpelmann, former managing director of the Evangelical publisher, expressed that the book portfolio of the former publishing house was good at the pilgrimage publisher. This is beaten by the bridge between the two publishers that want to bundle their resources in the future.

Oberkirchenrätin Bettina Wilhelm thanked the diocese of Speyer for the opportunity to continue to spread book productions. The pilgrimage publisher, which has been part of the diocese of Peregrinus GmbH in Speyer since 2015, supports these efforts. The main topics of the pilgrimage publisher are primarily regional nature and include titles that deal with the Palatinate and Saarpfalz as well as the topic of pilgrims. His publications include the diocese newspaper and the singing book of the diocese of Speyer.

New book program of the pilgrimage publisher

With the takeover of the book program of the former publishing house Speyer GmbH, the pilgrimage publisher is now selling around 30 new titles. This change is intended to strengthen the cooperation between the Evangelical Church of the Palatinate and the Diocese of Speyer. The new publications include regional thrillers, meditative hiking guides and religious education writings. An example from the new program is the title "Meditating Hiking along the Wine Route", which stimulates readers for spiritual experiences.

Jochen Krümpelmann emphasizes the right direction of both publishers. Marco Fraloni, Managing Director of Peregrinus and Head of the Pilgrim Publishing House, also emphasizes the importance of the pilgrim literature for the region and the church. The Oberkirchenrätin sees the new publishing partnership as a sign of a trusting cooperation between the Evangelical Church of the Palatinate and the Diocese of Speyer. Markus Magin, Vicar General of the Diocese of Speyer, supports this vision and underlines the close cooperation that also targets common book projects in the future.

historical context and meaning

The diocese of Speyer, one of the oldest German dioceses, faces the challenge of reorienting yourself in the digital age. The decision to give up the publishing house could be seen as part of a more comprehensive strategy towards a stronger digital and interactive presence in church literature. These developments also underline how important the interface between church institutions and modern forms of publication is, especially in view of digitization in the church area, which has received an important thrust through the Covid 19 pandemy.

According to information from the reporting year 2020, the first studies already show how digital change in the Evangelical Church progresses. Topics such as digitization and their effects on church life shed light on the challenges and opportunities that are associated with this comprehensive transformation process - aspects that should also be important for the future program of the pilgrimage publisher.

For the coming years, it remains to be seen how the cooperation between the two publishers will develop and which new impulses for the region and the church community result.

Further information on the adoption of the book program and to planned cooperation can be found on the respective websites of Domradio and Bistum Speyer . For a deeper historical context, it is worth taking a look at the publications of the Church yearbooks , which deal with developments in the church and its responsibility in modern society.