A capacity (Covid-style) crowd came together in the Gathering Space at Our Lady of Good Counsel, Deepdene, last Thursday evening, for the Launch of Frank O’Loughlin’s, Gathering the People of God.

Father Brendan introduced the book telling the gathered crowd,

“Frank O’Loughlin is irrepressible in his writing about the liturgy, whether it is about the Eucharist, the sacrament of penance, the context and culture in which liturgy is being celebrated. He is turning his mind to sin at the moment and looking at a recontextualisation of that topic. That will be his next book.
Tonight we are here to launch and then explore Gathering the People of God: Renew the liturgy- renew the church.

It is an interesting subtitle. ‘Renew the liturgy – renew the church’ is like an imperative. Do it or let’s do it! But this title is emerging 55 years after Sacrosanctum Concilium. So the title also begs the question – ‘what happened?’. Did we renew the church when we renewed the liturgy in 1965? Or maybe Frank is asking, ‘in what ways have we not grasped the renewal?’ What did not go far enough? Frank’s contention in this book is that there were some deeply significant claims made about the people of God – all the baptised – in the renewal of the liturgy, that have not been realised. In fact we have seen attempts at restoring the liturgy (the fascination with the anachronistic Tridentine rite) or, on the other hand, the reduction of liturgical encounter to a common values sharing and mutual self-esteem building.

Frank, I think wants to awaken us to the profound renewal of the liturgy that grew out of the Second Vatican Council and its potential to truly and deeply renew the Church.

He has been at this task for many years teaching, preaching, praying and presiding in a way that invites us on the journey of renewal with him. I invite you to join with me in congratulating and thanking Frank for this book and in delving into it over the next few weeks with and around him.”

Hugh McGinlay from Coventry Press formally launched the book and Fr Frank gave the first of this three part talks on the topic of the book.

You are welcome to join us at Our Lady of Good Counsel Church, Gathering Space on Thursday, 6 May and Thursday, 13 May at 7:30 pm for the next two talks in the series. Frank will expand on the book and on how the liturgy can renew the Church.

Gathering the People of God can be ordered online or purchase it at Pauline Books in 7 Denmark Hill Road, East Hawthorn.

Congratulations Father Frank!