By Suresh Abboodass
Archbishop John Wilson of Southwark has made history by becoming the first Archbishop of Southwark Archdiocese to have written a book about the Church in recent memory.
The book on the Second Vatican Council has already become a big hit with more than thousand copies sold in the first week of its publication and even before its official launch.
Nearly two hundred people including bishops, clergy, nuns and laity from all over the Southwark Archdiocese and from different parts of the country gathered for the book launch which was held at the Amigo Hall of the St. George´s Cathedral in Southwark London on 6th March.
The book, entitled “Pondering and Praying Vatican II”, has been published with the collaboration of the Pauline Books and Media UK, which is run by the Sisters of the congregation of Daughters of St. Paul.
Speaking about his new book, Archbishop John Wilson described his book as an attempt at “helping people to see what a blessing the key documents of Vatican II are, by understanding our relationship with God and the Church.”
“While many people have heard of Vatican II, few have actually read. So, I set about something easily accessible, without specialist knowledge, that anyone can find it useful,” he said. “You can have it by your bed and read it everynight. It is user friendly to anyone who wants to reflect on what the Church said at the Vatican II,” he said.
He also said that the book was a “timely resource focusing on the four Constitutions which are the fundamental documents of the Council. These are: the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, the one on Divine Revelation and lastly the Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World, “he stated.
“Understanding the Vatican II Council will help us to evangelise, each according to our vocation and to go out into the whole world to announce the Good News,” he said. “Relating with other churches (ecumenism), and other beliefs (inter religious dialogue) were also at the core of the Second Vatican Council.”
“The Second Vatican Council started on 11th October 1962 and concluded on 8th December 1965, with over 4000 bishops from all over the world participating in it. The Council was a remarkable event in the Catholic Church.”
“By opening up the Vatican II Council, Pope John 23rd made it possible to enable the Church to meet the contemporary missionary demands of proclaiming the Gospel,” he pointed out.
Archbishop John Wilson expressed his sincere gratitude to the Sisters of Pauline Media Group for their collaboration, without whose help and support this book would not have been possible to be published, he said. He also expressed a special thanks to Rev.Sr. Elaine, who first came up with the idea of publishing a book on the Second Vatican Council.
Former Archbishop and Archbishop Emeritus Most Rev. Kevin McDonald paid glowing tributes to the efforts of Archbishop John Wilson in bringing out this book on the Second Vatican Council. “Inclusion and relativity are the two fruits of the Council,” he said. He hoped that the faithful will find it immensely fruitful and enlightened as they venture to read the book penned by Archbishop John Wilson.
Welcoming the gathering, Rev.Sr. Angela Grant of the Daughters of St. Paul stated that the book was beautifully illustrated and eloquently written by Archbishop John Wilson. She added that it will help the readers to pause and reflect on the Church´s role in the world as required by the Second Vatican Council, especially as the Jubilee Year 2025 approaches.
Nearly a hundred people, including the clergy, stood patiently in a long queue to get their copies of the new book signed by the author John Wilson. It took about an hour for him to sign each copy, and he was visibly very delighted about the launch of his book. The new book can be purchased from Pauline Books and Media.
Archbishop John Wilson´s next venture in print will be a book on the life and teachings of the martyred Archbishop of El Salvador St. Oscar Romero.