Making the Eucharist Matter

Rating:
Summary: Better for liturgical discussion than planning
Review: Andersen's book is very good for the historical background of the liturgy. It's difficult to put into words the attitude and emotions that everyone in the assembly needs to bring to the Mass to really make it work. This book stresses the importance of the assembly as opposed to the priest and ministers. The assembly is NOT an audience but is truly essential for the liturgy to have meaning.
Andersen offers suggestions on how the liturgy could be changed to better accommodate the "full conscious active participation" of the assembly. Many of them are good, but there are no provisions in the rubrics for them, making them seem impossible to implement. Perhaps in the future after much discussion, they may be implemented, but that could be 100 years at the speed the Catholic Church moves in making changes. We must be careful to change things too quickly or liturgical chaos could result.
This book is good, but I would prefer more suggestions on what we can do now to improve meaning within the current rubrics.
All that being said, this was enjoyable reading. If one is not too pressed for time, I reccommend it. It's good to know that there is good discussion out there and perhaps changes may be made "someday".
For the average reader or liturgy planner this book may be frustrating, because it offers suggestions about an "ideal" liturgy, and everyone can offer their own ideas on that. It doesn't really tell us how to do what really needs to be done-- to touch the hearts and souls of the assembly-- there is no set formula for that (unfortunately).