Latest News Let us journey together towards Easter January 2021 Deacon Sean Loone of Our Lady of the Wayside parish in Shirley, Birmingham, has once again put pen to paper and written a new book. His latest work - ‘Sharing in the Life of God - A Journey into the Real Meaning of Easter’ is available to buy now, with all profits going to the charity The Father O’Mahony Memorial Trust. This is Deacon Sean’s third book and its overwhelming message is one of optimism, hope and joy. The reader is taken on a spiritual journey starting with Lent before being led into Holy Week and the Easter season. The book comes to its end, quite rightly, with reflections on both the Ascension and Pentecost. Deacon Sean said: “The book was written against the background of the current Covid-19 pandemic and its overwhelming message is one of optimism, hope and joy as we celebrate the most important event in our faith – the resurrection of Christ, our saviour, from the dead. “He alone brings light where there was only darkness, love where there was only hate and of course life where there was only death. “Essentially the book is all about GOOD NEWS – the Good news of our faith, which, perhaps, now more than ever needs to be both proclaimed and celebrated.” When describing the book Deacon Sean said: ‘Imagine just being able to reach out and touch God or imagine what it is like to actually experience God in the here and now. Then imagine what it must be like to realise that God is closer to us than we could ever imagine just waiting for us to understand that we are sharing in his very life, every moment and every second of our lives. These are just some of the areas explored as the author invites us to delve deep into the mystery of God. This book is about the God who, in and through his Son, Jesus Christ, comes in search of us. Here we find the God of unconditional and overwhelming, generous love, who not only shares his very life with us but includes everyone and excludes no one. This is the God who not only suffers with us but allows us to see, realise and understand that the key to being fully human is to do everything we can to relieve the pain, misery and suffering of others. Only then will we be able to grasp that the God revealed by Jesus Christ actually stands in the darkness of the tomb with us, takes us by the hand and leads us out into the light of his glorious resurrection. This book takes the words of Jesus, ‘Do not be afraid’ and invites us on a journey through and beyond his death, into the real meaning of Easter. Reading it might just change your life.’ The book also holds special significance for the parish of Our Lady of the Wayside because it shares in and reflects the original vision of Fr Paddy O’Mahony (parish priest between 1962 and 1991 when he died) for what the church is called both to be and do in the world. As a result all of the profits from the sale of the book are being donated to ‘The Father O’Mahony Memorial Trust’, set up after his death to continue with his work of reaching out to and supporting some of the poorest and most desperate people on earth. The book concludes with a personal reflection by Deacon Sean on how the church building itself at Our Lady of the Wayside reflects the original vision of Fr O’Mahony. Finally, we are taken on a guided tour stopping at various points to allow Deacon Sean to explain how his own spiritual journey and writing was formed by his experience of Christ at Our Lady of the Wayside. ‘Sharing in the Life of God – A Journey Into the Real Meaning of Easter’ completes the series and is available to buy online at Amazon Deacon Sean’s other books in the series: ‘Born For Us - A Journey into The Real Meaning of Easter,’ which is all about the birth of Our Lord. ‘Only in the Crucified God - Questions and Answers on Faith, Hope and Love,’ which reflects on the impact of Our Lord’s death on our lives of faith. Manage Cookie Preferences