The movement towards greater Participation by lay people in the Church s liturgy is dependent to a great degree upon an informed laity. Cardinal Lercaro's dictionary is an important contribution to this end. It is essential a clear and concise guide to the ceremonies and actions of the liturgy, together with brief accounts of their historical origins and development. It provides, in addition, an invaluable guide to the sacraments the major feats, church furniture and ornaments and the various rites of Catholic Christendom, past and present. The author's intention throughout has been to provide precise and accurate details based upon scholarly sources but without the complex machinery of footnotes and textual criticism which can so often bewilder the enquiring layman. Edited and introduced to English readers by Fr. J. B. O'Connell, one of the foremost liturgical scholars in Europe, A Small Liturgical Dictionary should also prove a useful reference book for priests and seminarians whose time does not always permit them to investigate fully the many detailed works upon the liturgy.