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Leading from the Table (Alban Institute, 2008)

Description
The communion table stands as an intersection between Word and Sacrament, between memory and hope, between pastor and congregation, between receiving and serving, and between community and individual. Leading from the table, says Paul Galbreath, professor of preaching and worship, is a way of thinking, speaking, acting, and living that grows out of learning to recognize and embody these connections in our lives as a congregation and as individuals.

Developing leadership skills that connect the congregation’s eucharistic practice to the life and work of the church is essential to moving toward unity within congregations, denominations, and throughout the church. This book is not a how-to manual on presiding techniques, however. Rather, this book is a series of reflections about the way the prayer at the communion table provides a pattern for our lives. The goal is to shift our understanding of table prayer from a formula led by the pastor to a road map that highlights intersections between the practices at the table and the daily practices in the life of the community that gathers around the table.

When congregations are grounded in word, water, bread, and wine, then the transformative power of God’s Spirit has room to work among us. Then we are blessed with a community that will sustain us to work for justice and peace in this world.

Author
Paul Galbreath is associate professor of Preaching and Worship at Union Theological Seminary and Presbyterian School of Christian Education in Richmond, Virginia. He is the author of Doxology and Theology and previously served as a pastor for ten years in the Pacific Northwest and in the Office of Theology and Worship of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.).

Endorsements
“Paul Galbreath joyously and insightfully leads us back to our Lord's table, to reclaim the prayer over bread and wine as the pattern of our lives and our actions.”
—Craig A. Satterlee, Dean, Doctor of Ministry in Preaching Program of the Association of Chicago Theological Schools

“In these pages, congregations and pastors will find concrete help for understanding the rich meanings of the central prayer at the holy table, and for enacting the connections between this table and the search for justice and peace in the world.”
—Gordon W. Lathrop, Professor of Liturgy Emeritus, Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia

“Rich in examples promoting our twenty-first-century passion for social justice, Galbreath's worship commentary will excite many church worshippers and planners.”
—Richard Fabian, All Saints Company President, Founder of St. Gregory of Nyssa Episcopal Church, San Francisco

“Paul Galbreath offers us a remarkable reflection on how Eucharistic praying shapes our ethical engagement with the world.”
—Martha L. Moore-Keish, Assistant Professor of Theology, Columbia Theological Seminary

“Galbreath invites readers to wake up and pay attention to the ways that Eucharist forms and shapes us. The words and actions at the table matter; they imprint in our bodies a way of being.”
—Janet R. Walton, Professor of Worship, Union Theological Seminary (New York)

Table of Contents
View the table of contents and read the foreword by Don E. Saliers.

Vital Worship, Healthy Congregations Series with The Alban Institute
This series is designed to call attention to instructive examples of congregational life and to explore these examples in ways that allow readers in very different communities to compare and contrast these examples with their own practice. To find all the books in this series, go to Publications and under "Publisher," select "Alban Institute."

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