Take, Bless, Break, Share: Agapes, Table Blessings, and Other Small Group Liturgies

To take, share bread and wine in the context of a meal at home or among friends is to reach deep into Old Testament tradition and to experience something of how the Early Church kept Jesus’ command to remember him in the breaking of bread. Today, this central act of our Christian worship and devotion almost always takes place in the formal setting of a church service, yet many Christians are beginning to rediscover the intimacy and significance of simpler celebrations, such as an agape meal. Take, Bless, Break, Share provides a rich source of table blessings and liturgies suitable for agapes and other informal gatherings where people meet to share a meal and share their faith. Drawn from Anglican, Catholic and evangelical sources, they are designed to enable everyone present to participate. Many have a pastoral character, with liturgies of reconciliation, healing and hope. Others have a strong ethical focus, such as social justice, the environment and discrimination, making Take, Bless, Break, Share the most comprehensive and versatile collection of its kind.