And They Brought Beer

In the town of Umbria Italy, a group of Benedictine monks are bringing back the ancient art of brewing beer that was started back in the middle ages. This confuses most people with most of them believing that they could not drink this during fasting periods but it is a sustenance giving beverage during these times and has been consumed more this length of time.This group of mostly american born monks are brewing a beer called Nursia and are beginning to sell it in the US in order to keep their monastery afloat. They say that more than just keeping them afloat the brewing acts as a link between them and the community that they live in stating that, “In a world where most people are afraid of the church, religion, afraid of a priest, afraid of a  monk but they are more than happy to talk about beer”. It’s all made by them between their eight daily prayers.

The idea of using the idea of brewing beer to connect with groups of people that may be hesitant to trust the church or anything related to it but they would definitely trust the idea of getting a beer from them especially in a culture like ours. The idea of going and grabbing a beer whether it be to reconnect with an old friend, make new friends or smooth over issues that may have come up between a group is deeply understood in the states by most people to be a sign of good faith and neutral ground. The idea that these monks are using this idea in order to connect the bridge of peace as it were between the people that may be hesitant to join the church with a section of its body. In the number of ways that could have been used, for some people this would be the best way for them because of this idea of what beer could do.

Paul Short

http://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/birra-nursia-brewed-american-monks-italy-hits-u-s-shelves-n520071