June 19: The Beer Monks

Welcome to the American Catholic Daily Reader podcast. Today is June 19th, and our story is The Beer Monks. At 10 a.m. on June 19th, 1855, an anxious Father Boniface Wimmer, OSB, sat in a Vatican acta chamber awaiting an audience with Pope Pius IX.

A German Benedictine priest, Father Wimmer, had immigrated to America almost ten years earlier. Upon his arrival at the invitation of Pittsburgh's Bishop Michael O'Connor, he founded America's first Benedictine monastery, St. Vincent's Abbey. Like all German abbeys, St. Vincent's raised its own crops, ground its own flour, and brewed its own beer.

O'Connor didn't mind the crop growing or flower grinding, but as an early adherent of the temperance movement, he was none too pleased with the beer brewing. After reflecting upon the scandal of monks in his diocese brewing and selling alcohol, he decided the best course of action was to order them to stop.

The Benedictines obeyed, but then they pled their case to Rome. Once Wimmer's audience began, he explained to the Holy Father that, out of obedience, the monks had drunk nothing but water since they ceased brewing. He then added, whether we can keep it up is another question. The Pope agreed, saying, water alone would never do on a permanent basis.

The two men reached a compromise. The monks could brew beer for themselves, but would avoid the retail trade for a time. The monks abided by the decision, and when they later resumed distributing beer, they sold only small amounts. Even that compromise, however, proved insufficient.

As the temperance movement grew in popularity, increasing numbers of the Catholic clergy and hierarchy in America criticized the monks. One Buffalo area priest even devoted a series of pamphlets to the infamous beer monks of St. Vincent's. Instead of laboring for the cause of sobriety, on which the welfare of the church in this country so greatly depends, he wrote, The beer monks are actually gaining revenue from the spread of intemperance. The monks stopped selling beer in 1898, then, following prohibition, closed the brewery for good.

Today, they sell coffee instead. Life often requires compromise without abandoning principle, balancing fidelity with creativity. The monks' work also reminds us that even mundane tasks, brewing beer, selling coffee, can serve community, tradition, and spiritual life when approached with integrity. Their perseverance demonstrates that devotion is expressed through daily labor, prudent decisions, and humility, shaping a lasting legacy for faith and society.

Consider a task or responsibility where balancing principle and practicality is required in your life today. Thank you for listening to the American Catholic Daily Reader podcast. Join us tomorrow, June 20th, for another story of faith and courage in America.