Contrary to what you might believe, the Catholic Church doesn't mind you drinking beer, particularly if it's been properly blessed first. I suggest you try the following blessing on your next six-pack of Blackened Voodoo Beer or Pete's Wicked Ale:

Lord, bless this creature, beer, which by your kindness and power has been produced from kernels of grain, and let it be a healthful drink for mankind. Grant that whoever drinks it with thanksgiving to your holy name may find it a help in body and in soul; through Christ our Lord.

Amen.

To complete the prayer, you must sprinkle your beer with holy water.

Please note that, even if properly done by a priest, blessing Creature Beer gives no implied holy warranty against hangovers in the case of overindulgence.


Reference: The Roman Ritual, translated by Philip T. Weller, S.T.D. The Bruce Publishing Company, 1964.

After having consulted with an author/former priest-in-training, I believe the above noncommercial, educational duplication of the prayer to be a fair use, since prayers are intended for free public performance during religious ceremonies.

Why bless the beer? What did the beer actually do for you? (OK, don't answer that question...)

Seriously though...

Religious Jews make a blessing before eating any food (or to put it another way, the father of a female friend, a teenager at the time, once said "Make a Bracha (blessing) over everything that goes into your mouth"..........). However, the blessing is not for the food itself, but is actually blessing G-D for having created the food in the first place.

Some foods have specific blessings - for example, there is a specific one for wine, and another for bread. There's then a general "baked goods" blessing that covers biscuits, crackers etc and various other things. And there's separate blessings for fruit and vegetables.

And finally there's a generic blessing which is used for everything else. Translated into English it reads Blessed are You, O Lord, our G-D, King of the universe, through Whose word everything came to be.

So to my original point. This is the blessing a religious Jew would make to bless G-D before drinking beer.


The Custodian says Hamozti Lechem Min Ha'Aretz as beer is from grain. This blessing is the one for bread - literally "who brings forth bread from the ground". The blessing for other grain is "Borei Minei Mezonot". But as it's changed form, the one i mention (Shehakol) is the one for beer.

Ouroboros asks about beer on passover. Not gonna happen. It's been brewed using yeast, so can't be drunk at all on passover.

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