Brewer responds to pastor's letter

Talk about it

This morning, I received a link to a letter written by the Rev. Jim Sickmeyer, a pastor at Worthington Baptist Temple, and published Worthington Daily Globe. It merits comments.

I am one of the owners and director of brewery operations for The Lost Abbey in San Marcos, Calif. We at the Lost Abbey would like to thank the Rev. Jim Sickmeyer for noting our business is rooted in blasphemy. Unfortunately, Reverend, our opinion of The Lost Abbey Brewery is seemingly more positive than your cursory review of our operations based on a newspaper article. But, we’re not here to make apologies for our myopia.

However, we at The Lost Abbey are in the business of producing “inspired beers for sinners and saints alike.” Like you, we believe our lives began under the doctrine of free will allowing us the opportunity to make choices for ourselves. We view the production of an alcoholic beverage is something worthy of our time and attention. And our God agrees with us.

In your letter, you have quoted scripture in numerous contexts. Each of these passages speaks not to the consumption of alcohol in moderation, only overindulgence. As members of the Brewers Association located in Boulder, Colo., we endorse and support their mantra, “Savor the Flavor Responsibly.” Certainly, excess consumption of any alcoholic beverage can lead to serious problems at home. However, to blithely state, “Alcohol has destroyed more lives and ruined more marriages and families than most other issues,” and then quote traffic statistics from the NTSB is non-sequitur at best.

Perhaps you hit the nail squarely on the head when you assert, “Isn’t it amazing how alcohol brings out the hypocrisy in society?” We couldn’t agree with you more, as your arguments invoke a seemingly intolerant God who blasts away from heaven at the drinkers below. While it may seem incredulous to you, our production of an alcoholic beverage is neither illegal nor illicit. As such, we will continue our morally repugnant practice of turning malted barley into beer. We at The Lost Abbey are operating a world class brewery and believe that using religious themes and contexts to frame our beers is neither blasphemous nor morally indignant.

I attended Catholic grade school and high school here in San Diego at St. Augustine High School. I have read my fair share of the Bible and understand the ethos of moderation and the spiritual importance of wine as it relates to Christian doctrines. From the first Miracle at Cana to the Last Supper, wine was a part of rituals and miracles. I’m not one to quote scripture as most blasphemers are apt to do. But as a sinner, I much prefer “a feast is made for laughter and wine makes us merry.” (Ecclesiastes 10:19)

Tags: opinion, religion, beer