International Buy-A-Priest-A-Beer Day
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International Buy-a-Priest-a-Beer Day is an annual observance on September 9 introduced by the blog The Catholic Gentleman in 2013. The premise of the holiday is that members of the Catholic laity are to buy beer for the clergy.[1] The tradition has been linked to the invented legend of "Saint Hopswald of Aleyard – the first man to take his priest out for a beer".[2]
The day was introduced by a Roman Catholic and has been prompted as a social event supporting vocations to the priesthood by Catholic parishes and dioceses.[3][4][5][6] John Zuhlsdorf has recommended the priest use the blessing for beer from the old Rituale Romanum.[7] It builds upon "Theology on Tap" events held by Catholics and other Christians since the 1980s.[8] The day has been taken up by other Christians as well, including Anglicans in Australia,[9] Canada,[10] and Cyprus.[11]