The Search For God and Guiness

by Stephen Mansfield

The history of Guinness, one of the world s most famous brands, reveals the noble heights and generosity of a great family and an innovative business.

It began in Ireland in the mid 1700s. The water in Ireland, indeed throughout Europe, was famously undrinkable, and the gin and whiskey that took its place devastated civil society. It was a disease ridden, starvation-plagued, alcoholic age, and Christians like Arthur Guinness as well as monks and even evangelical churches brewed beer that provided a healthier alternative to the poisonous waters and liquors of the times. This is where the Guinness tale began. Now, 250 years and over 150 countries later, Guinness is a global brand, one of the most consumed beverages in the world. The tale that unfolds during those two and a half centuries has power to thrill audiences the generational drama, business adventure, industrial and social reforms, deep-felt faith, and the noblebeer itself.

"Frothy, delicious, intoxicating and nutritious!No, I'm not talking about Guinness Stout I'm talking about Stephen Mansfield's fabulous new book...The amazing and true story of how the Guinness family used its wealth and influence to touch millions is an absolute inspiration." Eric Metaxas, New York Timesbest-selling author

"It's a rare brew that takes faith, philanthropy and the frothy head of freshly-poured Guinness and combines them into such an inspiriting narrative. Cheers to brewmaster Stephen Mansfield! And cheers to you, the reader! You're in for a treat." R. Emmett Tyrrell Jr., Founder and editor-in-chief ofThe American Spectator

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Genres: History, Nonfiction, Biography, Beer, Business, Ireland, Christian

First published October 13, 2009

About the author

Stephen Mansfield is a New York Times bestselling author and a popular speaker who is becoming one of the nation’s most respected voices on religion and American culture. He is also an activist in a variety of social causes.

Stephen was born in Georgia but grew up largely in Europe due to his father’s career as an officer in the United States Army. After a youth filled with sports, travel, and mischief, he was recruited to play college football but turned down the opportunity when a Christian conversion moved him to attend a leading Christian college.

He earned a Bachelor’s degree in history and philosophy and then moved to Texas where he pastored a church, completed two Master’s degrees, hosted a radio show and began acquiring a reputation as a popular speaker of both depth and humor. He moved to Tennessee in 1991 where he again pastored a church, did relief work among the Kurds in Northern Iraq, served as a political consultant, and completed a doctorate.

It was during this time that he also launched the writing career for which he has become internationally known. His first book on Winston Churchill was a Gold Medallion Award Finalist. He also wrote widely-acclaimed biographies of Booker T. Washington and George Whitefield as well as a number of other books on history and leadership. In 1997, the Governor of Tennessee commissioned Mansfield to write the official history of religion in Tennessee for that state’s bicentennial.

In 2002, Stephen left the pastorate after twenty fruitful years to write and lecture full-time. Not long afterward he wrote The Faith of George W. Bush, which spent many weeks on the New York Times bestseller list and won numerous national awards. The book also became a source for Oliver Stone’s internationally acclaimed film W, which chronicled Bush’s rise to the presidency.

This international bestseller led to a string of influential books over the following eight years. Stephen wrote The Faith of the American Soldier after being embedded with U.S. troops in Iraq. He also wrote about the new Pope in Benedict XVI: His Life and Mission. His book The Faith of Barack Obama was another international bestseller and was often a topic in major media during the presidential campaign of 2008. To answer the crumbling values of portions of corporate America, he wrote The Search for God and Guinness and soon found himself speaking to corporate gatherings around the world.

Stephen continues to write books about faith and culture—recently on topics like Sarah Palin, Oprah Winfrey and America’s generals—but beyond his writing career he has founded The Mansfield Group, a successful consulting and communications firm, as well as Chartwell Literary Group, a firm that creates and manages literary projects. Together with his wife, Beverly, Mansfield has created The Global Leadership Development Fund, a foundation that sponsors leadership training and networking around the world.

In recent years, Stephen’s popularity as a speaker has nearly eclipsed his reputation as a bestselling author. He is often to be found addressing a university gathering, a corporate retreat or a fundraising banquet and stirring his audience with the humor and storytelling that have become his trademark.

Mansfield lives primarily in Nashville, Tennessee, with his beloved wife, Beverly, who is an award-winning songwriter and producer. For more information, log onto MansfieldGroup.com.

Reviews

[Erik Bonkovsky · Rating 2 out of 5]

I love Guinness and I've been to Dublin twice. I also love God. But this book just wasn't that good. The writing is cliched and saccharine. The conclusions are unfounded and sweeping. I'd say it's a missed opportunity because the subject is good.

[Amy · Rating 2 out of 5]

For my 21st birthday, my Dad took me to a bar at midnight and chanted: "Card her! Card her! Card her!"
The bartender then gave me some travesty of a drink that was supposed to taste like a Bomb Pop. I took two sips and then commandeered my Dad's Guinness.
Point being: I like Guinness.
I'm not really sure the author of this book likes Guinness.
I am annoyed that I have to think about his preferences at all. My biggest pet peeve in nonfiction is when an author inserts himself too much into the narrative. (Autobiographies obviously excluded.) And in this case, Mansfield plays a way too important a role for his story.
This was an easy but lackluster read that chronicles some of the charitable works of the Guinness family over the years. I sometimes wondered if I wouldn't have done just as well to go to their website and read the About page.
My biggest takeaway was that the Guinness Book of World Records is somehow connected to Guinness beer which is cool.
Oddly enough I'd recommend this one only if you like missionary stories and authors who think their journey of self-exploration deserves more space than the actual biography.

[Kate · Rating 2 out of 5]

(One and a half stars.)

I'd never heard of this author before; I purchased the book based solely upon its title, which is something that I rarely do. As a huge fan of both God and Guinness, I thought I was in the target demographic. Within a few pages, however, something began to smell funny.

A quick Google search revealed that Mansfield has a reputation as a highly politicized writer. (Mike Huckabee loves him, Jon Stewart does not.) I was puzzled by his early admission that he was not a Guinness drinker, but I thought that might lend a certain objectivity to this little history of my favorite brew. However, my nervousness with his scholarship began with his utter surprise that all sorts of earnest Christians, including Martin Luther and the Mayflower Pilgrims, loved their beer. I would have thought that this was unworthy of comment, but at least Mansfield was honest enough to admit that he was really starting from zero in his understanding of beer history. Mansfield then returns to the topic of the non-sinfulness of beer at the end of the book, as if to convince his gentle readers that they can partake in good conscience. (If he convinces any timid souls, perhaps he has done his own act of Christian social service.) The author's vague discomfort with his topic, however, remains clear throughout the volume.

Mansfield sets out to place the Guinness family within a context of Christian social action, ranging from the mid-eighteenth-century founding of the brewery to the late-twentieth-century demise of family corporate control. Despite this worthy goal, his selected examples neither go into the necessary depth nor connect to the big-picture story that he's trying to weave. The author is doggedly determined to show what good folks these Guinnesses were, with very rosy reports of company social services that sound more paternalistic than helpful. Though Mansfield asserts that the workers were "enthusiastic" to improve their housekeeping and sanitation skills, for example, he neglects to interrogate the possibility that a lack of such "enthusiasm" could result in the loss of a job. Union conditions and comparisons with other contemporary Dublin employers are also conspicuously absent from the account.

Mansfield's chapter on "Guinnesses for God," or the missionary / evangelist branch of the family, reads like the book that Mansfield really wanted to write. This lively section provides a six-degrees-of-separation analysis of mid-nineteenth-century preachers like Dwight Moody, Hudson Taylor, and Henry Grattan Guinness. Though Mansfield is careful to point out that all work, from brewing to preaching, can be conducted for God's glory, he seems most comfortable with the preachers. This made me wonder why he wasted time on the brewers at all. Except for the highly readable later chapter on twentieth-century Guinness, I didn't glean a lot of insight on the history of Guinness beer. Rather than "a biography of the beer that changed the world," as the subtitle promises, it's a very hasty biography of selected members of a family whose fortune came from brewing.

This is an overly long review for a short book that I didn't like very much, but I can't help expressing my disappointment. Mansfield's topic is still very appealing to me: I would happily read a more nuanced account of the role that faith may have played in the founding and running of the Guinness beer empire. Any recommendations on a better Guinness history, faith-inspired or not?

[Shea Stacy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful book!
Truly the Guinness family is one to be admired. This is a prime example of Christian virtue being applied to all areas of life.

Two primary lessons were the example of what I would call righteous or godly capitalism. One their sayings was "you can't make money if you aren't willing for others to make money off of you." This principle was applied in Guinness's high wages and investment in their employees, from education, housing, healthcare and many more areas. God blessed this family so that they could be a blessing and by all accounts they were.

Second lesson was generational planning. Arthur Guinness signed 9000 year lease. That story is still absurd to me, but he built and trained his children in such a way as to pass wealth down through generations. This goal was accomplished and his family was full of successful business men and pastors and effected the missionary efforts around the globe (including Hudson Taylor). How much more can be accomplished for Christ and His kingdom when Christians consider the future.

This was a great book highly recommend

[Jake Bronson · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book was good, but the idea was great. Seeing how the Guinness family used their business acumen to bring life and the hope of the Gospel to Dublin was incredible. One of the final encouragements of the author is to see history the way the Guinness's saw history - generational. We are so quick to think we are singular, but we must return to seeing our lives within its historic and future generational context.

[James Korsmo]

Thanks to Thomas Nelson for the review copy. This book is, as its subtitle proclaims, "a biography" of a beer. But, it is obviously more than that. In short, it is the biography of a family and a company whose history is seasoned with devotion to Jesus Christ and to the conviction that faith can be lived out beyond the walls of a church. In this interesting and readable journey through 250 years of history, Mansfield writes an engaging chronicle of how this family's faith shaped the ethos of a company and led it to be a leader both in the quality of the product it produced and in the way it formed a corporate culture. I can't say I'd ever thought of beer as a particularly healthy drink (probably due to a lot of baggage that often comes with the beverage in its American context), but its value as a safe and wholesome alternative to either unsafe water or to harder liquor in the early years of the company was part of the motivation behind its beginnings.



I was fascinated by the way this company continually chose to be a leader in the way it treated its workers, from the way company doctors aggressively sought to improve the living conditions of turn-of-the-twentieth-century workers, to the preservation of jobs for people in military service during the second world war, to the high wages it paid. I was also intrigued by the pattern of heirs apparent sidestepping their path to the company for full-time Christian ministry.



In all, this was both an entertaining and informative study on how one family and company have lived out their faith. It certainly gives food for thought on how our corporate culture today often falls short, and it also proves a great extended illustration of Luther's emphasis that vocation goes far beyond ordained ministry.

[Tina Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

I needed a light and interesting read and this fit the bill. The story of beer and one family's influence that is far-reaching because of the founding faith of Arthur Guinness. They were mindful that they could make the working man's life better by paying living wages and offering affordable housing and classes to improve everyday living.

If only business of today could operate this way. At the core, the family held a belief that work was good and sacred. Service to God and man was not limited to the church, although many from the family did pursue ministry, including one of my favorite authors and apologists of the Christian faith, Os Guinness, who is the great-great-great-grandson of Arthur Guinness. Talk about generational blessing!

Cheers! Let's have a beer.

"The company did not drain a man and expect the church or the state to rebuilt him again. They invested. They paid high wages, offered every type of education, provided medicine, sports, entertainment, and even a place to think, and assured every kind of financial safety net for those who served them well. They also built houses, sent sons to college, and lifted whole families to new economic heights. They did this because it was the right thing to do..." (p.260)

[Brian · Rating 1 out of 5]

Meh... Neo-con claptrap disguised as cut-rate history. The title makes you think the book will be a lot cooler than it actually is. Move on; nothing to see here.

[Bob · Rating 4 out of 5]

Summary: A history of beer, of the Guinness family and the history of Guinness from its beginnings, and the faith that that motivated the social goods pursued by many of the family members who led the company, and others in the family line.

Unlike the author, who came from a family of teetotalers, I came from a family that enjoyed a good beer in moderation. Most of the beers I grew up with were American beers and often my response to them was “meh.” It wasn’t until recent years that I discovered Guinness, and concluded, that this is what I’ve always thought beer should taste like.

So my curiosity was piqued when I came across this book in a second-hand store. I happen to love God and like Guinness and so I wanted to see how these two went together. Along the way, Stephen Mansfield took me on a delightful journey on the history of beer, including the long line of saints who enjoyed a good brew including the Pilgrims, Saints Patrick, Bartholomew, Brigid, and Columbanus, Charlemagne, Martin Luther, John Calvin and John Wesley. He traces the origins of beer, the science of brewing, and the different types of beer. A fascinating side note of this history is how beer provided a much more temperate alternative to the gin palaces and other forms of hard liquor that spelled the ruin of many.

Mansfield traces the beginning of the Guinness brewery with Arthur Guinness’s purchase in 1759 of a derelict brewery at St. James Gate, Dublin, including his bold move to increase the size of pipes carrying water from the River Liffey to his brewery and “defend it by force of arms.” Guinness had learned the art of brewing from his father, brewing small amounts for an inn, and starting a small brewing operation before taking over the derelict brewery in Dublin. Influenced by George Whitfield, he used profits from his growing brewery to fund the growing Sunday School movement.

From these promising beginnings, Mansfield traces the growth of the Guinness brewery through the generations, and the good family leadership it enjoyed in each generation. There was the key decision to focus on stout and improvements in the scientific brewing of that stout, the transport and storage of the product that provided consistent high quality wherever it was served in the world, and in the twentieth century, the advertising campaigns that made the brand ever-more popular. Among those working on these campaigns was Dorothy L. Sayers.

Most striking in this narrative is the care the company showed toward its workers, providing medical care for employees, families and even widows, housing, and superior wages (as well as a couple free pints a day of stout). During wars they guaranteed the jobs of servicemen, and paid families half salaries while their men were in service. In many respects, including employee education programs, their policies exceeded today’s most progressive companies.

The other intriguing aspect of this book is that while many of the leaders of the brewery were Christians who employed their wealth and position not only to benefit their workers but wider Dublin society, there was also a branch of the family, the Grattan Guinnesses marked for their pursuit of ministry and world missions activity. Mansfield gives us a thumbnail biography of Henry Grattan Guinness, an evangelist who was easily the equal of D. L. Moody. Mansfield notes that the definitive biography of this man remains to be written.

In more recent years, the company diversified and passed from Guinness family leadership and experienced some scandals. Mansfield doesn’t focus much attention on this and handles lightly any problems in the history of the family. He does imply that the long focus on brewing stout was a strength of the company that was lost as they diversified. The emphasis throughout is on the growth of the company, and the positive contributions made by this family, and the influence their faith played in the good works accomplished through their wealth and influence. So I would treat this account as entertaining and informative but not definitive history.

The book concludes with an epilogue that summarizes “the Guinness Way” in five principles:

1. Discern the ways of God for life and business.
2. Think in terms of generations yet to come.
3. Whatever else you do, do at least one thing very well.
4. Master the facts before you act.
5. Invest in those you would have invest in you.

This suggests another value of this book, as an example of a business that does well by doing good along several key dimensions from its spiritual compass, to thinking beyond the next quarter, to having a laser focus, quality strategic planning, and respecting the dignity of workers, investors, and customers. While technologies and markets change, it might well be argued that these basics do not, but may be more crucial than ever.

[Eric Parker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow, I flew through this book. I thought it was so interesting and engaging. It just provides some high-level details on the lives of different Guinness family members and their works, but I think that's part of what kept me moving along so quickly. It didn't get lost in the details. Some of my favorite things I learned:
-The same strain of yeast used in the original Guinness beer is still used today (~300 years later)
-Guinness was passed down from father to son for 250 years
-Guinness ran some really genius marketing campaigns
-A large portion of the Guinness family went on to become pastors, theologians and preachers
-Guinness was at the forefront of employee wellness thinking
-Guinness the beer company created the book of world records as a marketing gimmick which took off to have a life of its own

All in all, a fun little book I'd recommend to any of my friends who have a passing interest in the topic.

[John Collier · Rating 4 out of 5]

While it is impossible to truly separate the reviewer from the review, I believe that a book review should be focused on the book rather than the reviewer. That being said, I think a little context is in order. I do not drink beer or other alcoholic beverages. I do not promote the use of beer or other alcoholic beverages. I pastor a church whose official position is to not partake in any alcoholic beverages. The book I am about to review is about beer and the family that made this brand of beer. The Search for God and Guinness by Stephen Mansfield (2009, Thomas Nelson) is the story of beer, of Guinness beer, and of the Guinness family. Let there be no question, Arthur Guinness was a committed, Protestant, evangelical Christian. His life and family legacy certainly bear that out. For those of you who, like me, do not drink nor promote alcohol to others, I think the end of the review will be interesting to you.

While beer predates the founding of the Guinness brewery in Dublin, Ireland, by Arthur Guinness in 1759, Mansfield makes the case that Guinness was one of the first breweries to make a quality, consistent beer.

The Search for God and Guinness is about 260 pages and only 6 chapters. The sheer length of some of the chapters made it a little difficult to read, as I tend to read in short bursts as I have the time. Mansfield would have done better to have labeled these chapters as sections with shorter chapters within them. The chapters would have made really good sections. They are:

Before There Was Guinness: This is basically the history of beer. Mansfield goes back as far as the ancient Sumerians, Babylonians, and other ancient cultures. He estimates that, largely through a series of accidents, these people learned how to use barley to bake bread and that likely led to a discovery of how to make beer. The author then spends considerable time describing the role beer has played in various cultures throughout history, including the history and culture of the Christian church.

The Rise of Arthur: Young Arthur Guinness learned to brew beer from his father who served on the estate of Dr. Arthur Price, the Archbishop of Cashel. After the death of Dr. Price, Arthur was left the generous inheritance of £100. Arthur Guinness used this sum to invest in his own education and experience in the trade of brewing. Then, in 1759, Arthur Guinness founded the Guinness brewery in Dublin by signing a lease for the famous property at St. James’s Gate—a lease that gave him rights to that property for nine thousand years! And this is where the dynasty began. He married, had children, and operated a successful business.

At the Same Place By Their Ancestors: In this third chapter, Mansfield tells the history of the Guinness brewery and the branch of the family that led it. These were talented businessmen who were gifted in their field. They made the brewing of beer a more scientific process. This allowed a more consistent product and made it possible to export the beer to many markets. In all honesty, this was the least interesting portion of the book. It has value, but you do not really see it until the end of the book.

The Good That Wealth Can Do: Because of the corporate and personal successes of the Guinnesses, there was a decision constantly before them: Is our wealth for our own benefit of for us to benefit others? Really, this is a question that all believers face. Does God gift and bless us for us or for others? In both cases, the answer clearly is that it is for others. The Guinness family built a corporate culture of generosity to their employees, their community, and their country. Some examples of this are:
* A Guinness worker during the 1920’s enjoyed full medical and dental care, massage services, reading rooms, subsidized meals, a company-funded pension, subsidies for funeral expenses, educational benefits, sports facilities, free concerts, lectures and entertainment, and a guaranteed two pints of Guinness beer a day. (page xxviii)
* During World War I, Guinness guaranteed all of its employees who served in uniform that their jobs would be waiting for them when they came home. Guinness also paid half salaries to the family of each man who served. (page xxviii)
* A Guinness chief medical officer, Dr. John Lumsden, personally visited thousands of Dublin homes in 1900 and used what he learned to help the company fight disease, squalor, and ignorance. These efforts also let to the establishment of the Irish version of the Red Cross, for which Dr. Lumsden was knighted by King George V. (page xxviii)

These were all things the company and the Guinness family chose to do. None of this was mandated from the outside by government, unions, or any other organization. This is also the first chapter in the second half of the book. I found the second half to be much more interesting.

The Guinnesses For God: I mentioned earlier that Arthur Guinness was a committed Christian. This was true of many of his descendants as well.

"Historians of the Guinness saga tend to divide the family into three lines. There are the 'brewing Guinnesses,' of course, who are the best known due to their connection to the wildly popular global brand. There are also the “banking Guinnesses,” who descend from Samuel Guinness, broght of the first Arthur, and have grown an empire that began with gold beating in the 1700s and continues in global high finance today.

"Then there is the line that Guinness historians tend to call the 'Guinnesses for God.' These descend from John Grattan Guinness, the youngest son of First Arthur, and continue through the centuries in lives so turned to God and so given to adventures of faith that, as Frederic Mullally has written in his thrilling The Silver Salver: The Story of the Guinness Family, they make the other Guinness lines “seem almost pedestrian.” (pages 155-156)

This is the line of Guinnesses that became missionaries and ministers. They preached alongside the likes of Moody and Spurgeon. They helped make missionary endeavors like those of Hudson Taylor possible. They established schools for missionaries. They disciple other individuals who went on to found orphanages and schools and become missionaries.

Twentieth-Century Guinness: In this final chapter, Mansfield returns to the story of the brewery and the changes it underwent in the past century. While the Guinness brewery experienced unprecedented growth, it was not all good times. The biggest challenges it faced were the two world wars and prohibition. They managed to weather those storms and rise to dominance again. In 1954, they introduced what has become one of the best-selling book series of all time: The Guinness Book of Records. It was originally designed to contain the types of statistics that would come up for discussion at pubs and sports clubs. As the popularity of Guinness continued to grow, the leadership decided to diversify. They made the decision to go against a 250 history of intentionally only dealing in beer. They diversified into liquor and other alcoholic beverages. In 1987, for the first time, day-to-day operations of the Guinness breweries was not overseen by a member of the family. In 1997, Guinness merged with another company to form Diageo, the largest alcohol beverage company in the world.

Mansfield does a good thing at the end of the book. He draws some lessons from the Guinness story that we can emulate today. These are true regardless of your stand on the use of beer. I will only list them; he goes into more depth in the book. These are some great lessons I may write some more about later.
1. Discern the ways of God for life and business.
2. Think in terms of generations yet to come.
3. Whatever else you do, do at least one thing very well.
4. Master the facts before you act.
5. Invest in those you would have invest in you.

This was an interesting look at a well known company and the family behind it. Regardless of whether you agree with their line of work, it is worth examining a 250 year old institution to look for lessons to apply today.

I would recommend this book to those who enjoy history, trivia, and the culture of Ireland and the UK. What are your thoughts?

[Aaron · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read The Search for God and Guinness because of its claim to present an argument towards the compatibility of drinking beer and a Christian life. In a pros and cons, historical facts, and precedence sort of way I wanted to read a book that argued for the compatibility of alcohol in a Christian's daily life. I was let down. It started off strong in this vein though. In fact, I should have just stopped reading after the Introduction because Mansfield does a great job of presenting the historical precedence of alcohol in Christian's lives and pointing out how it is only recently (1900s) that alcohol/beer was seen as such an abhorrent thing. I enjoyed the Introduction and felt for his arguments.

However, once the real book began, it veered away from this path. It became a strict history of the Guinness family and the Guinness brand. I even felt that his early grand claims of how generous
Guinness was to its workers was little explored in later chapters. However, this feeling of little exploration might be explained by the poor writing of the book. The same idea or fact was repeated over and over just in different words. Each new piece of information was presented as the best thing ever, or a person doing the greatest thing ever, or a company being the best ever. It became a case of crying wolf too many times. Mansfield chose to use such superlative language for everything that I became desensitized and lost track of what was actually an impressive achievement and what was just normal and expected accomplishments.

There were even historic inaccuracies such stating that someone served in the Boer War at the end of the twentieth century when the Boer War was fought from 1899-1902 which would place it at the end of the nineteenth century or beginning of the twentieth century. This brings me to my final complaint of the book. It read like a high schooler's research paper. The research seemed to be mostly from secondary sources. He quoted and took from many other biographies and accounts of the Guinness family and Guinness brand. There was very little primary material in his book. This brings up the harsh question of why write this book then? The material has already been covered many times over by other authors. I can see that Mansfield did take a different slant than other authors by emphasizing the godly aspect of the Guinness family. And to give him credit, he did emphasize this. However, I feel the emphasis was in a way to simply present the Christian-ness of the Guinness's lives and leave out the other information. Thus, it was the godliness was emphasized because of there was little else to be emphasized.

I enjoyed these thoughts from the book:
"Rather than emphasize beer as an antidote to drunkenness, as a healthy alternative to harder drinks that, in excess ruined men's lives, Prohibitionists treated all alcohol as the same."

"Whatever else you do, do at least one thing very well."

"We followed our traditional policy of considering long and acting quickly."

[Madison Lynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Search for God and Guinness by Stephen Mansfield is an interesting and knowledge-filled story, shedding light on the trials and joys shared throughout the timeline of one of the world’s top leading brands. In the 1700s, Guinness was created to provide a safer alternative to the poisonous and disease striken waters and liquors of the time. Now over 250 years later, the Guinness brand is recognized in over 150 countries worldwide; yet this book accredits the deep faith of the Guinness family as being the sole source of their determination to succeed. The Search for God and Guinness is a story that I thoroughly enjoyed reading, and I would definitely recommend it to others.

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this. Years ago, I toured the Guinness experience in Dublin. At the time, I wasn't much of a beer drinker and, right after the tour, I had to catch my flight. Now, I consider myself well-versed in beer, and Guinness has become one of my favorite refreshing brews. I knew that the company history was rich, but this book gave me so much more than company culture and innovation. I have a new appreciation for Arthur Guinness's tenacity and his ethics. Worth the read.

[Daniel Butcher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Stephen Mansfield in The Search for God and Guinness combines two topics that many may find opposed, beer and God. Mansfield provides an overview of the long holy history of beer and its importance from ancient to early modern society. He overturns the myth of the establishment of the Guinness brewery as a God ordained antidote to the social ills of 18th century Ireland, but instead shows the determination of one religious man in Arthur Guinness’ establishment of the St. James Gate brewery in 1759. Mansfield provides a history of the first Arthur’s decedents in three branches the brewers, the bankers and the “Guinness’s for God” focusing primarily on the brewers and those who made ministry their vocation. The Guinness family history ends with the end of a Guinness directly running the brewery and movement from a family brewery to a major corporation.

The history of the “Guinness’s for God” should be especially heartwarming to Christians. But more exciting is the history of the brewers. The Guinness Brewery is a story of a culture of generosity. It is a tale of care towards brewery staff who were better paid, better educated, better housed and generally lived better lives than their neighbors due to the loving spirit of the Guinness family. The positive effects of the brewery spilled into the streets of Dublin in the early 20th century to inspire social improvement and social justice. Mansfield is a historian who is able to successfully combine the historian’s craft with a heart for God. He tells a story that both challenges his and our views towards beer and shows what a legacy of love can do to impact the lives of others. His story is one that will make me less judgmental towards those sporting Guinness gear and one that makes we want to share the meaning of a powerful organization.

[Mark Nenadov · Rating 4 out of 5]

A pleasant and quick read about a prolific stout. It gives a sympethetic but realistic window into the faith, life, and business of the many generations of the legendary Guinness family. Connections to Hudson Taylor and John Wesley are revealed. A solid heritage of extraordinary benevolence and using a business to take care of one's employees and the broader community is revealed. Mansfield skilfully avoids getting bogged down in details and preserves a lively pace. It hits many of the notes a good biography should hit. I was left with a great deal of respect for this family, brand, and the dark beer which made their name.

Mansfield summarizes "The Guinness Way", as:

1. Discern the ways of God for life and business..
2. Think in terms of generations yet to come.
3. Whatever else you do, do at least one thing very well.
4. Master the facts before you act.
5. Invest in those you would have invest in you.

[Logan · Rating 3 out of 5]

It had a very interesting history of the Guinness family in its early days and some good tidbits about brewing here and there but I found the seeming lack of objectivity or balance to be disappointing. By the author's own admission in the bibliography, the corporation has sued authors for libel and he was able to avoid that by focusing on the social good Guinness has done and the faith of some of the family members. Which is all fine and good but made some of the conclusions and descriptions questionable. Was Guinness really being benevolent or were they being shrewd when they gave beer to soldiers? Were they paid to do so by the US army or was it voluntary? Those details are lacking, leaving the reader with the intentional impression that this was purely a gift. Maybe it was but I find it hard to trust a book which leaves out details for the purpose of making things sound better than they are.

Additionally, I have to say that the epilogue was hard to buy into. It consisted of five social morals we can learn from the Guinnesses. The only problem was that I didn't feel that any of them was well supported, being more drawn from anecdotes than tried and true ways to be well-loved and successful. It felt like this was the message the author wanted to push, rather than something to be learned from the Guinness story.

Nevertheless, it gave me an appreciation for the family's and company's beginnings and I did enjoy reading it.

[Janessa Six · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book offers a fascinating history of my favorite beer and the remarkable family behind it—people who sought to honor God in all they did. Guinness has held a special place in my heart ever since I first fell in love with it at the Guinness factory while backpacking through Europe with friends. From getting married in Ireland to fond memories of Irish pubs and hearing about the inspiring Bible study Isaac had the privilege of joining with Os Guinness, this family’s story feels even more meaningful. I loved learning more about its rich history—such a fantastic read!

[Jake · Rating 4 out of 5]

So it turns out that Guinness is a 260 year old cross between Chick-Fil-A and Google.
I really liked this book, in six chapters it explores the history of beer, the brewery and it's employee benefits that rival modern tech companies, the Guinness family and their faith and benevolence, things that aren't widely known in the U.S. The acknowledgement section at the end also tipped me off to a few more books on Guinness history that I'll check out later.

[Sharon J. Brewer · Rating 5 out of 5]

It didn’t take me four years to read this book: I started it before the pandemic anticipating a trip to Ireland. Set it aside when that became impossible and then picked it up again to finish it this year, getting ready to go to Ireland next year! Fascinating book for fans of beer, or not; history buffs; people interested in social justice and the place of faith in the public arena. The Guinness family and those who worked with and for them were truly remarkable - an excellent read.

[Molly Grimmius · Rating 4 out of 5]

Borrowed and recommended by my sister and her husband. This follows the Guinness family creator of the Guinness family. It is absolutely about beer, which is fascinating even if you aren’t a beer person, but more importantly it shows how a family that loved God used their company and business to help the social good of their country, workers and locals. They cared about the people who served them and surrounding city it resides in. This was a family of faith and beer and shows such a beautiful example of business what a successful business could do with the right goals and faith in mind.

[Ryan Watkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fun light book which looks at the history of Guinness. It starts with the history of beer itself and it’s connections to both pagan and Christian theology. Then the book goes into the biography of Arthur Guinness followed by both the highs and lows of the Guinness family. A great cozy read for those interested in both theology and the famous beer.

[William Lockett · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Beer is not simply a means of drunkenness nor is it merely a lubricant to grease the skids to sin. Beer, well respected and rightly consumed, is a gift from God. It is one of his mysteries, which it was his delight to conceal and the glory of kings to search out. And men enjoy it to mark their days and celebrate their moments and stand with their brothers in the face of what life brings.”

[Jacob · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a good book. The story about the Guinness family is inspiring. Still have an itch to find out a little bit more about the beer. I will take the authors advice and check out "Guinness:The 250 Year Quest for the Perfect Pint".

[Tyler Burton · Rating 4 out of 5]

5 for content, 3 for structure/writing (mostly preference).

It was difficult to tell when a chapter was following a theme, timeline, or story.

Nonetheless, the story of the Guinness family is a great one, and worth learning and applying to our day.

[Ellie Thompson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beer, theology, public health and family dynamics? Non fiction dream. I need a stout right now.

“He told me he felt closer to God brewing beer than he did in church, because when he is brewing he feels like he is participating in the secret ways of the Creator.”

[Kathryn McDaniel · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5??? Read like a history book. GREAT history on the Guinness family & their impact on millions, not just thru beer. But the title of the book is confusing & it’s for sure history heavy; good info but I will promptly forget 90% of it! 🤷🏼‍♀️ wish I’d read it pre-Ireland.

[Thomas Kidd · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a perfect beach read for me - well-written and quickly paced. This is really two books. It is a good historic background on the Guinness family. But it uses that framework to be an excellent book on the Christian doctrine of vocation or calling.

[Steven Mandeville · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not a "beer guy" but great read for the faith and management dynamics of the company. Easy interesting read.

[Marsha · Rating 4 out of 5]

A biography of Guinness the beer, and the family legacy.
Non-fiction
Loved it. Drink more Guinness, it's good for you.