How Guinness went from an anti-Catholic company to a St. Patrick’s Day icon

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A fascinating read for this day—with this intriguing bit of history:

A slightly ironic twist to the St. Patrick’s Day connection is that Guinness was not traditionally a Catholic company. St. Patrick was a Catholic and the patron saint of Ireland, and the colors of the day are drenched in the symbols of the Protestant-Catholic struggles of Ireland. Orange is traditionally recognized as the color of the Protestants, while Green is the color of the Catholics. You can still find Irish people in New York and New Jersey, for example, who will take offense to wearing orange or even serving carrots on St. Patrick’s Day. But Guinness wouldn’t hire Catholics until well into the 20th century. If an employee wanted to marry a Catholic, they were asked to resign. Arthur Guinness, the founder of the company, was a pro-English Protestant and Unionist.

So...

(Excerpt) Read more at: The Deacon's Bench

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