What’s in a beer name? An NC pastor found a message of hope.

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To Sweet Baby Jesus, not the beer

The writer is pastor of Chapel in the Pines Presbyterian Church in Chapel Hill.

Despite what you may have heard, Benjamin Franklin never said, “Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy.”

It turns out that you can’t believe everything you read on the internet.

However, now that there is a brewery seemingly on every corner in every town, some brewers have taken to naming their beers with religious language, I assume, out of the desire to attract attention.

There are eye-catching names like Consecration, Prophesy, Deliverance and Salvation. You can drink a Repent Rye, Holy Grale or a Hotter than Helles.

The market is not exclusively Christian. Beers have been named after religions, such as He’brew, and famous spiritual leaders like Gandhi.

Mindy Douglas, my clergy colleague at First Presbyterian in Durham, informed me that there is a liquor drink named after us Presbyterians. Previously, I was only aware that one could hoist a Big Bad Baptist.

Perhaps because of the Trappist tradition of brewing, there are several brews named after monks: Merry Monk and Grumpy Monk, Golden Monk and Ragged Monk. Even Monk’s Blood!

Alternatively, you could drink an Old Heathen and then a Devil Made Me Do It.

There are over 200 beers named by associated with the devil: Hopdevil, Dark Lord, Fallen Angel just to name a few.

I don’t know how it actually tastes, but On the Wings of Armageddon is quite a mouthful.

You could chase it with Amazing Grace or The Gospel.

Whatever you drink this holy season, may you find yourself in good company. Whether you consume alcohol or not, here’s a toast to Sweet Baby Jesus, which is a chocolate and peanut butter stout, and the light that shines in the darkness — for this person of faith, the ultimate proof that God does indeed love us.

Rev. Andrew Taylor-Troutman

Update concussion protocols in NC

The writer is a UNC School of Medicine student and NC Schweitzer Fellow.

North Carolina just closed the books on another high school football season, but it’s not too soon to look ahead to next year and one of the more critical issues impacting the sport: concussions.

Each year there are nearly 300,000 football-related concussions, according to the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center’s Sports Medicine Concussion Program, and half of these go unreported or undetected.

As a medical student and a former traumatic brain injury (TBI) research coordinator, I’ve witnessed how TBI drastically alters one’s cognition, ability to function, and quality of life. Unlike orthopedic trauma, concussions are an invisible injury that can go undiagnosed, or may be diagnosed but inadequately monitored, putting patients at further risk.

Something as simple as going to work or school becomes nearly impossible due to over-stimulation from lights and noise and challenges due to impaired cognition. So, returning to play after concussion, a mild TBI, is challenging and unsafe for athletes.

We can learn lessons from Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa’s recent concussion. First, it is imperative to assess concussions in young athletes more comprehensively on the sideline to account for atypical concussion symptoms like ataxia, a lack of motor coordination in balance or speech, that may be confused with a different injury.

It’s also vital to consider who is conducting a concussion assessment on the sidelines. If it is easy for licensed physicians to miss symptoms in the NFL, then it is likely we are not recognizing concussion symptoms under the Friday night lights as well as we should without licensed providers assessing athletes. A good first step is better supporting athletic trainers.

Though young athletes are driven by love of the game and professional athletes are bound by million-dollar contracts, both feel an obligation to push through injury. The brain is an incredibly complex and delicate 3-pound organ that executes everything we say and do. Is it worth risking our ability to think and feel for the glory of the game? We have the research to show it’s not — we must improve sideline concussion assessment. It’s time for change.

Callan Loflin