When coffee first arrived in Europe from the Ottoman Empire in the 16th century, some Catholic clergy wanted it banned. They called it "the devil's drink." They petitioned Pope Clement VIII to condemn it.
The Pope agreed to taste it. One sip later, he reportedly declared:
"This Satan's drink is so delicious that it would be a pity to let the infidels have exclusive use of it. We shall cheat Satan by baptizing it."
And so coffee entered Catholic life — blessed by a Pope, embraced by monasteries, and woven into the rhythm of prayer and work.
Coffee and the Monastery
Monasteries were among the first European institutions to adopt coffee. The reasons were practical: monks who rose at 3:00 AM for Matins needed alertness. Coffee replaced beer as the morning beverage.
By the 17th century, Capuchin monks had become so closely associated with their milky coffee preparation that the drink itself was named after them: the cappuccino.
Your Morning Office
You don't need to be a monk to make your morning coffee intentional. While the coffee brews, pray a Morning Offering. Take the first sip in silence. Open your Bible or prayer book. Let the coffee and the Word work together.
This is the Morning Office — a personal ritual of faith, coffee, and presence.