By Charles Gardner —
There’s more to the Guinness brewing giant than the dark stout for which they are famous.
For a key branch of this Irish family have had a major impact on bringing light to the world through the gospel in general, and the restoration of Israel in particular.
Henry Grattan Guinness (1835-1910), for example, was not only regarded among the best preachers of the 19th century, but also played a crucially important role in the rebirth of the Jewish state.
And it is largely thanks to a truly inspirational and riveting family biography by Michele Guinness – herself a Jewess – that we know all this. The Guinness Spirit was published by Hodder & Stoughton 25 years ago.
Having helped to fan the flames of the worldwide revival of 1859, Henry became increasingly aware of the significance of Bible prophecy and would read what he had written that day to his young children, telling them not to be afraid of what was happening in Europe (around the time of the Franco-Prussian War of 1870) because it all pointed to the certainty that Christ would soon return, thus firing their imagination and becoming a driving force in their lives.
His prophetic writing, which would ultimately affect even more people than had been stirred through his preaching, was further galvanized by a gruesome discovery in Spain, where ashes dug up by workmen bore evidence of the barbaric torture of Jews and Protestant Christians during the Spanish Inquisition. He took some of the contents home and kept them on his desk as a reminder of those who had laid down their lives for their faith.
Jewish mission came into play soon after he and his wife Fanny started a Bible College in London’s East End to train missionaries for China, Africa and elsewhere. Five young Jewish men, newly won to their Messiah, called round, determined to study with Henry, who was by then establishing a reputation as an expert on biblical Zionism.
Meanwhile social reform campaigner Lord Shaftesbury was greatly influenced by Henry’s writings, and even from his own Old Testament studies had long been convinced that the return of the Jews to their ancient homeland was a crucial part of the divine plan. As early as 1839 he had managed to persuade the Foreign Secretary, Lord Palmerston, that Palestine should become their national homeland under British protection.
Later, in 1886, through his study of Daniel, Revelation and other sections of the Bible, Henry wrote an extraordinary book called Light for the Last Days in which he prophesied that the Ottoman Empire – which had ruled the Holy Land since 1517 – would collapse in 1917 because that year represented the fulfillment of Jesus’ “time of the Gentiles” (Luke 21:24), according to his calculations.
Even Lord Arthur Balfour (British Prime Minister from 1902-5), took an interest in his theories and corresponded with him. So when in 1917, as Foreign Secretary, he issued the so-called Balfour Declaration, promising to do everything possible to facilitate a Jewish homeland, Henry could have taken much credit for the historic development, though he did not live to see it.
Within weeks of the declaration, General Allenby led the British and Allied forces into Jerusalem, liberating the Holy Land from Muslim rule before the year was out, just as Henry had predicted.
His zeal for Jewish restoration in fulfillment of the Scriptures occupied much of his thoughts in his later years. He was even invited to speak at the International Zionist Conference in Jerusalem. In fact, the last significant date noted in his Bible was 1948 when, as it turned out, the Jewish nation was re-born. His daughters Geraldine and Lucy were especially aware of its significance and of how thrilled he would have been to have witnessed it.
It was among Lucy’s dying wishes (she died aged 41) that one of her boys would continue her father’s prophetic research and perhaps see the restored Jewish state.
The cruel irony of the Grattan Guinness concern for the Jewish people was the appointment of Walter Guinness (Lord Moyne) to oversee the British policy of limited Jewish immigration to Palestine when many were trying to escape the Holocaust. Tragically, he was assassinated by Jewish terrorists, which proved a deep embarrassment to those seeking to win hearts through negotiation.
For all that, the Guinness brand had greatly contributed to Jewish restoration. Even the Church’s Ministry among Jewish people (CMJ), who have been committed to this noble call for the past 215 years, were directly blessed with the ‘black stuff’ in their early years. For Michael Solomon Alexander, a Jewish believer and the first Bishop of Jerusalem based at CMJ’s Christ Church compound in the Old City, was the glad recipient of the unique brew.
In a letter to his friend Arthur Guinness II (the founder’s son), he wrote: “We are daily enjoying your excellent porter, which I think has done much to keep up our strength… I have no doubt you will be pleased to hear that your excellent beverage has found its way to Jerusalem.”
However, it was many years before the firm resorted to what was considered by some as the vulgarity of advertising with slogans like ‘Guinness is good for you’. As a key member of the Church Missionary Society, Arthur had in fact encouraged Michael’s appointment to the post.
Even today, there is a dedicated Guinness bar in the heart of modern Jerusalem called Shoshana, where they serve the tipple in quarts rather than pints. I guess it’s a case of God giving Israel a double portion of his blessing! (See Isaiah 61:7)
I am greatly indebted to Michele Guinness for her gargantuan research into her amazing family history, published as The Guinness Spirit by Hodder & Stoughton in 1999.
To learn more about the book, go here
