Jesus and beer: Religious groups combine faith, cold brews

While bringing people together to throw one back and talk religion isn't a new idea, groups have been turning to the non-traditional pub setting to attract younger people such as millennials.

According to a Pew Research Center study, the number of U.S. adults who are affiliated with an organized religion dropped from 83 percent in 2007 to 77 percent in 2014, a trend particularly striking in the millennial generation.

Besides a free beer, there's usually a meet and greet, a speaker and discussion.

Burds said they trained some young adults in mingling skills to make sure everyone feels welcome and a sense of belonging — "what every millennial really is searching for," Burds said.

[...] alcohol certainly isn't new to Catholicism, with wine being an integral part of the sacrament of Holy Communion, said Rev. John Laurance, associate professor of theology at Marquette University.