Relevant or irrelevant? Depending on who you talk to, the answer will be one choice or the other. Usually the answer is based on personal likes or dislikes, as opposed to any kind of historical analysis.
Organizations and societies come and go. Some last a considerable time, others don’t. A lot of variables play into the success and/or failure of a group, such as leadership, support for the cause, availability of potential members, suitable facilities, availability of present members to commit -- just to name a few.
To be dismissive of an individuals comfort zone when it comes to deciding whether or not to join and organization that happens to be a fraternity would be an error. Some have deep seated religious convictions against doing so, for some it may just not be to their liking, and to others it may seem foolish. All of these reasons are legitimate. No one will ever be happy or effective in an organization that has precepts and practices which are contrary to personal convictions.
When one looks at the big picture, a startling fact comes through loud and clear, that being fraternities tend to stand the test of time. The oldest continuous organizations around are fraternities, way out ahead of the non fraternal groups. The organizational "root" of the Grange was December 4, 1867, which was 140 years ago. The Masonic order can add at least a couple of centuries to that number. A survey was done a number of years ago, and it found that the average length of membership for a person in the Grange was 14 years. The interesting thing about this is that the same survey found that the average life length of non fraternal organizations was 7 years, with the individual’s participation at a little over 3 years.
As fraternities base their underlying philosophies and operations in antiquity, it is a bit harder to revise some of the practices to "bring it up to date" so to speak, as antiquity is pretty much the life blood of a ritualistic fraternal society. The idea of a "modern ritual" is close to being an oxymoron.
The Grange has addressed this issue, and is continuing to objectively look at it. The path of membership has been streamlined, The operating ritual has been updated in relation to the removal of aspects that no longer have importance and language changes have been made to substitute words that are no longer in common usage. The decision has also been made NOT to move away from all the fraternal aspects however, given the fact that it is its desire to remain a lasting vehicle of community and social action, offering personal satisfaction opportunities for people that they otherwise would not have had.
One Hundred Forty years of history speaks for itself. Continued service to individual communities and by extension the greater community will insure years added on to the above total.
If you are not a member, consider joining us to lend your voice in making our community stronger, as well as enjoying the personal benefits of fun, fellowship, and enrichment. Look around this website, we’re sure you will find something of interest, and if some important area is lacking, your influence might well put it in place.
Al Fine |
