Quote:
Originally Posted by SWTXBelle
I am simply approaching this from a logical standpoint. It still seems to me that hairs are being split - Whether or not "Alpha", for example, is written as a Greek letter or the English version, both stand for an element of the name of the group. Most, if not all, groups use the letters themselves because they are the first letter of a secret motto or meaning. So I still don't see why the Greek letters are any more representative of the secret-not-known-until-initiation meaning than the English version - both represent the beginning letter of a word that is not revealed until the member is fully initiated.
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I'll agree that each GLO should do things the way they see fit, whether it makes sense to me or not.
But, with all the humility I can muster
, might I suggest that your approach is not a purely logical one, but rather one starting with the ethos of your own organization and using logic to apply that ethos to other organizations, whether the other organizations actually share that ethos or not. You say "I still don't see why the Greek letters are any more representative of the secret-not-known-until-initiation meaning than the English version." But just because you don't see why they are "more representative" of the esoteric teachings of an org doesn't mean that other orgs shouldn't (or can't) reasonably see them as "more representative."
To use my own organization as an example: We were founded in 1898. Our name was The Sinfonia Fraternity, not Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Fraternity. We began using the Greek letters as early as 1900; by 1910, they had been added to our badge and appeared on our coat-of-arms (as part of the badge in the center of the shield). It was common from early days to sign letters "Fraternally yours, in
F, M, A." (Notice the commas that were usually, though not always, included.) Used this way, the letters were taken to refer to what they represent, not necessarily to the Fraternity as such. Although the Fraternity had been informally referred to as "Phi Mu Alpha" for decades, the name was not officially changed until 1946. (Sinfonia remains the accepts "short form" name -- our equivalent of "Gamma Phi," if you will.) We have never referred to brothers as "Phi Mu Alphas," but rather always as Sinfonians; we often, however, refer to "brothers in
FMA," again referring as much if not more to what the letters represent as to the Fraternity as such.
Also, because our name includes an English (derived from Greek) word -- "Sinfonia" -- as well as the Greek letters, we almost always write the name of the Fraternity in English. While brothers may use the Greek letters as identifiers on shirts, houses, objects, etc., I've rarely seen the name of the Fraternity written as "
FMA Sinfonia." (Yes, I used to have it that way in my sig, although again not so much for the name
per se as for what each letter or word means. One of the reasons I got rid of that sig was because it never looked right to me.)
So we
do have a history and tradition where the Greek letters are, to us, more representative of what they stand for than the English spelling of the letters. I wouldn't be surprised if Phi Mu (for many years The Philomathean Society) has a similar historical understanding.
And as much as I swore I never would, I use "'Cause I'm the dad" on my kids
way too often.
ETA: FWIW, the policy that only initiated brothers can wear the Greek letters is not just a policy promulgated by our HQ or followed by some chapters; it's contained in Article XXI, section 4, of our national constitution:
"Only Sinfonians in good standing may wear or otherwise display the Greek letters 'ΦΜΑ' or the Fraternity’s Coat-of-Arms. Probationary members may not wear or otherwise display these symbols at any time prior to initiation. A member may not authorize or encourage a non-Sinfonian to wear or otherwise display these symbols."