I think there are some valid points in the room questioning the rites of hazing.
Good or bad, I hope everyone realizes that hazing is not just a mindless act of brutality. It is not intended to cause pain or anguish. Hazing is designed to impress some ideal upon on initiate. Those ideals are the foundation of the orginization's beliefs. Almost all hazing episodes help the initiate to realize these beliefs.
For instance, physical strife can be an attmept to impress humbleness or humility. It can be used to demonstrate that every person has limits and that those limits can be exceeded by using effort. These are called GOALS.
Mental challenges are commonly used to impress the implications of making a wrong decision, or making one too quickly. Things need to be more thought out.
Remember, EVERY member of an orginization had to participate in THE SAME activities upon their initiation, often times even more tedious or less "politically correct" than the ones currently utilized.
In response to the question "where is the lord?", I would like to publicize my philosophy. Not all of these orginizations are built upon christian philosophy and those that think that is wrong should try to look beyond their noses and realize that there is a world around them. Fraternities are designed to better a persons charecter and traits, not be an exclusive place to party (that may be a fringe benefit depending how you look at it) There are organizations that build their philosophies upon religion, and they are called chruches. Remember, you may believe in God and Christ as much as someone else may not believe. Use your own judgement to determing who can say that who is wrong. You may view this in a whole new light. If you can't, then try learning a little tolerance. You will be dealing with non-believers your whole life and if you live your life thinking that everyone else is damned for not believing what you do, then you are the one who will be screwed in the end. Please give those that differ in opinion from yours the room to express their beliefs, as you believe they should give to you. Those of you out there that a burning red from my words are an ideal example of this.
One member of my house had a particularly would have had a hard time dealing with a particular part of our ritual (this won't be disclosed, for obvious reasons) but he handled it well. HE AVOIDED IT! He discussed his disbelief with the officers and a solution was found to the ritual problem before it even started. NO HOUSE is going to be so abruptly hard on someone as to make them feal uncomfortable being there. That defeats the entire purpose. If you believe that you may have to do something you don't believe in (and I mean completely disagree with, not just be afraid of) TALK to the members about this. There is bound to exist a solution. If they refuse to yield or regard your beliefs, then simply remove yourself from the presence. No deal is final until the contract is signed. If you don't want to leave, then understand that your priorities place being a member higher than upholding your beliefs, you be the judge of your own self. NEVER JOIN A HOUSE YOU DO NOT FEEL COMFORTABLE WITH!!! Some of your best (and I mean not only fun, but experiences of growing up and developing charecter) times will be spent with your fellow members. They should be looked upon fondly. Regret is part of growing up, understand that you did your best to cope with the situation and learn from your mistakes. No orginization is going to be so blind to the difference of beliefs people have. If they are, then they will not be around long anyway. Also remember the common christian belief that no one but god can judge, so what makes you think that you can?
On another topic, a fraternity's ritual is one of tradition and respect. These are not appropriate to open to the public. All initiates are decided upon by whether or not the members believe they can and will uphold the same values of the orginization long before they see the ritual and rituals are written to impress these ideals in the individual and it will last a lifetime. They are private and not open to judgement by others (remember what I said before) much like pieces of your life. Why does this need to be publicized? I once heard an alumni say that the secrets of the fraternity like the handshake and passwords are not what really matter. What really mattered to him were the experiences and lessons that he learned from the others. Everyone has something to offer everyone else. That is what makes it great. The things you learn here will be things that you will learn nowhere else and that is what the bond truly is. I couldn't agree more.
Before I hear someone say "well if they don't matter, than tell us what they are!!", I will make it abundantly clear that I will not disclose that. People take an oath not to reveal the secrets of the house or what goes on in ritual, no matter how trivial they may appear to be. Ritual is a private ceremony. Beyond that, I took an oath, like everyone else has, to confine the secrets of the house within the house. To do so would violate my integrity, that is certainly something I will NOT do. Just wanted to address that issue before it was even brought up.
I must concede that I do not have the right to judge, and I don't think that anyone has, even god. We all live by our beliefs, and I will live by mine, but I share the belief that I have to tolerate those that I think are wrong and not see them as anything other than equal with myself.
One final note, I have to point out the audacity of those who believe rituals are evil and should be brought upon the public's eye. I am sick and tired of people who know nothing about these societies tearing into them like so many knives into flesh. Let he who hath not sinned cast the first stone. One thing I do not have tolerance for are those who have no tolerance for others; who believe it is their duty to expose what they think is evil. While your at it, let me dig a little into your life and point out all your flaws and ignorances. Let's see who REALLY has the problem. If this describes you, then piss off. I have no time to deal with people who are not willing to view their own flaws but are so eager to point out those of others.
By all means, I am open to any and all constructive criticisms, comments, and questions. My email address is seand_isu@yahoo.com and I look forward to hearing from anyone who shares a different opinion or the same.
Later,
Sean
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