Fraternity Ritual....

[ZZ-kai-]

Alright, now that I have your attention, maybe you could help me out. I found on the internet a while back, a team building exercise for a pledge class that involved a painted brick. The pledge educator tells the pledge class that this brick will be located somewhere on campus during their pledge period and that they have to find it. The brick is obviously not located on campus, but in the end, it was at the chapter house the whole time and there is some kind of explanation...... That was just off the top of my head, you can trust me when I say "The actual exercise is much better than I said it".

If you know of the link, or have that ceremony, please contact me. For some reason, I believe that it was originally posted by a Pike.

Thanks!

[CutiePie2000]

You may want to be careful about doing any sort of hunt...you never know how your Nationals might interpret it, and it would be a terrible disappointment to be put on probation for something that your chapter seemed to think was "okay", but that your Nationals did not see as "okay"....I found this statement on www.stophazing.org
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Hazing is defined by the FIPG (Fraternity Insurance Purchasing Group) as:

"Any action taken or situation created, intentionally, whether on or off fraternity premises, to produce mental or physical discomfort, embarrassment, harassment, or ridicule. Such activities may include but are not limited to the following: use of alcohol; paddling in any form; creation of excessive fatigue; physical and psychological shocks; quests, treasure hunts, scavenger hunts, ........
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I realize this brick exercise is not in the same league as beating the h*** out of someone with a paddle, or forcing someone to drink alcohol until they have to get their stomach pumped, or forcing them to engage in a little...err..."animal husbandry"" but neverthess, treasure hunts and scavenger hunts were on the website, amongst other activities. So, just be careful, you never know how Nationals might interpret it. Just my $0.02.

[damasa]

OMG...do we need to get all kinds of PC....it's a simple exercies and I've seen it done by many fraternities on many a campus. For what I've been told, it does not make someone uncomfortable, infact, I hear that this exercise is rather fun and it lets pledges work together, to becaome strong in brotherhood in the end. I also don't think it is defined as a scavenger hunt. That's why/how all this anti-hazing stuff has gone way out of control..why don't they just rename it, anything that is fun, can't be done. Now I'm not talking about excessive drinking, paddling, beating, embarrasment, that stuff..we are talking about a damn brick, team work, brotherhood, character. but OH NO..it must be hazing, it's a scavenger hunt. Tell me what you do with your new members to let them help and learn with each other? Sit on a couch in the house and talk about stupid nothings?

-yes, I'm in a bad mood right now, for that I apologize, but that's all I apologize for.

d

[G8Ralphaxi]

I've seen that link for that ritual

I think it was either Phi Kappa Tau or Pi Kappa Phi though, but I can't remember.

And SCREW IT! I don't think it was hazing. The message behind it is wonderful.

We thought about using a modified version in our chapter one semester, but changed our mind for another ceremony we had.

Here's what I remember -

At some point early in the new member process - you show them the brick and tell them that it represents something very special, very sacred to XYZ fraternity. You tell them that it's going to be hidden somewhere on campus and you hope that they can find it. You tell them it's very very important, what it represents, and that every pledge class of XYZ has found it.

Then, as the weeks go on, the initiated members ask the new members every now and then if they've found the brick yet. There's no need to be mean about it or act like they'll be kicked out if they don't find it. I can't see how this is hazing - you're not even organizing a scavenger hunt. But then again, I love scavenger hunts and think that calling them hazing is stupid too. :rolleyes:

Eventually, you gather the new members all together and ask them (i think ask the pledge class president) if they were able to find the brick. Of course they say no. Then you tell them that it was here in the chapter house all along. You tell them that the brick represents the undying bond of brotherhood, the house as a safe haven against the stresses of life and school, the lifelong friendship that all members of XYZ fraternity share, etc. You can tailor it to your own motto or creed. The message behind the brick is why it's so important that they find it. If like many other Greek orgs, you have a special symbol or acronym that represents your fraternity's ritual, it's nice to paint that on the brick. Then, after initiation you can explain how the true essence of your ritual lives in your house and your brotherhood.

Good luck. Don't let the PC crazies get you down. If we keep going down this path, eventually asking pledges to come to dinner will be hazing. OOPS! Can't call them pledges! New Members! :p

Seriously though, the message behind this ritual is that the most sacred thing about your fraternity is the brotherhood that ties you all together, it's the most important thing for your members to find and hold on to, and that every single one of your brothers shares that bond. That's not hazing, that's beautiful. :D

G8Ralphaxi

[GmuTeke]

I agree, I've seen this brick ideal on the net, and It's not hazing unless you make it problematic when the new members can't find the brick. I think they will be curious/worried enough without the brother going "WHAT?! YOU DIDNT FIND THE BRICK YOU STUPID PLEDGE!" that's hazing, this activity is not.

Bricks as whole are good representations of people in fraternities, they're strong, resilient, they can be used for almost anything. They support alot of weight (the weight of the chapter and their repsonsibilities). But the best part of bricks is that you need alot of them to truley accomplish anything big, each brick joined together with the "mortar" of brotherhood building a house/wall/etc with each one doing his part to contribute to the greater whole.

my chapter uses bricks for a similar purpose, it's a very profound moment for each man.

[Lil_G]

That is a great exercise. So this brick obviously looks a little different - painted with letters? - than a normal looking brick. Hahahahaha because i could see how that would be considered hazing if they had to look at thousands of bricks to find it.

[AlphaChiGirl]

That sounds AWESOME! I feel like it should be cleared with advisors and whatnot, but who can go against that?

I hate political correctness and the laughingstock it's made out of perfectly acceptable universities.

[CutiePie2000]

If that exercise is found in Brotherhood Building Activities (published by the National Interfraternity Conference), then I guess it's okay.

I was just wondering whether the pledges, new members (or what have you) are made to feel that they WILL NOT BE INITIATED if they don't find the brick?

FWIW: It is not what *YOU* think is HAZING or what *I* think is HAZING...it is what your *HEADQUARTERS* thinks is hazing. Something to keep in mind, while planning your group bonding exercises.....

[33girl]

CutiePie2000,

I don't see anything but positivity in that exercise...it's a simple bonding activity. There was nothing about saying "you MUST find the brick" or "you are out if you don't find the brick." Bonding activities help people to open up to other people - if we have to get rid of THOSE we might as well bag Greek life altogether. We had an activity where everyone went around a circle and said what was their strength and what was their weakness - gosh, I guess that was hazing because we implied the pledges might have an imperfection. I mean if you don't want to share who you are with brothers/sisters what are you there for??

I, like damasa, am slightly cranky this rainy evening.

[SigkapAlumWSU]

I think that bonding experiences are very much an important part of what all of our organizations were founded upon. There are many ways to allow your new member groups to bond, and as long as it is safe, fun, cleared by nationals if there are any doubts, and created in a positive environment. I hope that they gain a wonderful understanding about the ties that bind us all in brother or sisterhood.

[GmuTeke]

Originally posted by Lil_G
That is a great exercise. So this brick obviously looks a little different - painted with letters? - than a normal looking brick. Hahahahaha because i could see how that would be considered hazing if they had to look at thousands of bricks to find it.

Yes, for example, our Bricks are painted half cherry red and half gray (our colors), with TKE on one side and Mu Omega(our chapter desgination) on the other, making the bricks very distinctive and unique.

[CutiePie2000]

Originally posted by 33girl
CutiePie2000,
I don't see anything but positivity in that exercise...it's a simple bonding activity. .....I, like damasa, am slightly cranky this rainy evening.

Just to re-iterate, if that exercise is found in Brotherhood Building Activities (published by the National Interfraternity Conference), then I guess it's okay. I did not realize earlier that it was a published exercise in a proper manual; I thought it was something that someone made up on a whim and through the process of an "urban legend" spreading or something like that, it started to crop up on other campuses...

[GmuTeke]

Originally posted by ZZ-kai-
You seriously need to give this 'hazing' thing a rest. How could brothers/sisters cry together, laugh together, become emotional with each other and bond...

While not all activities are hazing, there are still numerous other hazing incidents that come across in GLOS throughout the country, and we run into enough incidents like that on this board. And while I think the brick idea is very nice, I can see how it can easily spin into hazing or psychological torment if the brothers keep pressuring the new members to find the brick.
Ever need to find your keys and just couldnt find them? Imagine going on a key hunt for 6-7 weeks. I can honestly understand Cutiepies concerns over this activity. Handled well, it can be very motivational and profound, handled poorly and it could be hazing.

[damasa]

Imagine how real the pressure could be related to the real world..let's take a job for instance. I have a great example. One of our members that graduated in May started a new job at abc company in investment banking. He comes in, he has until the end of the year to make the company one and a half million dollars in investments, otherwise he's gone. Is that not pressure? BUt wait, because it's pressure, could it be considered that the company is hazing it's "new employees?" Just think about that for a minute. Now I'm not saying that it's right to pressure the pledges into finding the brick, but think of how much pressure we encounter in the real world, job, life, love, and it's something we all have to deal with, why not find a way to grip that pressure and overcome it, instead of using it as an excuse of not having to do something.

[SigmaChiCard]

my eyes are getting hazed right now by reading some of this crap...hehe :p

i agree damasa!

[Lil_G]

I think we all need to revisit the purpose of why all these hazing laws were created in the first place. I'm sure it's safe to say that if nobody had died from hazing-induced alcohol poisoning we wouldn't be having this conversation right now.
That being said, CutiePie, although i respect many of your opinions i have to really disagree that this nonsense is hazing. I mean there's so much we could say about our everyday lives that are considered hazing:

i had to write a test this morning - hazing.

I go to the gym on a regular basis, although it's voluntary, it still causes discomfort and can cause physical harm - hazing.

I ate some bad food that a buddy of mine gave me the other night - hazing.

TO me personnally, anything at all that you can't look back on in 5 years and laugh at isn't hazing.
Give me a break, this ain't hazing.