A correspondent pointed out an article that suggests collegiate Greek organizations could be "farm teams" for the Freemasons.
Being a baseball fan, I always marvel at the organization of Major League Baseball. Under their "farm system," rookie players are broken in and, when ready, move up to the major leagues. [...] Believe it or not, Freemasonry also has a "farm system," one that is too often overlooked, and that is the college Greek fraternities.
I am an old Greek man myself (Phi Delta Theta) and am very familiar with the Greek system which began in the 1800's and flourished in just about every college campus in North America as well as other parts of the world. In fact, dozens of Greek Chapters (Lodges) can be found at a single campus. All of them ultimately trace their roots to Freemasonry. As such, there is ritual work, obligations, and the day-to-day operations of the Chapter; nor is there anything in the Greek system that is incompatible with Freemasonry. They enjoy Brotherhood as much as Masons do, work for charitable causes, respect their heritage, and form a network of fellowship.
As a Freemason and a Sig Ep, your correspondent can attest to the complementary natures of the two systems. Any of us who has the pleasure of belonging to both fraternities can tell you that while the specifics differ, there are a number of similarities that obviously will not be discussed further here.
There is a significant difference in the way one joins, however. While fraternities actively recruit, one is never invited to be a Freemason. The way to start the process is to ask someone who is one.
