Can one be Catholic and a member of a Greek sorority or fraternity?

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I’ve been reading with interest the threads on Freemasonry and Catholicism. That got me to thinking: can one be Catholic and a member of a Greek organization? I’m referring to the ones you find on college campuses, like Sigma Alpha Epsilon, Chi Omega, etc.

Some background: I joined Gamma Phi Beta as an Alumna Initiate two years ago, and realized shortly thereafter that my longing to “belong” and that restlessness was only to be calmed through Jesus in the Catholic Church. 👍

Some other questions I’d like to know, if you’d feel like sharing: what Greek org. did you belong to, if you joined one? If you didn’t join, why not? Did you find any of the rituals (please note, I am NOT looking for “secrets” or details on that!), symbols, “partying” or whatever in conflict with your Catholic values? Are you still active in your org. on an alumnus/alumna level?
 
Those are simply academic sororities, so unless a specific one holds to positions contray to christian morals like being pro-choice for example, I personally don’t see a problem.
 
By academic do you mean professional? As far as I know, greek orgs. are pretty much in two categories: social and professional. I mean, yes, “social” orgs. have a philanthropy and ideals common to many people, but the professional greek orgs. deal specifically with an academic major and/or grade point average.
 
I am a member of Sigma Kappa. I joined during my Sophomore year of college when too many credits and not enough free time left me feeling depressed and out of sorts. I’ll say that joining Sigma Kappa was one of the best decisions of my life. I not only gained life-long friends and great memories, but I learned how to manage projects, be a leader, successfully interact with people I had never met before, and resolve conflicts among other things.

None of the rituals involved in being a Sigma Kappa counterminded any of my Catholic faith/teachings. Sure there were moments where members did things that I wasn’t necessarily proud of or supportive of (which, I believe, happens in ANY organization not just Greek ones) but overall the experience is something that I think anyone could benefit from.

Of course, my sorority placed emphasis on members getting and keeping good grades, philanthropic activities (as we had 5 different philanthropies), and having fun. As such, I am still pretty involved as an alumna. I participate in an alumna chapter, advise one of the executive positions, and keep in touch with chapter/foundation information.
 
takers said:
I am a member of Sigma Kappa. I joined during my Sophomore year of college when too many credits and not enough free time left me feeling depressed and out of sorts. I’ll say that joining Sigma Kappa was one of the best decisions of my life. I not only gained life-long friends and great memories, but I learned how to manage projects, be a leader, successfully interact with people I had never met before, and resolve conflicts among other things.

None of the rituals involved in being a Sigma Kappa counterminded any of my Catholic faith/teachings. Sure there were moments where members did things that I wasn’t necessarily proud of or supportive of (which, I believe, happens in ANY organization not just Greek ones) but overall the experience is something that I think anyone could benefit from.

Of course, my sorority placed emphasis on members getting and keeping good grades, philanthropic activities (as we had 5 different philanthropies), and having fun. As such, I am still pretty involved as an alumna. I participate in an alumna chapter, advise one of the executive positions, and keep in touch with chapter/foundation information.
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I totally agree with this post…

If you’re talking about social sororities and fraternities… yes, you can definitely be a member as a Catholic.
Most social fraternities/sororities are just that, “social” groups. Most require you to maintain a certain GPA in order to stay involved (they don’t want you to risk your education just for the socialization)… and most have philanthropic activities and do lots of charity work.

I was a member of Alpha Chi Omega during college and it was a wonderful experience. Like the poster above, none of the “rituals” were in any way against the Catholic faith… they were all very harmless (usually involving singing, flowers, and encouraging positive traits).

Now, there are some fraternities and sororities that (so I’ve heard) have weird or dark “rituals”… I’m not sure how you’d find out about that stuff ahead of time??.. or what they actually involve…
But my personal experience was very innocent.
 
I completely agree with the two previous people. I am a member of Chi Omega. I met my children’s godmother there. I did not feel that Chi-O threatened me being a Catholic in any way. The rituals were such a small part of the organization.
 
I was a member of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia, technically a professional music fraternity, but somewhat more akin to a social fraternity in its social events and rituals than are some of the other “professional” fraternities based on GPA and the like. Interestingly, I would say that some of the rituals (being designed mainly by musicians and performers of the highest caliber, Phi Mu Alpha’s initiation ritual is particularly beautiful in my personal opinion), which admittedly draw some influence from certain Masonic rituals, actually were some of the first moments in my life where I realized that one could be overwhelmingly moved by what my Protestant friends called “dead ritual.” After being initiated, and during a visit to our fraternity’s national headquarters, where the meaning behind the initiation ritual was explained, I was overwhelmed with a profound sense for the thought and care that had gone into imbuing every move and action with meaning. Being a Protestant throughout, I of course filed this away in a corner of my brain that was only to be accessed when thinking about fraternity issues. But as a man now looking at the Church, I frequently call upon these memories in understanding how truly beautiful and meaningful the Church’s rituals can be.
 
When I was ar Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute longer ago than I care to admit, Phi Kappa Theta was a fraternity for Catholic men. Applied to sororities, this would say that it is perfectly OK for a Catholic to belong to a sorority. That said, I’d also advise checking out the sororities on campus to see that their values are similar to yours. The Newman Center if your college has one, the Catholic chaplain (and I am very glad that today, these can be female as well as male), the local parish staff, or upperclass women at the college that you met at Mass would all be good sources. I didn’t join a fraternity because I was a commuter and did not see an advantage, but I know guys who did after checking them out. They were soon able to get a good idea of the “wild party” ones versus the more “socially responsible” ones. The fraternity guys that I knew were model students and community members, and very active Newman club members. Hope this helps.
 
I was a member of a social sorority for 1.5 years as an undergrad (I’d rather not name the organization). There was nothing in the sorority rituals or by-laws that was in conflict with my Catholic faith, but in my experience, surrounding myself with the other women in the group WAS detrimental to my faith (and my scholarship). I ended up deactivating and moving out of the chapter house after having a Damascus experience. It was one of the best decisions I have ever made.

For undergrad women: if you do join up, make sure you are very aware of the social proclivities of the group. Will you be pushed to do things which you find immoral and which make you uncomfortable? If so, I have no idea why you’d want to join such a group, but if you do, are you strong enough to hold on to your faith and personal standards?
 
twosweetgirls said:
I’ve been reading with interest the threads on Freemasonry and Catholicism. That got me to thinking: can one be Catholic and a member of a Greek organization? I’m referring to the ones you find on college campuses, like Sigma Alpha Epsilon, Chi Omega, etc.
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It is fine. Social fraternities and sororities often involve pressure to do immoral things, and I wouldn’t join the ones that do that (nor would I join most fraternities- I can make friends without paying for them). I do not like the way people at my college who are in fraternities and sororities act (particularly when they act like they’re such big humanitarians, then ignore, exaggerate their compassion for (like people do to the disabled- acting syrupy sweet, like everything they do is sooo special, just because someone wears braces on their legs), or even push away- those who are different than them).
 
mo0004 said:
When I was ar Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute longer ago than I care to admit, Phi Kappa Theta was a fraternity for Catholic men. Applied to sororities, this would say that it is perfectly OK for a Catholic to belong to a sorority. That said, I’d also advise checking out the sororities on campus to see that their values are similar to yours. The Newman Center if your college has one, the Catholic chaplain (and I am very glad that today, these can be female as well as male), the local parish staff, or upperclass women at the college that you met at Mass would all be good sources. I didn’t join a fraternity because I was a commuter and did not see an advantage, but I know guys who did after checking them out. They were soon able to get a good idea of the “wild party” ones versus the more “socially responsible” ones. The fraternity guys that I knew were model students and community members, and very active Newman club members. Hope this helps.
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Small World! My son just graduated from RPI in May.
Dianne
 
When our son was taking part of rush events and choosing a fraternity we researched them and he got to know them well . That way he was able to choose wisely a group that would not infringe on the practicing of his faith. You can search the history of the organization online as well. Turned out one of the groups was actually a Freemason group. That became a factor in his choice. He chose a Fraternity that excelled academically as well as in charitable activities. They weren’t perfect model christians , mind you … but there was no interference with his being a Catholic. So , yes I say a Catholic can join participate in Greek life after carefully considering the group.
 
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