Living the Greek Life

Are Fraternities & Sororities a Religion?

As you may already know, there are tremendous levels of stigma associated with both fraternities and sororities. Many individuals have argued that by joining a sorority or fraternity, you are “buying” friendships. It is also highly stigmatized that these organizations are only concerned about mass-partying and alcohol consumption.

The film, Neighbors, released in 2014, shows the battle between a suburban couple, their newly born daughter and the Delta Psi Beta fraternity that moves in next door. This film is a good example of the stigma behind fraternities. The clip to the left shows Mac and Kelly introducing themselves to their new neighbors in an attempt to get them to quiet down their extremely loud parties.

Aside from this entire stigma, what is the actual meaning behind living a Greek life in university? Is there actually religion associated with this concept?

To begin, many American sororities and fraternities were founded with religious principles while still upholding some of these principles today. This is clearly evident through the use of Greek names, Greek lettering, and Greek language. Despite the Greek religion, these organizations proudly open their doors to students of different descent, free of discrimination. Joining a sorority or fraternity can provide a sense of care and belonging within a huge university setting. It also forms life long relationships of sisterhood and brotherhood.

This represents one of Emile Durkheim’s three characteristics of religion, known as the Social Function. The Social Function argues that religions function socially as they bring people together, give them group identities, and create opportunities (Harris, Week 9 Lecture). These feelings experienced within this type of community are typically similar to the feelings that a highly religious individual may experience when coming together with members that share the same religious beliefs. This can be explained by Emile Durkheim’s idea of collective effervesce which holds the argument that a specific kind of excitement can arise when present in any form of gathering, especially when being surrounded by people who are also there for the same religious purpose and share the same religious beliefs (Harris, Week 9 Lecture).

Different sororities and fraternities also have certain rituals that they perform during specific occasions. These rituals carry tremendous meaning to the members.

This clip of the 2008 film, The House Bunny, portrays an example of how these organizations believe in rituals that members take very seriously. This clip also draws attention to the stereotypes, as previously mentioned, associated with sororities and fraternities through the use of a huge, extravagant party.

Nevertheless, they uphold the use of specific symbols. Each sorority/fraternity has a symbol for representation. Members of the organization often praise the symbol similar to the way religious individuals worship figures that represent their specific religion.

Zac Efron’s character within the film, Neighbors, reps his fraternity, Delta Psi Beta, tremendously, which is evident by the tattoo on his arm.

Another picture from the film, Neighbors, showing the boys sitting outside of their fraternity house, which is clearly symbolized to represent Delta Psi Beta.

This is also noted within the documentary, Football: The Modern Day Religion, as it claims that football can act as a faith to individuals since each club or team has their own sacred symbol that they worship tremendously (Guest, 2013).

Therefore, I don’t believe that sororities and fraternities are a religion itself; rather, my opinion is that they function like a religion. This is due to the fact that they contain similar specific characteristics that religions also hold. Fraternities and sororities also function religiously to the extent that they provide a sense of belonging, opportunities, and an identity to their members. They contain beliefs and principles similar to those that exist within different religions. The ritualizing, praising, and identification associated with a sorority or fraternity is identical to a highly spiritual adherent worshipping their God and religious views.

Sources:

Guest, Ryan, dir. Football: The Modern Day Religion. BBC National Television, 2013. Film.

Harris, Jennifer, A. “Defining Popular Culture As Religion.” RLG233H1F Lecture. University of Toronto, Toronto, ON. 10 November 2014. Lecture.