Most Meaningful part of creed, mission, symphony, etc.
 

I know we all love our GLO's creeds, missions,symphony, etc. I thought it would be interesting to see what part of yours is the most meaningful.

For me, the part of our creed that is often shortened to Love, Labor, Learning and Loyalty is what I consider most meaningful:



Once more we pledge a loyalty that means
Adherence to all true and noble things;
A learning that enriches all our days
With magic gold that is forever ours;
A labor that each hour will glorify
The simple, common task, the common cause;
A love that will be strong and great enough
To encompass and to pity all the world.

I love our creed from beginning to end, but I think the most meaningful part for me is -

The compass for its needle sure
That holds our course firm and secure

I've always thought the compass was a great symbol.

The mission of Alpha Epsilon Phi Sorority is to inspire and support exemplary women dedicated to friendship and a lifelong commitment to Alpha Epsilon Phi while building on the vision of our Jewish founders.

Inspire and support - that is what family is about.

To love life and joyously live each day to its ultimate good!!

-->my favorite line of our Creed.

I love the very beginning of our creed, "I believe in friendships formed in the springtime of youth." I think it's a beautiful way to describe the essential basis of any Greek organization. (It's even in my signature.) Of course it isn't my favorite Alpha Phi quotation, but my absolute favorites are ritual!

Agreed. Although our creed is short and to the point, every line speaks volumes to me.

From the Delta Chi Preamble:

"...promote friendship, develop character, advance justice, and assist in the acquisition of a sound education..."

From Lorah S. Monroe, Eta, our Grand President from 1922-1926:

"...for I do not only enjoy the privilege of being a Sigma Kappa, but I also have a deep obligation to her. I am a guardian of a sacred trust; I am a link between the glorious past and a worthy future; I must carry on."

Alpha Phi International Fraternity is a membership organization dedicated to promoting sisterhood, cultivating leadership, encouraging intellectual curiosity and advocating service. Alpha Phi develops character for a lifetime.




The objectives of our Fraternity are the promotion of growth in character; unity of feeling, sisterly affection, and social communion among our members. In all that we do, we try to obey God’s principles of justice and right. We have banded ourselves together to improve our minds and hearts, and we seek to aid each other through a constant watchcare always given in love. We believe ourselves to be sincere searchers for truth. We seek the highest ideal of womanhood, and we try to gain this ideal by cultivating not only the power and passion for seeking intellectual development but, also, the spirit of love and charity. And we who are thus united are under a solemn pledge to lend a helping hand to one another.



Bolded are the parts I love so much!

I have two things are most meaningful to me after The Rituals, The Jordan Standard, The Spirit and Creed. The first is a speech given by our Brother Founder Issac M. Jordan:

"...It is much more important that we should have but few chapters and have them good ones, that we should have but few members and have them honorable ones, than to have many chapters or many members. The decadence of other societies can be traced to a violation of this principle, and to an ambition to have many chapters and a large membership. And let me here, as germane to this subject, give a word of advice and admonition to the members of every chapter. Whenever you find an unworthy member of our society, expel him at once and without hesitation. Evil communications corrupt good morals, and one dishonorable man will bring reproach and dishonor upon your chapter and upon the whole Fraternity...."

My Badge
I might be forced to admit that there is some similarity between the ideals of Sigma Chi and those of other fraternities but—
I will not share the beautiful and the symbolic supremacy of the White Cross of Sigma Chi with any other badge in the Greek World.
The badge of my Fraternity is a cross, a sign and a symbol known to all the world, uplifting Him of whom our badge reminds us.
It is not a shield of timid defense nor a drawn sword of oppressive aggression nor an arrow swift and sure on its mission of death.
It is not a diamond so rich and so rare as to have no part in the common crowd nor a crescent pale and incomplete nor a star shining with a borrowed ray.
It is not a lamp whose feeble flame is extinguished by the slightest gust of wind that blows; nor a simple monogram of mysterious Greek letters presuming to reveal some hidden meaning.
But a cross with its base planted in the common clay of earth; its arms outstretched to all the world and its head lifted heavenward.
It is a White Cross, suggesting purity. As any pure white surface reflects all the rays of light without the absorption of any, so the White Cross of Sigma Chi reflects its ideals unselfishly to all Mankind

I like our Creed, the Jordan Standard, etc., but I truly appreciate the Spirit of Sigma Chi. It's hard to live up to it, but it is a worthy goal.

The Spirit of Sigma Chi
The Spirit of Sigma Chi, as conceived by the Founders more than 150 years ago yet visible and alive today, is based on the theory that...

...Friendship among members, sharing a common belief in an ideal,...

...and possessing different temperaments, talents, and convictions...

...is superior to friendship among members having the same temperaments, talents, and convictions; and that...

...Genuine friendship can be maintained without surrendering the principle of individuality or sacrificing one's personal judgment.

The Spirit of Sigma Chi was written by the Fraternity to honor and pay homage to the beliefs of Franklin Howard Scobey who believed strongly in the ideal that friendship among members of different temperaments, talents and convictions is superior to friendship among those who are all similar.

The part of our Purpose that sticks most with me is:

To welcome the opportunity of contributing to the world's work in the community where I am placed because of the joy of service thereby bestowed and the talent of leadership multiplied.

I love the spirit as well my brother:)

Mine too.

I have to agree with you as well!

Chi Omega Symphony
 

All of the above posted are really beautiful and inspirational.

For my own KD, although I love the open motto--Let us strive for that which is honorable, beautiful, and highest, I have always really appreciated the ideals of the creed:

May We,
Sisters in Kappa Delta,
strive each day to seek more earnestly the honorable and beautiful things.
May We, each day, through love of those within our circle,
Learn to know and understand better those without our circle.
May the diamond shield that guards our love find us each day
Truer,
Wiser,
More Faithful,
More Loving,
and More Noble.

My favorite is the last line of our creed: "Remembering always that the foundation precept of Zeta Tau Alpha was love, 'the greatest of all things.'"

I love our entire Symphony (in fact, the first time I heard it was at Pref--I got cold chills and just knew Chi-O was the place for me), but the part that speaks to me the most is in bold below:

To live constantly above snobbery of word or deed; to place scholarship before social obligations and character before appearances; to be, in the best sense, democratic rather than 'exclusive', and lovable rather than 'popular'; to work earnestly, to speak kindly, to act sincerely, to choose thoughtfully that course which occasion and conscience demand; to be womanly always; to be discouraged never; in a word, to be loyal under any and all circumstances to my Fraternity and her highest teachings and to have her welfare ever at heart that she may be a symphony of high purpose and helpfulness in which there is no discordant note.

Ethel Switzer Howard, Xi Chapter, Northwestern University, 1904

I like the second part of ours the best.

May we have faith in Lambda Chi Alpha and passion for its welfare.
May we have hope for the future of Lambda Chi Alpha and strength to fight for its teachings.
May we have pure hearts that we may approach the ideal of perfect brotherly love.

Incredibly, our creed was not published in our pledge manual until 1995. I don't know when it was written.

"The Purpose of Delta Delta Delta shall be to establish a perpetual bond of friendship among its member, to develop a stronger and more womanly character, to broaden the moral and intellectual life, and to assist its members in every possible way"

Oh and...
"Let us steadfastly love one another"
What more can I say?

So...my favorite AOII things are secret! We don't have a creed or a symphony...no open motto. Our founders liked to keep things quiet!:)
We do have a new mission statement that I like- "Women enriched by lifelong friendships." Like one of our international officers said to me, "Isn't that what it's all about?" We do have an "object" statement-
The object of the Fraternity shall be to encourage a spirit of Fraternity and love among its members; to stand at all times for character, dignity, scholarship, and college loyalty; to strive for and support the best interest of the colleges and universities in which chapters are installed, and in no way to disregard, injure, or sacrifice those interests for the sake of prestige or advancement of the Fraternity or any of its chapters.

I think that this sums up AOII fairly well. My favorite part is in bold. It keeps things in perspective.

One thing that is AMAZING about Phi Mu is that our creed means the world to us. I don't think that there is anything else that is brought up more between us other than our sisterhood. Someone is always talking about living our creed! Here are my highlights (in bold with comments in parentheses).

To lend to those less fortunate a helping hand. (This is brought up a LOT during philanthopy)

To think of God as a protector and guide of us all.

To keep forever sacred the memory of those we have loved and lost.

To be to others what we would they would be to us. (The golden rule is in our creed!)

To keep our lives gentle, merciful, and just,

thus being true to the womanhood of love. (I love the way we have this worded!)

To walk in the way of honor, guarding the purity of our thoughts and deeds.

Being steadfast in every duty, small or large.

Believing that our given word is binding. (*gush*)

Striving to esteem the inner man above culture, wealth, or pedigree.

Being honorable, courteous, tender,

thus being true to the womanhood of honor.

To serve in the light of truth avoiding egotism, narrowness, and scorn. (*gush s'more*)

To give freely of our sympathies.

To reverence God as our maker, striving to serve him in all things.

To minister to the needy and unfortunate.

To practice day by day Love, Honor, Truth.

Thus keeping true to the meaning, spirit, and reality of Phi Mu. (Whenever this part is said by a group of sisters in unison it is like hearing a sign from God or something-It makes you want to be an even better person!)

I know a LOT of mine's is highlighted-but I could have found something about the whole thing, I love it so much!

While I love the whole purpose, and that is my second favorite line, my favorite is:

To gain understanding that wisdom may be vouchsafed to me.

Mostly because I'm an academic and I think that I'm never leaving school. What can I say? I'm a nerd.

"for the purpose of promoting good fellowship among sorority women, to help, in acquiring knowledge, appreciation, discriminating judgment, and a true feeling of sisterly love, through the interaction of sympathetic and friendly natures."

I believe in the founding values of the Delta Phi Epsilon Sorority, therefore, it is my responsibility to accept the moral obligation to live within the precepts of Justice, Sisterhood, and Love, and to be authentic by living our motto: Esse Quam Videri (To Be Rather Than To Seem To Be).

favorite part is our motto:)

Justice to each fellow man
Wisdom in each deed and plan
Loyalty to every friend
Faith that sorrow can transcend.
Truth to God and truth to self
Honor valued over wealth
This is the creed that in us lies
The creed of loyal Theta Phis.

The white rose for its purity
The sapphire blue for loyalty
The compass for its needle sure
That holds our course firm and secure.
The silver for a precious faith
That knows no end not even death
This is the creed that in us lies
The creed of loyal Theta Phis.

Although I really love our entire creed, I think those lines especially stand out to me. :)

Truth to self has always been my fave. :)

my favourite part of the ZTA creed is:

to learn those things that will ever enrich and enoble our lives

everything we do somehow makes an impact on ourselves and others, and i try to make decisions that will enrich my life and make it better.
i also love the last line, - remembering always that the foundation precept of Zeta Tau Alpha was Love, "the greatest of all things"

since college i have keet a copy of the creed in the back of my planner, and it is nice to see it and remind yourself of it once in a while.

Thank you, everyone for sharing - these are really very inspirational. Isn't it great the way our founders were able to enunciate these precepts in such a way that decades later they still speak to us?

I've noted this on GC before, but Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia does not have an official creed as such. However, the quote shown below is familiar to all Sinfonians -- learned by probationary members (pledges), quoted by brothers, used in various publications and other contexts (including signatures in forums like GC) so I guess it could be considered an unofficial creed or statement of our standards and goals. It came to us as the closing paragraph in a letter to the Brotherhood from Ossian E. Mills, "Father of Sinfonia" and Honorary Grand Supreme President for Life, in the 1912 FMA Annual. Many of us find it be a very meaningful standard, truly words to live by.

This it is to be a man of the highest type. To be and not seem; to do and not simply to talk; to have the right ideal, the true motive and patiently to transform conduct in accordance with it. So let it be for Sinfonia!

I've always loved the parts in bold!

It's my favorite of our symbols and insignia, aside from our badge, of course.

Honor valued over wealth is my second favorite part. Always reminded me of something my great-grandmother would tell us over and over... "You can be rich as Rockefeller, but if your word is worthless, you're the poorest of paupers."

Love, Labor, Learning and Loyalty

I promise this day to live, a simple, sincere and serene life;
repelling promptly every thought of discontent, anxiety, discouragement,
impurity, self-seeking; cultivating cheerfulness, magnanimity, charity and the habit of holy silence; exercising economy in expenditure, generosity in giving, carefulness in conversation, diligence in appointed service, fidelity in every trust and a child-like faith in God.

SWTXBelle, I agree. Maybe we have become so used to business like mission statements, shallow slogans designed to sell something, and techno-jargon passing for literature that we are somewhat starved for the evocative wording and unashamed sentiment found in our mottos, creeds, symbols and symphonies.

I originally registered on GC to become "up to date" when I joined a chapter advisory board. I stay because it is both fascinating and inspirational to learn about the different organizations. This is an interesting thread.

ZBT mission statement......"To foster and develop in its membership the tenets of its Credo: Intellectual Awareness, Social Responsibility, Integrity and Brotherly-Love in order to cultivate Leadsership and Service within their communites."

ZBT: Inspiring Todays College Men to Become Leaders Of Tomorrow."

The Creed of Sigma Nu

by Walter James Sears
http://www.und.nodak.edu/org/sigmanu...Etc/creed3.gif

TO BELIEVE IN THE LIFE OF LOVE; to win in the fresh morning of our youth the loyal love of faithful friends, who will go with us unmmoved into the darkening shadows of life's closing day; and so to seek and to find, to have and to hold the friendships that will abide. To think of God as the common father of all men, and all men as a common brotherhood, thus recognizing the continuity of the Divine and the solidarity of the human life. To build somewhere in the wide world the sheltering walls of a home, however humble and obscure, where Love shall glorify the wife, Duty enshrine the mother, and Affection ennoble the child. To keep green the sainted memory of our loved and lost, their faults forgotten, their virtues enshrined in our hearts forever. To try bravely to do unto our fellowmen as we would they should do unto us, reckoning not their lineage nor their wealth, but esteeming their manhood above their badge of rank. To let our lives be led by the spirits of Gentleness, Justice, and Mercy. And so to be true to the Knighthood of Love.

TO WALK IN THE WAY OF HONOR; to exalt the fundamental virtues of the race; and, prizing every noble impulse, to realize so deeply the baseness of deceit, that no obligation will be more binding than our plighted word. To be steadfast in the performance of every trust, and, spurning the gaudy gifts of greed and power, to be content to live by our knightly vow that our honor is dearer to us than our lives; and so to esteem the man's character first, his culture second, and his pedigree not at all, unless he be worthy of it. Emulating the chivalrous deeds of courtesy, and sealing not our hearts against the torch of tenderness, to win the love and care of some incorruptible woman. And so to be loyal to the Knighthood of Honor.

TO SERVE IN THE LIGHT OF TRUTH; to open wide, Life's windows to the revelations of heaven and earth. Avoiding the Phariseeism that belittles the soul and scorning the bigotry that blights the mind, to respect every altar of faith built in God's name, by every sincere worshiper to whom, if we cannot give our sympathy, we shall not deny the kindness of our manly silence; and, whatever our creed, to reverence the Christ as the Divine Compassion for struggling humanity -- a compassion that, giving the world its gospel of human service, saves men to the end that they may serve their fellowmen.

To seek in nature, the meaning of the Infinite Truth; to understand that the laws of growth are the laws of God to believe that the melody of birds, the laughter of children the unmeasured sacrifice of motherhood, and the ceaseless yearning of all men for a wider outlook and a nobler existence are prophetic of the perfect joy and love of another world and so believing, to find rest, as in the shadow of a great rock, against all the storms that beset us; catching from the silence of the starlit nights, the peace of the autumn days, the solemnity of the boundless seas, that spirit of Hope and Faith which soothes hurt of grief, heals the wound of wrong, and calms the fever of doubt.

To welcome the achievements of art and science, religion and learning, labor and law, under whose radiant banners battle the hosts of progress; honoring every honest student as the benefactor of his race, and every consecrated school as a bulwark of the Republic; and so to be loyal to the American university, as the home of American liberty, democracy, religion, and culture.

To guard with jealous care not only ancient rights of human freedom, in whose name we shall destroy all wrong and oppression, but also the newer rights of social service, the ultimate purpose of whose ministrations shall be to give to every life, the opportunity to enjoy the earth in the fullness of its beauty and grace, its comfort and good cheer; holding fast to the conviction that whatever sweetens our natures, uplifts our ideals, strengthens our character and disenthralls our spirits will bring us in the end into the full stature of a noble manhood; and, so inspired, to cling to the visions of our youth, and, despite the sordid struggles of the selfish world, to practice every day, as lads in college, and men in the world, the Faith of our Fraternity, thinking of it not only as the inspiring Ideal of a militant Brotherhood, but also as a creative force for the spiritual development of men, whose lives it shall dedicate to Love, glorify with Honor, and conquer for Truth. And so to be faithful to the Knighthood of Truth.

TO BELIEVE IN THE LIFE OF LOVE,
TO WALK IN THE WAY OF HONOR,
TO SERVE IN THE LIGHT OF TRUTH
This is the Life, the Way, and the Light of Sigma Nu - This is the Creed of our Fraternity


-- eerily similar to Phi Mu's creed, isn't it?