I wanted to convey this admonition in Greek as strongly as it is in English. He is adamant that these statements have to be affirmed in our lives and actions in order for our brotherhood to exist and flourish.
The last insight I want to share with you comes from Brother Draper’s use of the word “must” throughout the Creed. From my experience with the Ritual, the Creed, and my time in SigEp, I vehemently believe that this is what the Founders wanted each and every one of us to possess as fraternity men – to carry ourselves with ἀρετή, to pursue it diligently, and to do it with the love and support of our brothers. To be the best citizen, politician, leader, solider, you had to possess and strive for excellence, goodness, nobility and valor in all things. The Greeks believed that a man ought to have ἀρετή in every aspect of his life. I took this meaning in the same sense the ancient Greeks did. The word ἀρετή literally means excellence, goodness, nobility or valor. After doing some philological work, I decided on ἀρετή (r-eh-tay). Thus, to make the most accurate translation, I had to decide what the Cardinal Principle of virtue actually means. Sometimes there are only one or two words from which to choose, and sometimes there are several. Ancient Greek is a rich language filled with subtleties and powerful descriptors. The first insight comes from the Greek word I used for virtue. There are two, however, that completely changed the way I see this Fraternity and what it means to be a brother. Draper, Washington State ’19, mean when he wrote, “I believe that Brotherly Love must be given in order to be received, and that it cannot exist without triumph of the principles of Virtue and Diligence, for these are essential parts of it?” The experience was challenging, emotional and fulfilling, and I could write pages about the nuances in the Creed that I discovered as well as personal revelations I had while translating. This reality forces the translator or composer to think about not just the English words, but also the intent behind each one. I wanted to explore our brotherhood through a different medium and see what I could discover.Īnyone who has experience with composing in a different language understands that English is quite idiomatic and many constructions simply do not have a literal counterpart in other languages. Perhaps that is right, but my motivation came from a deep love and admiration of the Fraternity that changed my life. You may be thinking right now that this kid is either a masochist or the biggest nerd ever to join our Fraternity, or both, because no one in their right mind would put themselves through that voluntarily. For those who aren’t familiar with Ancient Greek, it is challenging to translate into English, and even harder to render English into comprehensible Ancient Greek. I decided to translate the Creed into the same language used by Socrates, Plato and Aristotle, some of the most brilliant thinkers in history, whose works influenced the Founders of SigEp.
I am pursuing a minor in classical studies here at Marquette and have had four semesters of Ancient Greek. At that moment, I realized how I could further explore our brotherhood. Then, last spring as I was finishing the final requirements to go through the Epsilon Rite of Passage, I decided to take a closer look at the Creed. When I first joined the Wisconsin Zeta Chapter at Marquette University as a freshman, my older brothers made this quite clear to me, but I had trouble understanding precisely what it meant to explore brotherhood. This challenge is present in our Ritual and our Cardinal Principles of Virtue, Diligence and Brotherly Love.
Ancient greek translator series#
Springboard: A Series to Launch You Into SigEp LeadershipĪs brothers of SigEp, we are all challenged to explore our brotherhood – what it means and why it exists.
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