[24396] in APO-L
Re: [APO-L] Hazing, APO & 1938
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Brown Michael-EMB021)
Mon Jul 26 10:53:51 2004
Date: Mon, 26 Jul 2004 10:52:59 -0400
Reply-To: Brown Michael-EMB021 <Michael.R.Brown@motorola.com>
From: Brown Michael-EMB021 <Michael.R.Brown@motorola.com>
To: APO-L@LISTSERV.IUPUI.EDU
> following durites: Each to go into the woods and make a bed and sleep
> alone all night; to carve upon a pieces of wood the greek letters of
> Alpha Phi Omega and wear said piece around the neck supended by thin
> branches, vines or other native material, and to have a fire started
> by 8 a.m. the following morning.
>
> The pledges were the dismissed and the active members were not
> speak to any of them until the initiation ceremony in the morning.
As Brother Peter has pointed out, what was being asked of these pledges is very similar to what going on in the Ordeal of the OA. Practices that still go on today and which are NOT considered hazing.
For what its worth, I went thru the Ordeal in 1981. During my ordeal I carved a wooden arrow and endure what Peter describes. Many years later, I did my Vigil.
Remember that in 1938, those APO Pledges would ALL have been former scouts, several may have been Arrowmen. To ask this of them would have been no big deal. I wouldn't do this today with APO pledges mainly because they would not have the prior experiences to be able to handle this. (a weekend camping retreat is a great idea, asking them to sleep out in the wood without a tent wouldn't be).
BTW, the Order of the Arrow was established in 1915 at Philadelphia Council's Treasure Island camp.
Our own H. Roe Bartle was responsible for establishing another scouting honor society called the "Tribe of Mic-O-Say", which still exists in the Pony Express Council and the Heart of America Council (Kansas City).
Michael Brown
APO LM & TB
Vigil Honor Member, OA
