THE FRATERNAL BOND: WHAT ARE ITS LIMITS?

By Gregory C. Knapp Illinois ’72 (Brown ’71)

The Fraternity is built upon the friendship between and among its members. We sing of friendship in our song, “Amici.” The song begins with the Latin phrase, “Amici usque ad aras,” which translates as “friends unto the altar.” In Latin poetic use, “the altar” was thought to signify the grave or the tomb. The meaning is that the fraternal bond is unending during life. But is that friendship unconditional? That question was considered by our late Brother, George Lincoln Hendrickson Beloit 1883.

Hendrickson

George Lincoln Hendrickson was born in 1865 in Winchester, Illinois. That rural county seat is located in southwestern Illinois, nearer St. Louis than Chicago. In 1883, Hendrickson entered Beloit College and was initiated into the Wisconsin Gamma Chapter of Phi Kappa Psi. He studied classics. He remained at Beloit for two years and then continued his education at Johns Hopkins. After college, he continued his studies and later taught the subject. He taught at Colorado College, the University of Wisconsin and the University of Chicago. Ultimately, he joined the faculty of Yale University, where he taught classics from 1907 to 1933. He continued as senior fellow at Yale until his death in 1963. In 1950, Hendrickson published an article titled, “Amici Usque Ad Aras” in The Classical Journal.1 The article is printed in full following this introduction with the kind permission of the Classical Association of the Middle West and South.

Brother Hendrickson makes his points far more clearly than I could summarize them. Hendrickson begins by giving a brief history of the song. He then examines the meaning of its seminal Latin phrase. Finally, he considers the earlier Greek origins of the phrase and compares the interpretations. The later, and more romanticized, Latin expresses friendship within the bounds of honorable and virtuous conduct.

The points made by Brother Hendrickson are as relevant today as they were in the days of Pericles. Each person should ask of himself whether friendship is absolute, unending and unquestioning. Conversely, does friendship exist within a broader context that requires accountability, and that is genuinely mutually beneficial to both persons? Enjoy Brother Hendrickson’s thoughts and discussion.

Valete, amici.

1 Hendrickson, G.L., 1950. “Amici Usque Ad Aras.” This article first appeared in The Classical Journal, Vol. 45, No. 8 (May, 1950), pp. 395-397. Copyright Classical Association of the Middle West and South.