Verhovayak Lapja, 1944 (27. évfolyam, 1-52. szám)

1944 / Verhovay Journal

VOL. XXVII.

JUNE 8, 1944

NO. 23,

PATRIOTISM-the Heart of FRATERNALISM

Fraternal life is democracy in ft nut-shell. It has all the merits, advantages, and faults of constitutional democracy. Its members enjoy the same freedoms within fraternal life as do the citizens of this country in their national life. They have the same obligations, the same duties and responsibilities.

Now if we study the duties and obligations of a citizen, we find that he must be interested and informed in national affairs, he must practice his right as a citizen to vote for those to whom leadership is entrusted, be it in a small community or in the nation as a whole. Only about forty per cent of the citizens vote which shows a deplorable lack of interest on the part of the citizens in the nation’s affairs. This lack of interest, however, has a reason which simply cannot be branded as absolute negligence. When talking to negligent citizens about their lack of interest, we find that its reason is a lack of faith in democratic processes. It boils down to this: the individual citizen does not believe that his vote will influence th» election one way or the other. Since his vote does not mean much, if anything, he prefers to save himself the trouble of voting.

We even have to go further and say that there is some truth to that contention. In a nation of 136 million people, the opinion of a single individual does mean very little. He may sw’ay the Vote in a little local election but not when it comes to electing State or national officers. However, it would be a mistake to accept the negligence of the individual citizen as the only Way out of this difficulty because it is exactly the indifference of the intelligent voter that Surrenders the country’s affairs to political machines. The way out of this difficulty is rather the organizing of the individual citizens in groups and blocks of Voters, who can assert themselves in national elections as well as in other political activities. Naturally, a block of citizens consists of individuals who are not unanimous on every question of life; they have their different opinions, convictions, habits, ways of thinking, but on that particular issue, they are willing to forget the differences and pool their votes, so to speak, because in that way they can make themselves heard at least on one issue Which is important to every member of that block.

We have the same problem in fraternal life. Lodge life seems to be declining. No matter how much we whistle in the dark, the fact remains that in seventy five per cent of our branches, the members do not participate in branch activities. Naturally, the branch is either run by unwilling officers who just can’t get rid of their officers because there are no members present Who would elect others to do their job; or the branches are run by a machine, a few dictators who have their will in everything and let the membership be d-----!

Now let us not forget that this does not mean a decline of fraternal life just as a lack of interest of so many millions of citizens does not mean the end of American democracy.

As I pointed out above, the lack of interest in the case of fraternal members has a reason just as in the case of the citizen of, the United States. I may say, the same reason. It is lack of faith in the value of democratic processor within fraternal life, a lack of faith which results from the experience that the individual member’s opinion does not affect the branch or the organization in any way. “Why go to branch meetings,” so asks the member, “if all I have to do is to listen? Why should I vote if the election is decided before the vote is taken? Why should I be interested in the affairs of the organization if the organization is not interested in my opinion as to its affairs?”

The way out of this difficulty is the same as outlined above. Just as in our great democracy, the interested participation of every member is needed if the organization is to develop all its inherent possibilities for the

benefit of the entire membership. This cannot be done, however, if every interested member attempts to stand apart and exert his influence individually. The family of fraternal organization is too big for that. The individual member must secure a following for that particular idea which he proposes. He must strive to form a block of members who try to influence the membership of the lodge, or that of the organization, as a group.

Every organization in the world has ils disgruntled members who suffer from nothing but a cantankerous disposition. Their suggesfions lack experience, their criticism is not based on the knowledge of facts, they are just nagging. They can never secure a following, they can never form a group because their attitude is just a pain in the neck for everyone concerned. It is, therefore, of great benefit for the individual member himself, as well as for the organization, if that member tests his opinions by personal contacts with the other members of his branch. If he cannot convince anyone, he may be sure that he is not right. Life is too involved today to enable organizations to listen to one man's opinions but a respectful hearing is given to a suggestion that is

offered by a substantial group of members.

Members who are disgusted with the activities of the branch should not permit themselves to withdraw from it entirely. Just as you can’t discard democracy because it does not work your way, you should not discard fraternal life because it does not please you. On the contrary, you should try even more to participate in it if you don’t agree with the way things are run. Try to change them by forming groups that can exert influence. This is the democratic way of life. Take it or leave it. You can change the results if you adapt yourself to the rules of the game but you can’t change the rules.

It is obvious from the comparison drawn between democracy and fraternal life that due to the essential similarities of the two, fraternal life is one of the strongholds of democracy. Lodge life is the school of citizenship where parliamentary rules and democratic processes are learned by the members at an early age. It is in branch life that they learn to appreciate the importance of voting, of debating community issues, of planning group activities; it is in branch life that the membership is educated

to respect the opposition, to respect the rights of others to have different opinions and to accept the fact that the result of activities undertaken by a large body of members will always be a fusion of the propositions of different parties, a compromise between opposing theories, a medium road on which all the opposing factions can meet. Thus fraternal life becomes democracy in a nut-shell.

It follows from the above that fraternities have a most important task when it comes to defend the democratic way of life. Ever since fraternal organizations have operated in this country, they have bee« strongholds of patriotism. Ever since we had fraternities in our country, they have been the staunchest defenders of the highest democratic principles, equality, liberty, humanity. It is obvious, then, that right now fraternal organizations are the Minute Men of American life. We Verhovayans, with all the other fraternal groups, have the sacred obligation today to uphold, within our own ranks, all the democratic principles for which our soldiers fight. If nothing else, forty three dead Verhovay soldiers make us responsible for the preservation of the very same values for the defense of which they shed their blood.

At the same time, we must step out from within the limits of our own organization and participate in every national activity which is aimed at the defense and preservation of our form of life. Patriotism in this sense is the most natural of all fraternal activities. A fraternal branch which does not participate in patriotic activities is not a fraternal branch. It is a contradiction of terms. It is nothing but a group of insured people who hold identical policies. They have nothing in common and they have nothing to contribute to national life.

Now we know that the Verhovay has contributed to national life. It has exerted immense influence, it has spent a great deal of money in order that immigrant Hungarians become naturalized American citizens, it has educated its members to become conscious of all the privileges and obligations that American citizenship involves. It is in great part responsible for the fact that five thousand Verhovay soldiers go into the war as men who fight not only because they have to but because, being informed, they know what this war is about, they are conscious of its ideological substance and they go into the war as -conscious liberators of oppressed people. It is in great part responsible for the fact that up to date forty three Verhovay soldiers have made the supreme sacrifice because their knowledge of what we are fighting for has given