Sunday, April 26, 2015

Explaining Fraternalism

I'm often asked to explain fraternalism, or what a fraternal society is. The dictionary definitions aren't always useful. One defines fraternalism as "the condition of having fraternal qualities." Another dictionary gives a better explanation: "The character of being fraternal; specifically, the cultivation and safeguarding of that fraternity, or brotherhood of an entire people, demanded by the French revolutionists." French Revolutionists? Where did that come from? Let's try the Oxford dictionary, which directs us to define fraternal as: "Of or denoting an organization or order for people, especially men, that have common interests or beliefs." There are other definitions, which specifically tie the word fraternal as "of or befitting a brother or brothers; brotherly." Another points us into another direction: "designating either or both of a pair of twins of the same or opposite sex that developed from two separate fertilized ova."

I can see why we're asked to explain things so often! Certainly there's a connection to all the definitions, but it can be hard to find how they weave together. A clearer understanding of the Royal Arcanum as a Family Fraternity can be derived from the above and combined into an easier to understand concept: We are an organization with a common bond that strives to help safeguard our society as we loyally and devotedly work to benefit each other and those around us. This combination of the various dictionary definitions may be a better way to understand what drives us to work toward the hallmarks of any fraternal society: enrolling its members in protection products, such as life insurance, which safeguards both the society and its members, and participating in charitable activities, to benefit those in need around us.

This past week, the American Fraternal Alliance gathered in Washington, D.C. to meet with members of Congress and help raise the awareness of the difference that fraternal societies such as the Royal Arcanum make. Their web site points out that each year, members of fraternal benefit societies invest more than 92.5 million hours in community works and contribute more than $414 million to charitable programs! That's not a bad explanation of fraternalism either, is it?

But what's most important to me is their identification that it is not the fraternal societies that donate this time or this money, but its members. The Royal Arcanum is not unique, but is a wonderful example of how our members give their time and their treasure to help benefit their community. Sometimes it's through a sponsored program, organized by one of our councils, to reach out to a need that resonates with their members. Many times it is just our members helping friends who ask for help in their efforts. In one small example of this, my wife and I were asked to help at the check-in and check-out booths for a small charitable organization, Harmony, Hope, & Healing, that was holding a fund-raising luncheon and auction to raise much needed funds so they could help in their mission to provide creative, therapeutic, and educational music programs offering emotional and spiritual support to homeless and under-served women, children and men in the Chicago area. This wasn't a Royal Arcanum sponsored event, we were just two people of many who helped out a good cause. It's a scene repeated over and over by our members, quietly giving of their time. It is this spirit of giving that draws me into the Royal Arcanum, and the countless acts of kindness I've witnessed that leads me share a small part of the giving they embody.


Monday, April 20, 2015

A Royal Gift - Our Challenge

In the last post, I covered a brief history of the Royal Arcanum and our founding objective to care for those in need. Our long history that's nearly a century and a half old is important, but there's a danger of assuming its time has past, that we are no longer relevant. Nothing could be further from the truth! The world has changed dramatically in the intervening years, but the need for us to watch out for each other is a foundational rock that has withstood the test of time.

Saturday, April 11, 2015

A Royal Gift - Our History

I mentioned a few posts ago that I'm traveling to our Grand Councils throughout North America and introducing my program, A Royal Gift. While I can't replicate a presentation here, I can share the essence of my message in a series here, to serve as a reminder to those I've been lucky enough to meet, and as an overview to those who have not been able to attend my visits. For members and friends of members who may see these posts shared (and please do share this if you find it interesting), reading this series is an excellent way to learn about the Royal Arcanum.

So what is the Royal Arcanum? We are a family fraternal organization, founded in 1877 to provide for widows and orphans of our members. That's a long time ago, just a dozen years after the end of the American Civil War. The war killed over 2% of the population, and created an estimated 200,000 widows and 500,000 orphans. The Royal Arcanum was founded to help guard against the financial ruin of its members, and we continue today to strive to fulfill that same goal. Our constitution outlines six major objectives in our founding: to form a fraternal union of people with good moral character, provide moral and material aid to its members, educate members and assist widows and orphans, provide a benefits fund for the old in age or disabled or beneficiaries of the deceased, support charitable institutions, and provide for the protection of junior members.

Now, more than 137 years later, we continue to honor those objectives. With over a quarter of a billion dollars of in-force insurance - billion with a "B" - we are a very established, financially strong insurance choice for you and your family. And as a non-profit fraternal organization, we take our charitable giving very seriously. We have a growing list of Royal Arcanum members named as winners or runners up to the American Fraternal Alliance Fraternalist of the Year winners, including the 2014 winner, and a constant stream of reports of our members giving their time and resources to those in need, as is constantly chronicled in our seasonal Bulletin. We strongly believe in giving to those in need and in caring for our members; and our insurance and annuity offerings help us to continue to meet our founding objective. It truly is A Royal Gift the Royal Arcanum has become!

Saturday, April 4, 2015

Happy Easter / Happy Passover / Joyeuses Pâques!

Happy Easter and Happy Passover, everyone! I hope that everyone is having an enjoyable, blessed holiday weekend. These celebrations couldn't come at a better time, when the grips of a harsh winter, especially in the northeast, are beginning to loosen. Spring is really, finally here, and even though there are still lingering threats of winter weather, we're ready for the new beginnings that the season heralds. And if we're lucky, a change in weather may come, too, to the west coast and bring some much needed rain to the parched land.

For those of us who have been cooped up for the winter months, it's time to move, get out, and get active. I'm excited to know that I'll be visiting our members soon outside of my home jurisdiction. Don't forget to check my calendar, posted here to show what weekends I have available through the end of the year. If I haven't been to your jurisdiction yet, know I can't wait to get out there! And if I've already been there, I'd love to return and help out in your charitable events.

What else is new? I'm excited about our new 15/15/15/15 Program! This program is designed to help us grow the Royal Arcanum by bringing in the next generation. We've listed 15 reasons to sign up 15 juniors in your council over the next 15 months. If you do, you'll earn 15 hundred dollars for your council! Everybody wins! Time to start talking up our great protection products and increase your membership.

Have a wonderful weekend!