Honoring America in the name of England's patron saint

This week we back up from my great-great-to-the x grandfather to just my great grandfather on my mother's side, Joseph Henry. Reading that made me think I was hearing a discussion from a family reunion: Now you remember Aunt Ida, who was your fourth cousin on your mother's side by way of the Orange clan ...

I think this stuff may be getting to me. 

Anyway, among the items my sister sent me from among my mother's effects was a small booklet containing a record of premium payments that Joseph made not long before his death. The booklet was from the Mistletoe Lodge 142, American Order Sons of St. George, Chicago, Il. and listed "Assurements and Dues."

Because I'd never heard of such an organization, much like hundreds of other groups I've never heard of, I did what anyone would do. I Googled it. 

Turns out the organization began as a secret society. I was intrigued. My father had once been invited to join the Masons and, according to my mother, had begun attending meetings. But  the organization's initiation ritual involved some kinds of physical exertions that the members thought would be too difficult for a man with a wooden leg, so he quit attending and never joined. Mum was pretty annoyed about that. No ADA requirements back then, and they probably wouldn't apply anyway.

English immigrants founded the Sons of St. George in 1870, ostensibly as a self-defense group dedicated to protecting English descendants from the likes of the Molly Maguires, an organization of Irish immigrants who were accused of being a bunch of vigilante thugs. 

I won't go into the history of the Maguires, but you might take time to look them up on the Internet. Oh, and someone made a film about them starring that famous Scottish guy, Sean Connery. 

By the time of great grandpa Joseph's membership, according to several sources I found, the Sons had been rebranded as the St. George Fraternal Insurance Society, something much tamer sounding. This confuses me because that is clearly not what the booklet says. And the booklet indicates that the Order still met twice a month. 

Membership was open to Englishmen and their sons and grandsons wherever they had been born. Members had to be between 18 and 50 years old, but those over 50 could be honorary members. Joseph was in his 70s at the time of the booklet, but I have no idea when he actually joined.

According to the Dutch web site Stichting Argus, or the Argus Foundation, which says it's a research group. the Sons required belief in a Supreme Being, reverence for the Christian Bible and loyalty to the U.S. It provided funeral and sick benefits to members upon application and availability of funds. 

At one point in its history, the organization was accused of promoting pro-British propaganda for inclusion in New York textbook, and the membership was drawn from all levels of society and may have included British spies. Conspiracists believe the Order was instrumental in pushing the U.S. into the world wars on Britain's side. But really, the Revolution had been over for some time by then; who else would we side with. 

Argus's site has what purports to be the initiation ritual for the Order. It begins with a song or poem to be sung by the members:

"Enter, Stranger, freely enter;
In our midst no cause for fear:
Each true friend of our dear Order
Meets a hearty welcome here.
Enter, Stranger, freely enter,
None but friends around thee stand,
Off’ring thee, with manly frankness,
Entrance to our noble band."

The initiate has to make certain vows, is taught the Order's motto, and instructed in the secret handshake, so you know who you're talking to, should you run into someone claiming to be a brother. Unfortunately, that part is acted out and not part of the written ritual. Sorry..

The ritual also contains these gems:

"... our Order is of American origin. It is therefore fitting that we should foster and cultivate a spirit of true patriotism, a reverence for the memory of our forefathers, and a devotion to the high ideals of our constitution. While enjoying the opportunities and liberties guaranteed to all who live here, we must jealously guard the liberties of others. The history of this country teaches that the Cavaliers of England who settled at Jamestown, Virginia, in the year sixteen hundred and seven, and the English Pilgrims who founded the first colony at Plymouth, Massachusetts, in sixteen hundred and twenty, founded the ideals of a true democracy, out of which grew the United States. The great and illustrious names of those who have been leaders before and since we became a sovereign nation will always embellish the pages of history."

The desire to join "is an indication that your inspirations and ambitions are in sympathy with the best traditions of the Mother Country, and that you seek fraternal communion with us. It is fitting, therefore, that we emulate not only the life of St. George, the patron saint of Old England, but that we exercise in our everyday life those principles which have caused England and the British Empire to be synonomous [sic] with honor and obedience to law. You have just cause to be proud of your ancestry. For near a thousand years the flag of St. George has been the emblem of freedom. When King John, in the year twelve hundred and fifteen, at Runnymede, was compelled by free Englishmen to sign the great Magna Charta, true democracy was born, not alone to England, but to the entire world. The great men and women whose names embellish the history of England have been instrumental in advancing the theory of sound government and the highest ethics of those principles which are beneficial to mankind."

I could go on, but this post has become too long. I'd like to have a clever ending for this, but given the above, I'll just sign off with "Hail, Britannia!"