Building bridges to fraternity and sorority students

by Andy Dalton

In 1978, John Belushi starred in one of the most popular college movies of all time, Animal House. Twenty-five years later National Lampoon is still making movies about fraternities and sororities with its 2003 release of Van Wilder. Whether from movies like these, newspaper headlines or real life experiences, many people have a narrow view of students who choose to join these organizations. The very idea of fraternity and sorority (Greek) students being interested in God sounds like a contradiction in terms. But, amazingly, ministry among Greek students is filled with possibilities, and if you’re open to that, the following may be very helpful to you.

Greek students on the college campus often find themselves in a cultural flux. There are more than 750,000 undergraduate fraternity and sorority students on 800 campuses throughout North America. In Western society these students typically represent the majority culture and often highlight some of its worst stereotypes. At the same time, these students are numerically more of a minority on campus and an even greater minority in the churches and other Christian groups on campus. Greeks are not a separate culture because of race or ethnicity, but they are defined by their unique experiences, pressures, lifestyles, living situations and close-knit community.

Historically within the church, the Greek student has been barely represented and often condemned as part of a pagan culture that is unreachable. At the same time, they are probably the most “churched” group on campus. Predominantly coming from middle-class America, more than two-thirds of undergraduate Greek students have a church background of some type. Greek InterVarsity has found that a great number of Greek students do not walk with Christ because of negative past religious experiences, unwillingness to submit to the demands of Lordship at this point in their lives, or the over-saturation of worldly influence and desires in their lives. Very few of them are non-believers or atheists. In fact, many Greek chapters are founded upon religious beliefs.

It helps to recognize the strengths as well as weaknesses of this society. They know their stereotypes. They expect you to see them as shallow, alcoholic, greedy, lustful, irresponsible, exclusive and overly driven people. They also expect you not to pay attention to their positive qualities: philanthropic, motivated, risk-taking, team-oriented, loyal, sacrificial, communal, intelligent, influential and very relational leaders. Force yourself to look beyond the Hollywood depictions and newspaper articles to the reality of this society.

Working with Greek students
The following tips may be helpful as you try to engage this student group:

• Don’t be intimidated. Greeks love to hang out in groups and at times can be intimidating, even when they are the minority. But they can be confused, hurting and needy just like any other college student. Sometimes they just work harder to put on a front for others to see.
• Treat them as innocent until proven guilty. Don’t label them as the stereotypical Greek until you have gotten to know them. Don’t treat them like pagans.
• Give some room for fun. Like anyone they love to have fun. At times they will be a little louder, rowdier and more excitable than the rest of the group. They will also need to be given time and room to let off steam. They need and will desire adequate time to hang out as a group.
• Don’t lure them away from their surroundings. Instead of asking them to move out of the house/chapter or spend more time away from their friends, we need to send, equip and encourage them to view their Greek chapter or house as an awesome mission field.
• Focus on the heart. Many will have Lordship issues to deal with as Christians. If you attack their lifestyle they will become defensive and slow to change. Focus more on the heart issues and let God soften them. In time, their heart will rule their mind and the choices they make will be for the right reasons, not just to follow some rules or standards we have set.
• Entrust them with leadership. They are natural leaders. Give them opportunities to do so. Be willing to work with them on some Lordship issues as they grow instead of holding off all leadership until you feel they are worthy.
• Challenge them. Greeks are not scared off by a challenge. They are often motivated by being challenged to take a step of faith, work on aspects of their life, step into leadership and to share Christ with others. Greek students can be great evangelists.
• Ask about Greek life. They love being Greek. They love talking about their experiences and stories. Listening to them can help them relax and will demonstrate genuine care at the same time. Know that their answers to your questions may be scary at times.
• Do your research. Nothing will turn them off quicker than sensing you have not put forth the effort to learn about their culture. Learn to pronounce the chapter names correctly, learn the chapter nicknames that are more commonly used on campus, know a little about the Greek calendar on campus, know the basics of how rushing and joining the Greek system works, etc.
• Don’t say “frat.” Frat is one of those terms that they may call themselves, but is offensive if used by others. Fraternity and sorority go over much better.

God not only loves Greek students, but he is also actively pursuing them. I challenge you to join in and share God’s love with fraternity and sorority students on your campus.

—Andy Dalton graduated from Purdue University as a member of Lambda Chi Alpha International Fraternity. He’s now living in Madison, Wisconsin, with his wife, Kristen, and two daughters, Madelyn and Abigail, where he serves as Director of Greek InterVarsity.

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