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The State of The Augustan Society, Inc., for 2007

Is Our Society a Cult? And Should it Be?

By Bruce A Metcalf, FAS, Consul

Let me begin by pointing out that the title of these remarks is a question, not a statement. Let me also observe that I have no intention of proposing the answer, only of putting the question to the membership for your serious consideration. Some who previewed my notes suggest that some might be offended by the terminology used. Let me reassure you that neither my remarks nor my honest opinions reflect negatively upon anyone or any part of our Society simply by proximity to the term “cult”. That said....

I should probably begin with a working definition of the word “cult”, as it seems so wrought with emotional baggage, and it is not in that way I mean to employ it. A cult, as I mean to use the term tonight, refers to any group who are bound to an emotional center which serves to attract the attention, admiration, and loyalty of the members. By this broad definition, most groups are cults, including at one time even Christianity. Clearly, I am not going to talking about “drinking the Kool‑Ade”.

So if a cult is defined as a group who are bound together by a single figure, real or not, then the first half century of our Society saw us develop into a cult; specifically, the “Cult of Sir Rodney”, and I am proud to count myself among his worshipers. Despite his disclaimers, the Society was very much what he made it, and we were bound by loyalty to him rather more tightly than we were bound to the Society itself. Notice how quickly we all joined the Octavian Society, the International Chivalric Institute, the Heraldry Society of the U.S.A.? Good organizations all, to be sure, but it was Sir Rodney’s recommendation of them that convinced us all to sign up.

Now that we have lost him, what is to become of this Cult of ours? Do not suppose that we can continue as before, honoring the man and his ideals, for we too are old and our newest members are already wondering, “Who was that man?” Capt. Browne, our Omnibus Proofreader, reports that cults of personality tend to survive only about five years past the death of their object of affection. If true, we have but two years to find a new hub for our wheel before we fall into the ditch.

If we are no longer to be a “Cult of Sir Rodney”, then what, or who? I cannot fancy that we shall become a “Cult of Bruce”. It sounds too much like a Monty Python skit, plus I don’t fancy that my rudimentary knowledge of our varied fields of study gives me anything like the stature needed. We might try becoming a “Cult of Richard”, he certainly works hard enough in support of our Society, but he’s older than Rodney, so would only be a short-term idol in any event. I frankly don’t see anyone who would serve this role — or has time to. We might become a “Cult of the Board” where a number of members share the load. Ah, that would be the Board of Directors, the majority of which didn’t bother to attend this event. Right. Moving on.

So then, what are we to do for something to rally our members ’round? If it’s not to be a “who” then it must be a “what”. What shall we choose?

We could choose to become a “Cult of the Omnibus”. To put all of our energies into the publication. Get it back to quarterly frequency, or more. Convince the membership that each of them has an obligation to fill at least one page per year. We could do it. We could certainly afford to publish it. With help, we could even keep up the scholarly standards, for some of it.

Or we could expand this to be a “Cult of Publications” more generally. Relaunch the Genealogy series, print Heraldry, Chivalry, and Royalty & Nobility. Take back the Members’ Newsletter of the International Chivalric Institute and clone it for these other fields. In time, we might even be able to pay for articles, or better, editors. Create such a flurry of dead trees that none can deny our vibrancy.

Well, brave words for a group who cannot get out a 36-page magazine in less than ten months. Magazines are great tools for coordinating members’ efforts, reporting their successes, and celebrating our victories. But they cannot write themselves, and your pens grow dry.

For a time, we nearly became a “Cult of the Villa Augusti”. As other activities of our Society ebbed, more and more attention was paid to the building, both in person and in our publications. Alas, also in our budget.

For those of you unfamiliar with the financial history, we received a gift of $300,000 from a member’s will with the restriction that it could only be used for capital purchases, not for maintenance and routine expenses. That was enough to buy the Villa Augusti, and now that it’s sold, the same amount is again available for a purchase. But the Villa Augusti — an uninsulated, 80-year-old wood structure in the high desert — was not an easy or inexpensive building to operate. We finally got decent air conditioning installed, only to discover it cost $100 per day to operate! The Society didn’t have the income to sustain the property, which is why we were obliged to give it up.

But the money realized from the sale of that first Villa Augusti is again in hand, though still with the capital-only restriction. We can again purchase a building, especially in this economy, but this time we must take care that we do not buy an inefficient building, nor one we cannot afford to operate indefinitely.

To effect this plan will require two champions, two groups if possible. The first must begin fund raising in earnest. By this I do not mean an expansion or continuation of the Annual Fund Raiser. This has too long been an artificial dues override, and once our current goal is reached, it will be retired.

No, we need fund raising to go find us another $300,000 that we can invest and use the interest to fund the upkeep of our new Villa. This will be hard, as there’s just no “sex” in donations to pay for the water bill. But it is a task that must precede our purchase, and it must begin years in advance.

The second champion is needed to define our space needs so that we can know just how much Villa is required for present and near future of our Society. This means the work area for staff and volunteers, the library, the museum, meeting space, and a chapel, if not more. I also urge that we plan for living quarters for a paid executive director and their family. As capital funding is easy and expenses hard, our provision of living quarters will make it possible to hire better staff at lower rates, for the current housing situation will surely not last forever.

Neither of these champions can be your Consuls. If we do take on these tasks, you will need to find others to keep the machinery of the Society working, as that presently takes all of our available time and energy. Those of you sitting here today are by your very presence the prime candidates and best prospects for our Society’s future.

Are there other icons we could worship, other flags we could salute? Of course, and one may well prove better than anything I’ve discussed here tonight. But we need to find it, and we need to find it soon. Our little “Cult of Sir Rodney” has an expiration date that is not long off, an we must find his successor soon.

Our Society’s survival may very well depend on it.

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