Zeta Beta Tau
| Zeta Beta Tau | |
|---|---|
| ΖΒΤ | |
 |
|
| Founded | December 29, 1898 City College of New York New York, New York |
| Type | Social |
| Scope | International |
| Motto | "Brotherhood for a Lifetime" |
| Colors | Medium Blue White Gold |
| Flower | Gold Carnation (adopted 2004) |
| Chapters | 90 |
| Fraternity Song | "Here's to Our Fraternity" |
| Headquarters |
3905 Vincennes Rd. Suite 300 Indianapolis, Indiana USA |
| Homepage | www |
Zeta Beta Tau (ΖΒΤ) is a Greek letter social fraternity. ZBT was founded on December 29, 1898, as the first Jewish Zionist Fraternity. Due to policy changes, Zeta Beta Tau has moved away from its exclusively Jewish membership and Zionist mission of its founding. In 1954 Zeta Beta Tau became nonsectarian and opened their doors to non-Jewish members, changing their membership policy to include "All Men of Good Character". ZBT values the diversity of its membership.
Four other fraternities have merged with Zeta Beta Tau in the past: Phi Alpha, Kappa Nu, Phi Sigma Delta, and Phi Epsilon Pi.
Zeta Beta Tau was founded in 1898 as the nation's first Jewish fraternity, although it is no longer sectarian.
The Zeta Beta Tau fraternity was spearheaded unto his death by Dr. Richard J. H. Gottheil, a professor of languages at Columbia University and a Zionist. On December 29, 1898, he formed a Zionist youth society with a group of students from several New York City universities. Fifteen young men—among them Herman Abramowitz, Aaron Levy, Bernhard Bloch, David Liknaitz, Isidore Delson, Louis S Posner, Aaron Drucker, Bernhard Saxe, Bernard Ehrenreich, Herman Sheffield, Menachem Eichler, David Swick, Aaron Eiseman, Maurice Zellermayer, and David Levine—gathered at the Jewish Theological Seminary on this date to found the organization.
The society was called Z.B.T., which referred to the first letters in the Hebrew phrase "Zion Be-mishpat Tipadeh", which translated means "Zion shall be redeemed with judgment". This is taken from Isaiah 1:27—Zion be-mishpat tipadeh ve-shaveha be-tzedakah--"Zion shall be redeemed with judgment, and they that return of her, with righteousness". The word "judgment" is sometimes translated as "justice". The meaning of Z.B.T. was listed in the American Jewish Committee's annual report as early as 1900-1901.
In 1903 Z.B.T. formally became Zeta Beta Tau, and its purpose shifted away from that of a Zionist youth organization as other Zionist organizations grew in prominence. The original Hebrew meaning of Z.B.T. is not esoteric. However, it was publicly revealed in the official written history of Zeta Beta Tau, Here's to Our Fraternity: One Hundred Years of Zeta Beta Tau, 1898–1998, by Marianne Rachel Sanua.
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