At a pub quiz last night, the Guardian Unlimited team considered the following elegant poser: "What RC is the world's leading provider of services to business and corporations, encourages high ethical standards in all vocations, and helps build goodwill and peace in the world?"
As a papist, I assumed it was the Holy Roman Catholic and Apostolic church, largely because that definitely does provide more services (definition 9b) than any other organisation. But the answer, in fact, was the Rotary Club, which celebrates its centenary today.
The Rotarians, it has to be said, have a bit of an image problem. Mention the word and some will think of the Leopard Lodge, a silly, pseudo-Masonic club frequented by Mr Cunningham in Happy Days. Others will think of the Freemasons themselves. In fairness, that's because the two organisations define themselves similarly:
Freemasonry is one of the world's oldest secular fraternal societies. From its earliest days, Freemasonry has been concerned with the care of orphans, the sick and the aged. This work continues today. In addition, large sums are given to national and local charities. Freemasons strive for truth, requiring high moral standards and aiming to achieve them in their own lives.
Rotary is a worldwide organisation of business and professional leaders that provides humanitarian service, encourages high ethical standards in all vocations, and helps build goodwill and peace in the world.
In contrast to masonic lodges (and the Roman Catholic church), Rotary clubs now admit women as full members, practice no magic rituals, and are open to atheists. The only conditions for members are to be "adults of good character and good business or professional reputation, who hold or have held an executive position with discretionary authority in any worthy and recognised business or profession".
If you want to know why we should be glad the Rotary club exists, check out its PolioPlus project to eradicate polio. Since 1985, the many Rotary clubs all over the world have worked steadily and donated more than $500m (£260m), whether the disease was in the news or not, to wipe it out wherever it occurs. The project has had no little success. Even if Rotarians did wear silly hats - which, as a rule, they don't - you'd have to give them credit for all that.
Sadly, as a lowly newsroom drone, I don't meet the membership requirements. I'll have to become a mason.
