Hello, r/atheism! I hope this post finds you well.
We are a small group of Freemasons dedicated to documenting and resisting discrimination in Freemasonry, including on the basis of religion (or lack thereof).
For us, Freemasonry represents a system of refinement and self-improvement, a set of symbolic tools for shaping individuals, and, in so doing, improving the world around us.
Freemasonry is not a religion; it is a way of living a life of continuous improvement.
We have created this informational website, https://masonicdiscrimination.org, to document discrimination by Freemasons along its many axes.
We understand that atheists and agnostics come to their beliefs typically after long and serious consideration of alternative possibilities. We know, from our own experiences and relationships, that many people are “good without God,” and that it is entirely possible to adopt a humanist perspective on a foundation of Darwinian and utilitarian principles. We are Freemasons who have benefited from Freemasonry and the Masonic experience, but who, like you, question religious dogma. Many of us have even suffered exclusion at the hands of our “Brethren” for this, the crime of using our heads. We are scientists, researchers, doctors, and philosophers. We are plumbers, business professionals, HVAC technicians, consultants, lawyers, law enforcement officers, and everyday people.
I have written this post to invite you to participate in our mission. Ending discrimination against non-believers demands challenging that discrimination in all of its forms, and wherever it manifests itself. For us, that battlefield is Freemasonry.
If you have information to share about discrimination in Freemasonry, we want to know it. If you have a story about discrimination you’ve experienced at the hands of Freemasons, we want to help you tell your story. In this way, we hope to apply the tools of Freemasonry to itself, shaping our society so that it can better serve every community where a Lodge of Freemasons meets, and that we might carry the best and most useful of our traditions and practices into our common future.
Fraternally,
Althea Zenith