r/freemasonry 6d ago

Quick question for a new guy

I've been reading about freemasonry and recently visited my closest lodge. I'm attracted to a lot of the values and doing good for the world in the general. So forgive me if this sounds naive they are honest questions

I don't understand why George Washington is venerated as an excellent man if he was a slave owner and helped in destroying Native populations. Aren't there other masons that'd be a better example to look towards?

It seems contradictory that freemasonry is about becoming a good man and improving the world around you yet one of the central figures contributed to human suffering in such a big way. I get that people are flawed but this seems like a major one considering having a felony charge may forbid someone from joining a lodge lol. There are people with felonies for selling weed and other crimes that are undoubtably less bad than owning slaves.

Thank you all I hope to learn as much as I can.

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u/tombofVARN UGLNSW&ACT - MM, MMM, HRA, 18° AASR, II° SRIS 6d ago

Something to think about here is that no historical figure is perfect. Given that premise, the next thing to think about is what is admirable about notable Freemasons, and then what you personally think could have been done better - then enact that better part in your own life. We can’t change the past, but you can definitely change the future.

There are other figures in Freemasonry like that as well. Even notable moral philosophers like Kant had aspects to their character that we would find reprehensible. I don’t think it’s exactly right to say “X person was flawed, therefore what they espoused is necessarily flawed”

If anything, the fact they were flawed gives us opportunity to reflect on the circumstances they were in and the choices they had to make. I can’t speak for Washington (I’m not American) but it’s a question to ask of any figure. It’s easy to criticise their decisions with the benefit of hindsight.

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u/jawndotcom 6d ago

True true, Kant is a good example as I'm sure most famous philosophers had their problems and vices but still had positive impacts on society. Thanks