Mission Statement - Mid Sussex Freethinkers

Mission Statement

Mid Sussex Freethinkers seeks the separation of state from religion, and the right of individuals to hold religious beliefs or not.

We want:

• the end of religious interference in local and national government, especially education

• the end of religious privilege, financial support, bishops in the House of Lords.

• the removal of the Queen as Head of the Church of England

We aim to raise local awareness of the issues through challenging the way religion is taught in our schools. This will be achieved in two ways:

• influencing the local RE syllabus drawn up by West Sussex District Council

• influencing how schools implement the local RE syllabus.

We will request:

• the inclusion of atheism/secularism in the RE lesson, in proportion to the number of non-religious parents

• that religious beliefs are not taught as fact, either directly or by omission of an atheist perspective.

• that morality, relationships, sex education, ethics, etc. be taught separately from religion

• that religion be taught in its entirety, including both negative and positive aspects, its true history, veracity of sources, inconsistencies and conflicts with other religions, current affairs

• provision of a real alternative to the RE lesson and acts of worship, e.g. philosophy, extra maths or english.

We support the aims and principles of the National Secular Society and the British Humanist Association.

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