What we’re about
The Ethical Humanist Society of Asheville is a humanist, non-theistic alternative to traditional religion, a member organization of the American Ethical Union and an affiliate of the American Humanist Association. The American Ethical Union (AEU) is the federation of Ethical/Ethical Culture/Ethical Humanist Societies across the United States. The AEU is affiliated with the the International Humanist and Ethical Union, and the Secular Coalition of America. Our meeting topics are educational, philosophical and of current interest. We are inspired by the ideal that the supreme aim of human life is working to create a more humane society. We endeavor to nurture the capacity and responsibility of human beings to act in their personal relationships and in the larger community to help create a better world. Our commitment is to the worth and dignity of the individual and to treating each human being so as to bring out the best in him or her. We join together to assist each other in developing ethical ideas and ideals, to celebrate life's joys and support each other through life's crises, and to cultivate ethical behavior in the community around him or her.
Our regular meetings are held the 1st and 3rd Sundays of each month at the Friends Meeting House, 227 Edgewood Road (west off Merrimon at CVS, near UNC - Asheville), 2:30 - 4:00. On 1st Sundays the meeting is a Colloquy. Information about the origin and process of Colloquy appear in the "Pages" section of this site. Third Sunday platform meetings have a topic presented by a speaker which is followed by a discussion period. An informal discussion/social time follows platform meetings.
Meetup friends are persons interested in coming to our meetings/activities. The Meetup site is used for communication; signing up to be a friend/member on the Meetup site does not connote membership in the Ethical Society. Membership is reserved for those who attend Ethical Humanist Society of Asheville activities and wish to be members of the organization. They are invited to complete an Interest in Membership form which is available at our meetings. We started using Meetup for communication and awareness in June 2009. The Ethical Humanist Society of Asheville, however, was founded before that - in August 2001.
Upcoming events (4+)
See all- The ExvangelicalsAsheville Friends Meeting House, Asheville, NC
“The Exvangelicals” will be presented by Sarah McCammon at the Sunday, July 20, 2025, meeting of the Ethical Humanist Society of Asheville, 2:30 – 4:00 pm. Sarah will join us live on Zoom. We will meet at our regular Sunday location at the Friends Meeting House on Edgewood Road near the UNC-Asheville campus. All are welcome to attend.
Sarah will talk about the growing social movement of people leaving the church from her March 2024 NYTimes Bestseller book: “The Exvangelicals”.
The Exvangelicals is the story of a rising generation of the children of evangelicalism, including Sarah herself, who are growing up and fleeing the fold, who are thinking for themselves and deconstructing what feel like the “alternative facts” of their childhood. Part memoir, part investigative journalism, Sarah describes the post-evangelical movement: identifying its origins, telling the stories of its members, and examining its vast cultural, social, and political impact.
Growing up in a deeply evangelical family in the Midwest in the ‘80s and ‘90s, Sarah McCammon was strictly taught to fear God, obey him, and not question the faith. Persistently worried that her gay grandfather would go to hell unless she could reach him, or that her Muslim friend would need to be converted, and that she, too, would go to hell if she did not believe fervently enough, McCammon was a rule-follower and—most of the time—a true believer. But through it all, she was increasingly plagued by fears and deep questions as the belief system she’d been carefully taught clashed with her expanding understanding of the outside world.
After spending her early adult life striving to make sense of an unraveling worldview, by her 30s, she found herself face-to-face with it once again as she covered the Trump campaign for NPR, where she witnessed first-hand the power and influence that evangelical Christian beliefs held on the political right.
The Ethical Humanist Society of Asheville endeavors to nurture the capacity and responsibility of human beings to act in their personal relationships and in the larger community to help create a better world. We are inspired by the ideal of working to create a more humane society, recognizing each person’s worth and dignity, and helping to bring out the best in them. We are a member of the American Ethical Union and an affiliate of the American Humanist Association. We join together to assist each other in developing ethical ideas and ideals, to celebrate life’s joys, support each other through life’s crises, and to cultivate ethical behavior in our community.
For more information: call 828 687-7759, email EHSAsheville@gmail.com, visit our website at: http://EHSAsheville.org, or see us on MeetUp: www.meetup.com/Ethical-Society-of-Asheville.Weddings and Ceremonies Officiated:
The Ethical Humanist Society of Asheville offers individualized, custom wedding services. Honoraria for officiating are direct contributions to the Ethical Humanist Society of Asheville, a 501(c)(3) organization. For more information: email EHSAsheville@gmail.com.
