Individuation and the Craft Pt. 1

by Midnight Freemason Emeritus

James E. Frey

My Brothers, Freemasonry, although not a religion, it is essentially a spiritual system of self-improvement using the allegory and symbolism of its system to portray the legend of a sacred secret held within the heart of all Masons. According to cultural values we are raised to consider our own religion as the only divinely inspired faith, and this is the cause of many of the misunderstandings between modern society and the spiritual ethics taught in the Masonic system. A religion can be defined as a divinely inspired code of morality to inspire its followers to live a nobler life to enrich the spirit within.

All doctrines equally seek to preserve and develop the divine spark within the individual. Masonry is a system of thought that inspires balance between the spiritual aspects of the self and the rational mind. Masonry expresses the ideals of the enlightenment movement that faith and science are both ends of the same truth, so masonry can be interpreted as the reconciler between these two liberating the mind of the initiate from the superstition and fear inspired by these polar opposites.

With this established Masonry is best expressed as a system of psychological growth that inspires the candidate to seek self-actualization through implied symbolic meaning. Masonry at its heart operates to give man the knowledge of himself that can be inspired only by self-reflection of his personal connection to the universe set within the allegory of its system. So if we look at the Masonic system as a Psychological process of development, it is necessary that we incorporate the importance of symbols in how one learns and interacts not only with the world but with aspects of our own consciousness. With this in mind this series will focus on the system of the craft, primarily the entered apprentice degree, as it relates to the psychological theory of Carl Jung, psychoanalytical psychology. 

Until next week, Brothers. 

~JEF