What is the Purpose of the Higher Degrees?

This is a question which we have been asked in various forms over the years, and we believe it to be an important question to answer.

In this lean period, post-Lockdown and post-Covid, when families are struggling to feed themselves, economies are in crisis, and food banks are becoming a necessity, it is quite reasonable to ask why anyone would spend precious time and essential monies on joining an Order and attending a Lodge or Sanctuary.

The matters of the body and physical life are crucial, and need to be attended to - this is irrefutable. But the Mind, Soul and the Spirit - the truest sources of happiness, understanding, peace, inspiration, resiliance, strength, willpower, morality and ethics - require just as much attention and care as the domestic and professional life; sometimes even more.

For some, a simple faith in God is enough. For others, strength of will and the energy of the battle sustains them. For others, it is the love of family or friends. For others still, it is nature. We all partake of some or all of these levellers of human life. For some, however, there is a deeper and more existential requirement; a Spiritual requirement, which necessitates the seeking out of Initiation. This 'calling' is compelling and life-changing, regardless of the Path to which one is drawn - and it can sometimes be more than one throughout a lifetime.

Those of us drawn irresistably to the Egyptian Rite are shown a clear and well-reasoned Path, with discrete stages, which we term Grades, or Degrees. If one wishes to aspire to the highest Spiritual Consciousness, one either needs fewer stages of longer duration, or many stages in a sequence which allows a steady comprehension of the ALL.

The Three Symbolic, or Craft, Degrees of Freemasonry are well attested, and do not need a further explanation; they are the Fundament of all forms of Masonry.

In the Higher Degrees of our Order, we work to develop in the following ways:

The College Degrees from the 4th to the 14th concern the ethics and morality of Masonry, the awakening of the Sphere (Aura), and the subtle or psychical senses. We work on this subtle aspect of our natures, with the benefit of a support system (the Lodge) and the guidance of our Senior Adepts who have trodden the Path before.

The R+C Degrees from the 15th to the 18th concern the knowledge of the Mystery Traditions, the awakening of the Heart, and joy, ethics and compassion. This is reaching to the core of our Humanity, where we find the Gateway to Divinity, because without a humanist and compassionate Heart, nothing higher may be attained.

The Hermetic Senate Degrees from the 19th to the 29th concern the practical study of Alchemy and Theurgy, the strengthening of the Will, and mental force, operative upon its own Plane. Having opened our Inner Powers, we now learn how to perfect their proper and ethical use.

The Supreme Council Degrees from the 30th to the 33rd concern the transmission of higher qabalistic and alchemical teachings, the awakening of the Soul, and the spiritual senses. The present incarnation of the Mason is understood in a newer, more expansive way, and this wider view from the perspective of an Expanded Consciousness allows other techniques and dimensions to be more easily and readily accessible. Once again, the Order does not cause this to happen - only the hard, honest Works of the Mason themselves can do this - but it facilitates the process with safety and support.

Having attained these - the Lesser Mysteries - the Greater and Supreme Mysteries are the natural progression for anyone who has attained this state, condition and level of knowledge. Beyond lies Understanding, Wisdom, and the Crown of the Arcana Arcanorum.

This is the purpose of our Order.
And this is the purpose of the Higher Degrees.

Grand Master
EMO UK