The quote above is from Jung’s lecture at the Alsatian Pastoral Conference in Strasbourg, France in May 1932. In this lecture "Psychotherapists or the Clergy" he explores the deepening spiritual crisis of modern people and the overlapping roles of psychotherapy and pastoral care) in addressing it
A central idea of the lecture is that neurosis often stems from a lack of meaning, love, faith, hope, and self-understanding — with love reduced to mere sexuality. Jung famously states that patients fall ill because they have lost what living religions provide, and true healing requires regaining a religious outlook that is not dogmatic but in a sense transcendent.
The chart for the May 1932 New Moon at Strasbourg, France.(with Ascendant at 9°14' Scorpio conjunct the fixed star Acrux at approximately 11°52' Scorpio in tropical zodiac) is striking, especially when viewed through the lens of Carl Jung's lecture "Psychotherapists or the Clergy" delivered that month to the Alsatian Pastoral Conference.
On a closer look, the chart carries profound symbolic resonance with the lecture's core message: the urgent need for a renewed, integrative approach to healing the soul in an era of spiritual crisis, where traditional religion falters and modern psychology often reduces the psyche to material or instinctual drives.
Acrux on the Ascendant: A Christian Signature Acrux (α Crucis), the brightest star in the Southern Cross (Crux), is classically associated with themes of religion. It carries a Jupiterian quality and is frequently prominent in charts of those drawn to theology, esotericism, or the hidden dimensions of faith.Conjunct the Ascendant, it suggests the event or moment "presents itself" with a strong archetypal imprint of the Cross — symbol of Christianity. This fits remarkably with Jung addressing Protestant clergy on the crisis of meaning in modernity, where souls suffer from a loss of transcendent connection — precisely the "cure of souls" (Seelsorge) theme.
The chart's "rising" energy thus frames the lecture as emerging from (or invoking) a profound spiritual/religious archetype, almost as if the event itself is "bearing the Cross" of bridging psychology and pastoral care.
New Moon Square Jupiter: The Soul's Yearning for Manifestation :The New Moon (Sun conjunct Moon at ~15° Taurus) squares Jupiter at 13°43' Leo, activating the Sabian symbol for Leo 14° (Phase 134):"A HUMAN SOUL SEEKING OPPORTUNITIES FOR OUTWARD MANIFESTATION." Keynote: The yearning for self-actualization.
Dane Rudhyar's interpretation emphasizes the transpersonal urge of the spirit to express through the personality — the soul "waiting" behind everyday drives until it can no longer be suppressed, leading to dramatic release (joyous or chaotic). This mirrors Jung's diagnosis in the lecture: modern neurosis arises from the soul's starvation — a lack of love (beyond mere sexuality), faith, hope, and meaning. Jung calls for the soul to "speak out" and manifest through integrative healing, whether via psychotherapy or renewed pastoral work. The square (tension) suggests this yearning is not gentle but pressing, almost urgent — a fitting backdrop for Jung's plea to clergy and therapists to collaborate on this "great spiritual task."
Saturn Opposite Jupiter, Tied to Jung's Natal Ascendant. Saturn at 4° Aquarius opposes Jupiter (wide orb, but tightened by the chart's angles) and is conjunct Jung's natal Ascendant (~3°08' Aquarius). This links the event directly to Jung's personal "persona" or worldly approach.The Sabian symbol for Aquarius 4° (Phase 304):"A HINDU YOGI DEMONSTRATES HIS HEALING POWERS." Keynote: The disciplined use of spiritual energies in restoring the natural harmony disturbed by man's inharmonic attempts to transcend nature through mind.
Rudhyar highlights disciplined spiritual focus to heal disharmony caused by over-mentalization — a direct parallel to Jung's critique of reductive Freudian/Adlerian approaches ("psychology without the psyche") that ignore the spiritual dimension. Jung positions himself (via his Ascendant) as a "healer" drawing on deeper, Eastern-inspired or archetypal energies to restore wholeness. The opposition to Jupiter adds friction: the soul's expansive call (Jupiter) meets disciplined restriction (Saturn), echoing the lecture's tension between modern secularism and the need for transcendent meaning
Overall Synthesisn: This May 5, 1932, New Moon chart feels like a cosmic timestamp for the lecture's delivery — not necessarily the exact day (precise date within May remains elusive in sources), but symbolically aligned with the content: Spiritual crisis and renewal (Acrux rising)
The soul demanding expression (Leo 14° New Moon square Jupiter). Healing through disciplined spiritual integration (Aquarius 4° on Jung's Ascendant)
It underscores Jung's role as a bridge-builder: invoking the Cross-like archetype of sacrifice/ transformation to call for a synthesis of psychology and religion. In Jungian terms, this could be seen as synchronicity — the heavens mirroring the psyche's archetypal drama being enacted in Strasbourg that spring. A beautiful and evocative astrological layer to an already profound historical moment!
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