*plops down on a chair*

Disclaimer: Fair warning, I am not sugar coating this blog post. I’m also using priest and patrons as a gender neutral term throughout. While I am versed with the ancient Egyptian practices and will be using it as an example throughout this post, I intend for this to be for anyone wanting to be a priest from any pantheon in the modern day. Let’s begin.

So, you’ve come across your favourite content creator and they’re a priest to their patron. Or, you’ve seen many people claim the title on social media (and most likely spreading misinformation) and you’ve thought to yourself “Oh! I want to be a priest.” This is what this blog is about and I’m here to help you along the way. I have a feeling that I’ll be ruffling the feathers of some of y’all’s egos here but facing this hard truth is the first step of realizing the reality of this sacred path.

Because, no, you truly don’t want to be a priest.

If that did, in fact, ruffle your ego’s feathers then this path is definitely not for you and you can move on; bitching about me gatekeeping, whatever you wanna do. (Spoiler alert: I’m not gatekeeping but I digress.) However, if you find yourself feeling a bit defeated but nodding your head, take in a breath and then keep reading.

This path is sacred and it’s not easy. It takes years of work, dedication, and research to even be qualified for this sort of position. We don’t have what the ancients had: a trusted structured temple space where we could work. (Without it being either a cult or a New Age shit house that is.) In the case of the ancient Egyptians, most priest positions were passed down from parent to child for generations.

Social media likes to glamourize it and throw the title around for clout. It isn’t a title that is just given or taken nor is it something you can just pick up and toss it aside, denouncing it later when the glamour disappears. If you’re just starting out on a polytheist or pagan path—no matter the pantheon—you’re not going to be claiming that title nor are the gods going to be asking you to be one. It’s just the hard truth.

Which comes to my next point: you’re not making the decision to be a priest. I bet you’re asking yourself: “Well, if I can’t be given this position by family nor do I have the structured temple space, how in the hell do I become one!?” Simple.

The deity will ask you.

The gods make that decision and come to you. Sure, you can definitely feel a calling to the path and that will most likely play a role in you becoming one but you won’t be making that decision for any deity. Plus, most times, the deity will be one whom you’ve already made a contract with like a patron.

They also take that decision rather seriously as this path is incredibly important and a serious role to take on. That isn’t to say that you’re not allowed to have fun because that’s not true, it’s just that the role and leadership position it puts you in has to be taken seriously.

(You definitely need to have a balance because this path without finding the fun, passion, and whimsy in it will be as if Chuck Norris came and round housed you in the stomach.)

Do you want to be a priest or are you looking to be a devotee? Because there’s a stark difference. A devotee dedicates themselves to a deity or even more than one, depending on the person and the deities involved. This work is individual for personal growth and development. You won’t be a mediator between other people and the divine nor will you be in a leadership position to do so. Devoting yourself as a devotee doesn’t have the responsibilities that a priest carries. It’s a comfortable path for most people to follow.

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