When it comes to priesthood many wonder what it looks like and what one needs to know versus learning as time goes on. Over the years I have seen many methods in which different priest take in their journey to priesthood. The names associated with priesthood can vary from tradition to tradition. But the path of priesthood and the challenges faced within it are similar in nature. For each person wanting to start their priesthood, there are questions one must ask themselves before the journey starts. The glorification of being a priest/ess is often romanticized in a sense. As when one thinks of a priest in the context of you have hit a level of all-knowing. The power that is given to those who follow the path is very wide and can be alluring to those who seek power. This is why in this day and age we can see a lot of issues within the priest community. As priests are the foundation to which any community can turn to for answers or guidance. Spiritual guidance is something we all need from time to time and when one cannot find meaning in life we need some type of reassurance. This reassurance or guidance if you will helps one stay true to themselves and have a better understanding of the human experience when it comes to spirituality.
In most cases more often than not the title of the priest is used freely within the pagan community as a way of validation. For one who claims the title of priest must have had some time dedicated to their path in which made them warranted to use it. Being in the priesthood is an opportunity all can be given with time and dedication. Yet the need to jump to such titles seems more ramped then before. So what is this call to use such titles come from is it about power or the true calling of one's path? This is something when im asked as to what started my journey into priesthood that i've pondered on for some time. To be honest for me I never really thought of the whole process and what its was and is like. I think if we had a better understanding of what priesthood looks like it would give more people the process to think on such things before pursuing such. This is why I wanted to start this series and continue on it as a way to help others.
The pagan/spiritual community can make it difficult at times as to what defines a priest and the path in which to take. I feel by sharing my own journey and the lessons I've learned along the way that maybe it would shed some light. Along with starting conversations on priesthood and how it looks for everyone. As the journey we all take has similarities but yet they are different as to motivations and lessons learned.
How my journey started
The idea of being a priest or priestess was not something that I personally sought after as most of my spiritual path was solitary in nature. I had always been the person people would come to for advice or just for someone to listen without judgment. As far as my spiritual path I had always been open to answering questions about it. Along with giving spiritual advice or assistance on what I knew at the time. To me, all this was just more about giving people insight into who i am and helping with any curiosity people had. During my own spiritual journey, I would have people reach out to me after years of radio silence. Sometimes I would meet strangers who gravitated towards me and shared struggles in which they faced. This at the time just felt like humanity at its core. As in we all respond to energy and go towards ones who radiate a sense of calm and openness. But it wasn't until I went thru a traumatic time in my life to where my spiritual path became less about what spells i could cast and more about the meaning behind it all. In 2015 I lost a lot of those that I held dear to myself and went on a spiral questioning who I was and my place in it.
The ideas of life and death and rebirthing stages were not something that was new to me by no means. But when you are faced with the death of a mother and brother followed by a car wreck leading to you losing your income. You begin to spiral and question everything and wonder what are you doing in your life. During this time as I was facing my own issues and struggles I was still being presented with people I knew and didn't upon my path. It was as if the goddess was guiding me toward this path. Yet at the time I had not really comprehended it all until I was first asked.
It was at this moment my spiritual path became something more for me and started to take shape. It was also during this time that a lot of different pagan priests started to come into my life which at this time was not as common as it is today. It had been about six months after I had my tower moment that I decided to work towards my priesthood. It came to me one night in a dream where I could see myself in front of a crowd of people in a ritualistic setting. At that time I didn't know what that would lead to or how it come to be. But this vibration of consciousness with the universe started to take form. I found myself looking back at things in my life and seeing the correlation between the teacher, the witch, and the priest becoming one.
It was at the end of 2015 that I decided to go to Hecates Altar and truly dedicate myself to her in every sense of who I am. I told her that where ever she wished for me to go and be guided to I would follow without question. It was during this time I took my learning to a witch celebrating life and cycles. To a path of rebirth and evolution that helped guide me to the next lesson or education in which I needed to obtain. Many when going into their priesthood will seek validation via documentation. The path I walk is not guided by the men and women giving their certification of validation. My path is guided by the gods in which I work with and walk helping unlock what is hidden and bringing it forth. A lot of my education has been done in such a way as which guided me to resources that have historical significance. This leads me to validate that the path im walking isn't self-guided hypnosis. But the true divine connection between myself and those that I work with it. I realize I am only as wise as the lessons I’ve learned and the knowledge I have obtained. I have learned upon that journey that the fool is the one who tries to claim all yet the wise hermit is the one who claims nothing and continues to grow.
In 2017 I felt the call and need for community as it was something I never had the chance outside of my own limitations allowed. I wanted to experience what a pagan community could look and feel like. Yet I had limited mobility in which to build that type of bond from and nothing I knew of was around and within reach. So that is when one day I decided if I can't find something that works for me then I shall create. But with creation, there is always chaos and with evolution issue resolved becomes other issues formed. When I started The Devine Witch journey it was about community and finding a place within it. But what I gained from it and continue to learn from it is something I can't replace. I have gotten to a point in which I am seen for who I am and always have been. While in return the community in which I have emerged into has given me the grace to grow with it.The challenge one faces when pinpointing the moment of the spiritual call can only be defined by the individual. The motivations in which perpetuate that call depends upon the individual and the work in which they do. Sometimes we may think we are ready for the challenge of the priesthood. Which is based on the perception of what one sees and hears versus the experience that comes from it. Like anything in life it is not something one master with a class nor is it something that is mastered thru experience. It is a combination of both while leaving room for the unknown to come forth. The journey that starts one's personal motivation or process in which it came to be is very personal. This is my journey and with it I want to help others as I continue to learn and redefine my perception of it. The role that a priest has to their community is vast. Yet the priest's ability to grow and to shed light and help others is one of servitude to one's spirituality and the gods in which they work with. Thus illuminating the way beyond one's self and their need to the needs of those in who seek their guidance. By sharing a journey we find ourselves within what we see. Sometimes its pieces we have yet to realize while other times it is pieces of ourselves we ignore. Yet the call is something that one can't ignore when the universe and gods make the call.
The Devine Witch
Debbie Lewis
Comments