Being Atheopagan is good for us. It helps us to be happier, more kind, wise and grounded, and to celebrate the remarkable fact that we are alive for the short time that is given us. It reminds us to look around at this magnificent world, and revel in its wonders.

But that’s just us, the fortunate ones who have found and chosen this path.

There are a lot more out there who need us. They need us to be kind in their moments of vulnerability. They need us to be strong for them. They need us to model rational, sensible, warm and open humanity. They need for us to extend the golden glow of our inner selves to help them to find their own.

And that is why Atheopagans are clerics.

Our path calls on you to rise to your best and most generous self, and to be that self for others. To lead, if you can, for a better world. To sit with the sick, or the dying, or the imprisoned, and listen. To let the despairing know that it is possible to be in the world and know joy.

To hear their stories and their pain. To listen.

Being a cleric is a serious commitment. Yes, it’s joyous days of weddings and naming ceremonies. But it’s also sitting with the suffering, and comforting the bereaved.

So be brave, and be kind.

Represent us well.