Em hotep
Hello everybody.
I have a question regarding the priesthood.
How can one know if one has the vocation to be a priest? it comes from conviction or by revelation from the gods.
THANKS
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Disclaimer I Am Not A Priest (in KO)
I think that question will have an answer unique to every person. Some will know from the beginning as a “calling”, some may grow into the idea with time, some may not know it until their Parent(s) give them a shove through the door (metaphorically, as there is a Process in KO for becoming a priest that requires time and consent)
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Em Hotep!
As one of the newest priests in our temple, I agree, it’s different for everyone. I found the temple over 20 years ago, and just became a priest last week. In fact, I had spent most my life resisting the idea of me becoming a pastor/priest, partially because I felt it was expected of me (mom, 2 uncles, and grandfather were all pastors).
Part of becoming a priest is feeling that call to serve in a specific way. Everyone in the temple serves the gods, but priesthood is also serving the community, again, in a specific structured way.
Part of becoming a priest is having the gods of your Rite of Parent Divination (RPD) agree to you serving them (this is a divination that Hemet performs, not you).
Part of becoming a priest is having Hemet (AUS) agree to teach you and allow you to serve as their proxy as a priest doing the state ritual.
Part of becoming a priest is already serving the gods and the community as a Shemsu-Ankh.
Hope this information helps!
Rev. Padjaiemweru
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To echo Padjai, to apply for priesthood in KO, one must first go through the Beginner’s Class, and from there advance into Remetj (choose to stay with the Temple after finishing the Beginner’s Class), Divined Remetj (RPD), Shemsu (Naming, vows), and Shemsu-Ankh (in-person ritual, more vows). After becoming Shemsu-Ankh, there is a 1-year wait period before you can apply for Priesthood. Our Nisut (AUS) and your Parent Netjeru must give approval, and not all applicants will be accepted with the first request. Sometimes one’s Parents will say “not yet,” for example. Once approval is received, one must travel to an in-person gathering where Hemet (the Nisut) is in attendance, to receive training and be consecrated before the community. Following this, one will be called a Priest of KO, but learning all elements of Priesthood will still be an ongoing process.
Kemetic Orthodoxy is not the only way to honor the Netjeru, and other Kemetic/Pagan religious groups may have their own styles of Priesthood. It is also possible for multi-path members to be a Priests and/or Elders in other religions with or without being Priests in KO. Our own Nisut, for example, is also a recognized Mambo in Haitian Vodou.
In my personal experience, I always knew I’d be Shemsu-Ankh (and then pursue Priesthood after that), even as a Beginner. I moved through Shemsu, Shemsu-Ankh, and then applied for priesthood as soon as I met the time reqs, and after hearing that some folx don’t get accepted on their first try, I was fully committed to applying every year forever until they said Yes. 
Turns out it wasn’t necessary for me to apply more than once tho. 
As a Beginner/Shemsu, I knew the “what” of “I’m going to do the things,” but not the “how” or “why,” if that makes sense.
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Okay Rev.