What is a Priest / Expert / Master?

When we hear words like “priest” and “priesthood” we most likely recall religious ideas and images. It is important to understand that even if not religious per se, every worldview has some functional priesthood that is made up of the recognized experts or masters of that view.

All of the World’s societies and cultures have recognized priests and priesthoods as a key part of religious life at some stage in their development. In ancient cultures from the Sumerians to the Egyptians to the Romans and the multi-faceted cultures of the East, religious life was inextricable from normal life. In other words, worship of a god or gods was interlinked with every other aspect of life.

We use the language of “priest” and “priesthood” because historically, this class of people were the first to preside over the religious views and beliefs of a culture which largely shaped its worldview. As we have said several times, a worldview is almost indistinguishable from religion in terms of function. Even secular worldviews recognize experts or masters that guide and direct all those who practice the habits and routines of that worldview.

The Experts or Masters

So let’s begin by defining what a “priest” is. Brittanica defines the term this way:

“… a ritual expert learned in a special knowledge of the technique of worship and accepted as a religious and spiritual leader.”

– www.brittanica.com –

You can definitely see the religious focus of this definition. Take note of some key words: expert, special knowledge, technique, and leader. If we focus on those terms without a specifically spiritual or religious connotation, we can apply this definition to a “priest” in any worldview: “An expert with special or deeper knowledge who gives guidance in how to live out a Worldview and is accepted as a leader.”

The Cultural Guardians

Priesthoods preside over the origins of a culture and guard its character.” 

– Philip Rieff, The Triumph of the Therapeutic –

The quote above highlights a central function of Priests and Priesthoods: they stand guard over the central beliefs and affirmations of the Worldview they belong to. Since the origin of any Worldview (and its Origin Story) sets the course for all other elements, it is important to keep this in view. We discussed this when we developed the concept of the Master Story.

If “priests” are to guard the character of a culture or Worldview, it is important that they are also practitioners of its central beliefs and affirmations. As the old saying goes, “It is important to practice what you preach!”

Because of the interplay of all these aspects, a priest serves as a meditator between the upper level elements of the Ultimate Truth Source and The Master Story transmitted through the Trusted Media to the In Group in which the Values and Worship Elements are applied and lived out. We will say more about this in our next topic discussion.

Brining all these elements together, this is our definition for a “priest”:

Priest / Master / Expert
A person who functions as a cultural guardian, mediator, and practitioner. A priest is part of a group of respected and accepted experts (priesthood) that explain and demonstrate what is “in / acceptable” or “out / unacceptable” based on their deeper understanding of the Ultimate Truth Source revealed in The Master Story.

Questions to Ponder:

1. Who do you look to for help in answering life’s deeper, harder, or bigger questions?
2. Who are you following?
3. Who is your Master or Master-Teacher?