I am an amateur priestess. I serve the Pagan community out of love, and have been in some capacity or another since 2011. There was a time when I dreamed of monetizing my spiritual skills – I think every witch goes through this phase – but I learned through hard experience that the professional witch gig isn’t sustainable for me at this point in my life. I have a lot to say, but I don’t want to be pressured to create content on a schedule when I already work a full-time job and a coven to run. I don’t want to constantly be hunting for the next witchy trend so I can stay relevant and cutting-edge. I certainly don’t want to “build a brand” when I’d rather be building a community.
Now, does that mean I don’t offer spiritual services to the public at all? Of course not! But I don’t make a great deal of money each year offering spiritual services. I will freely admit, however, that an extra thirty bucks every now and then makes all the difference in my life. But full-time professional spiritual advising is just not why I’m around, at least for this part of my life.
As a Traditional Wiccan, I am bound by some guidelines about how to practice the Craft, and the Ardanes are pretty explicit on the subject of money. They say not to take any money for the use of the Art, for doing so will free you from the temptation to use the Art for evil. Rather, all of the coveners are to be responsible for money that is donated for sacred purpose and to ensure that the money is spent appropriately. If a covener has used their professional skills to the benefit of the community, then it is right to pay them for their services – and if they refuse payment on the grounds of service to the Divine, they are honored for that.
The Conclave did try the money-as-energy-exchange model for a couple of years. It was a total disaster. At every turn, we had difficulties encouraging people to pay their fair share and we consistently ran into the problem where everyone liked the services we provided but almost no one wanted to chip in to defray the costs associated with it. The longstanding coveners who’ve been practicing together since before the Conclave of the Craft was even formally organized kept having to pick up the shortfall from their own not-very-deep pockets so that we would have meeting space, event supplies, and discretionary money for the emergencies that did indeed crop up in the community. We felt it was totally out of line with the purpose of a religious organization to charge admission for open sabbats since they were worship events, and none of us had the fundraising skills to successfully court wealthier donors. It didn’t take long before we were worse off than when we started, and we came to the conclusion that the roadblocks were the Divine steering us in a different direction: back toward the traditional, small-group-based system of mutual aid and support around which Wicca was originally organized.
It was a good change, too, because during that time I felt so much pressure to be an ideal professional priestess that I nearly walked away from the Craft altogether. It was too much for me to handle with my limited time, energy, and resources while working a full-time job and teaching students and holding rituals and dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic all at the same time. I can definitely say that life is a lot less stressful just dealing with my small group of dedicants and seekers and co-planning low-key events with Taz and Samantha.
Now, do I still wish sometimes that I was a Big Name Pagan with published books, a podcast, a YouTube channel, premium content on my Patreon, and my own metaphysical shop? Sure I do. I also wish I could be a modern-day nomad, traveling the US in a van that never broke down with internet service that never gave out, hopping from place to place to visit friends and teach the Craft. It would be a dream come true, if only I could support myself until I could get established. With rising car and gas prices, with the demon that is consumer debt, with student loans and medical bills, it’s hard to say if that dream will ever become a reality. But until then, I am, and I will remain, an amateur priestess.