What role does the Nisut fill?

Kemetic Orthodoxy is more than a religion: it is a community, a culture, and a way of life, forged and united under the leadership of one remarkable woman. Her birth name is Tamara L. Siuda, though the people of Kemetic Orthodoxy know her as Her Holiness, the Nisut Sekhenet-Ma'at-Ra Hekatawy, or simply and affectionately as Hemet (an ancient word translating either as "majesty" or "possessor of character").

Nisut-Bity (or Nisut-bityt in the feminine), sometimes translated as "sovereign (ruler)," but literally "(S)he of the Sedge and Bee," is the ancient title of a person sometimes called "Pharaoh." Today as in antiquity, our Nisut is the spiritual and cultural leader of our Kemetic community. Upon coronation, the Nisut was charged with carrying out the will of the Netjeru, and acts as a physical and spiritual bridge between the people and their gods and goddesses. Our current Nisut-bityt (often shortened to "Nisut"), is recognized by the Kemetic Orthodox as the incarnation of the kingly ka: the invested spirit of the god Heru and the Kemetic concept of royalty incarnate in its Nisutiu. Upon her first coronation in Egypt in 1996 and renewed in 2006 and 2016 per tradition, Rev. Dr. Tamara received Kemetic names charging Her with spiritual responsibility for, and setting the course of, Her mission within Kemetic Orthodoxy. Previous to 1996, Rev. Tamara acted as our founder and chief priest, without the additional responsibilities of Nisut, but She went to Egypt that autumn to take on the coronation and its requirements at the gods' request.

We do not believe (or teach) that Rev. Tamara is a goddess, nor is anyone in Kemetic Orthodoxy required to worship Her. She was born a human being and continues to be a human being. However, we respect and revere Her as our founder, spiritual leader, and sovereign, just as people in other religions and monarchic countries may respect and reverence their spiritual leaders and/or heads of state. We recognize that Her establishment on the ancient throne was made according to ancient traditions, and we believe that She is the current living possessor of Heru's kingly ka.

(AUGUST 2023 NOTE: This section will be updated soon to acknowledge that Rev. Dr. Tamara stepped down from the public role of Nisut of Kemetic Orthodoxy at the close of Year 30 and the end of the Heb-Sed cycle. As our founder and spiritual leader she has now returned to her pre-1996 role, and the above section will be changed to reflect her new role in the religion as our community decides on its post-monarchic future.)