Tamara Siuda
Encyclopedia
Tamara L. Siuda is the founder and current head of Kemetic Orthodoxy
and the House of Netjer. She is known formally within her faith as Her Holiness, Sekhenet-Ma'at-Ra Setep-en-Ra User Hekatawy I, Nisut-Bity of the Kemetic Orthodox faith and uses the honorific
Reverend outside of the faith to indicate her position as clergy. She is also a mambo
in Haitian Vodou.
(now part of Loyola University
) in Chicago in 1991. She subsequently enrolled in the Egyptology
program at the University of Chicago
, obtaining a master's degree
in Egyptology
with a concentration in Philology
in August 2000. She also earned a master's in December 2007 through the Coptic
Studies program at Macquarie University
in Sydney, Australia.
n initiation ritual in which she is said to have been called by the ancient Egyptian deities
to revive their worship. She left Wicca and began study and worship in ancient Egyptian religion with friends and students. In 1993, this group of people had grown substantially, and gained legal recognition as the House of Netjer Kemetic Orthodox Temple. In 1999, the House of Netjer, and the Kemetic Orthodox Faith, were granted 501(c)(3) status.
In October 1996, following what is believed to be divine approval via oracles and ritual, Siuda traveled to Egypt and underwent coronation rituals and assumed the religious title of Nisut, meaning "Authority" or "Incarnation". In this capacity she is considered to be the mortal carrier of a divine spirit, by way of an aspect of the god Horus
, known as the "kingly ka." In this capacity, Siuda provides spiritual guidance and leadership for members of Kemetic Orthodoxy
. Devotees of Kemetic Orthodoxy often refer to Siuda as Hemet, meaning "servant" or "majesty."
Siuda represents the House of Netjer in the World Interfaith Congress.
in Haitian Vodou since July 2001. She initiated as a mambo asogwe (the highest rank of Haitian Vodou initiation) as part of La Sosyete Racine Sans Bout in Jacmel
, Haiti
. She left her first house in 2003 and was re-initiated as a mambo asogwe in another Vodou lineage, the Sosyete Belle Fleur Guinea of Pétionville
and Port-au-Prince, Haiti, in January 2006. Siuda's own Vodou house in the lineage of Belle Fleur Guinea is called La Sosyete Fòs Fè Yo Wè. It permits her to have students in the Haitian Vodou tradition completely separately from her role as Nisut of Kemetic Orthodoxy. As a mambo she is known as "Mambo T", or by her public initiatory name of Mambo Chita Tann.
Kemetic Orthodoxy
Kemetic Orthodoxy is a branch of Kemeticism, a reconstruction of Egyptian polytheism, founded in 1988 by Tamara Siuda.Kemetic Orthodoxy does not follow a single scripture, but rather a fluid understanding of balance, justice and truth...
and the House of Netjer. She is known formally within her faith as Her Holiness, Sekhenet-Ma'at-Ra Setep-en-Ra User Hekatawy I, Nisut-Bity of the Kemetic Orthodox faith and uses the honorific
Honorific
An honorific is a word or expression with connotations conveying esteem or respect when used in addressing or referring to a person. Sometimes, the term is used not quite correctly to refer to an honorary title...
Reverend outside of the faith to indicate her position as clergy. She is also a mambo
Mambo (voodoo)
Mambo is the term for a female High Priest in the Vodou religion in Haiti. They are the highest form of clergy in the religion, whose responsibility it is to preserve the rituals and songs and maintain the relationship between the spirits and the community as a whole...
in Haitian Vodou.
Education
Siuda graduated from Mundelein CollegeMundelein College
Mundelein College was the last private, independent, Roman Catholic women's college in Illinois. Located on the edge of the Rogers Park and Edgewater neighborhoods on the far north side of Chicago, Illinois, Mundelein College was founded and administered by the Sisters of Charity of the Blessed...
(now part of Loyola University
Loyola University Chicago
Loyola University Chicago is a private Jesuit research university located in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded by the Society of Jesus in 1870 under the title St...
) in Chicago in 1991. She subsequently enrolled in the Egyptology
Egyptology
Egyptology is the study of ancient Egyptian history, language, literature, religion, and art from the 5th millennium BC until the end of its native religious practices in the AD 4th century. A practitioner of the discipline is an “Egyptologist”...
program at the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
, obtaining a master's degree
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
in Egyptology
Egyptology
Egyptology is the study of ancient Egyptian history, language, literature, religion, and art from the 5th millennium BC until the end of its native religious practices in the AD 4th century. A practitioner of the discipline is an “Egyptologist”...
with a concentration in Philology
Philology
Philology is the study of language in written historical sources; it is a combination of literary studies, history and linguistics.Classical philology is the philology of Greek and Classical Latin...
in August 2000. She also earned a master's in December 2007 through the Coptic
Coptology
Coptology is most commonly defined as the science of Coptic studies, the study of Coptic language and literature.-Origin:The European interest in Coptology may have started as early as the 15th century AD. The term was used in 1976 when the First International Congress of Coptology was held in...
Studies program at Macquarie University
Macquarie University
Macquarie University is an Australian public teaching and research university located in Sydney, with its main campus situated in Macquarie Park. Founded in 1964 by the New South Wales Government, it was the third university to be established in the metropolitan area of Sydney...
in Sydney, Australia.
Involvement with Kemetic Orthodoxy
Siuda founded the group which would become Kemetic Orthodoxy in 1988 after an experience during a WiccaWicca
Wicca , is a modern Pagan religious movement. Developing in England in the first half of the 20th century, Wicca was popularised in the 1950s and early 1960s by a Wiccan High Priest named Gerald Gardner, who at the time called it the "witch cult" and "witchcraft," and its adherents "the Wica."...
n initiation ritual in which she is said to have been called by the ancient Egyptian deities
Egyptian pantheon
The Egyptian pantheon consisted of the many gods worshipped by the Ancient Egyptians. A number of major deities are addressed as the creator of the cosmos. These include Atum, Ra, Amun and Ptah amongst others, as well as composite forms of these gods such as Amun-Ra. This was not seen as...
to revive their worship. She left Wicca and began study and worship in ancient Egyptian religion with friends and students. In 1993, this group of people had grown substantially, and gained legal recognition as the House of Netjer Kemetic Orthodox Temple. In 1999, the House of Netjer, and the Kemetic Orthodox Faith, were granted 501(c)(3) status.
In October 1996, following what is believed to be divine approval via oracles and ritual, Siuda traveled to Egypt and underwent coronation rituals and assumed the religious title of Nisut, meaning "Authority" or "Incarnation". In this capacity she is considered to be the mortal carrier of a divine spirit, by way of an aspect of the god Horus
Horus
Horus is one of the oldest and most significant deities in the Ancient Egyptian religion, who was worshipped from at least the late Predynastic period through to Greco-Roman times. Different forms of Horus are recorded in history and these are treated as distinct gods by Egyptologists...
, known as the "kingly ka." In this capacity, Siuda provides spiritual guidance and leadership for members of Kemetic Orthodoxy
Kemetic Orthodoxy
Kemetic Orthodoxy is a branch of Kemeticism, a reconstruction of Egyptian polytheism, founded in 1988 by Tamara Siuda.Kemetic Orthodoxy does not follow a single scripture, but rather a fluid understanding of balance, justice and truth...
. Devotees of Kemetic Orthodoxy often refer to Siuda as Hemet, meaning "servant" or "majesty."
Siuda represents the House of Netjer in the World Interfaith Congress.
Involvement in Vodou
Siuda has been a mamboMambo (voodoo)
Mambo is the term for a female High Priest in the Vodou religion in Haiti. They are the highest form of clergy in the religion, whose responsibility it is to preserve the rituals and songs and maintain the relationship between the spirits and the community as a whole...
in Haitian Vodou since July 2001. She initiated as a mambo asogwe (the highest rank of Haitian Vodou initiation) as part of La Sosyete Racine Sans Bout in Jacmel
Jacmel
Jacmel, also known by its indigenous Taíno name of Yaquimel, is a town in southern Haiti founded in 1698. It is the capital of the department of Sud-Est and has an estimated population of 40,000, while the municipality of Jacmel had a population of 137,966 at the 2003 Census.The buildings are...
, Haiti
Haiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
. She left her first house in 2003 and was re-initiated as a mambo asogwe in another Vodou lineage, the Sosyete Belle Fleur Guinea of Pétionville
Pétionville
Pétion-Ville is a commune and a suburb of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, in the hills east and separate of the city itself on the northern hills of the Massif de la Selle. It was named after Alexandre Sabès Pétion , the Haitian general and president later recognized as one of the country's four founding...
and Port-au-Prince, Haiti, in January 2006. Siuda's own Vodou house in the lineage of Belle Fleur Guinea is called La Sosyete Fòs Fè Yo Wè. It permits her to have students in the Haitian Vodou tradition completely separately from her role as Nisut of Kemetic Orthodoxy. As a mambo she is known as "Mambo T", or by her public initiatory name of Mambo Chita Tann.
External links
- Rev. Siuda's Biography at Kemet.Org
- http://www.dailykemet.blogspot.com Rev. Siuda's Personal Blog
- The Vodou Faithweb - Maintained by Rev. Siuda
- Legba's Crossroads - Rev. Siuda's Vodou Botanica