1. So what is this "Kemetic" thing all about?
It's the reconstruction of ancient Egyptian religion, combining as much scholarly knowledge and comparative religion as possible with dollops of personal gnosis.
2. Why "Kemetic"? What does the word mean?
Kemet was one of the terms the ancient Egyptians used for their country; it means 'Black Land'. This describes the fertile Nile valley, as opposed to the Red Land, the desert, that surrounded it.
3. So you're an Isis worshipper, then?
Not all Kemetics are devoted to Aset (Isis), though many of the people who came to the religion did so because of interest in Her. (The other two Names who are known for bringing people into the religion are Anpw (Anubis) and Bast.)
4. Anpu? Aset? What are these names?
Most Kemetics prefer to use the ancient Egyptian names for the gods; they have meaning in the Egyptian language and are more accurate. The well-known names for the Egyptian gods are actually in Greek (you can identify them because they tend to end in -is) and date to Greek rule of the country and re-interpretation of the religion.
The House of Netjer (the oldest of the Kemetic temples) has a glossary that includes both the Greek and the Egyptian names and associates them with each other.
5. I thought Isis and Osiris were the primary gods in the Egyptian pantheon.
The myth of Isis and Osiris is probably the best-known of the Egyptian myths. (The short version being that Asar (Osiris) is killed by His brother, Set; His grieving widow finds Him, briefly reanimates His body, and Her son Herw-sa-Aset (Horus, son of Isis) takes His vengeance on His uncle.) That does not mean that it is the most important of the myths to the Egyptians themselves, just the one that has lasted and been most popular over time. (Probably largely because Isis of the Thousand Names was very popular in the ancient world, and because it is the easiest set of myths to fit into a narrative story.)
That particular pair of gods has additionally gained a certain amount of popularity in the modern pagan community because the dying-and-reborn god motif is one that most people familiar with Wiccan theology can relate to.
6. Not Wiccan, then. Are there Kemetic Wiccans?
There is a tradition of Wicca called Tameran Wicca, which interacts with the Netjerw. (Tameran is another word deriving from an Egyptian word for Egypt; this one is from Ta-Mery, which means 'beloved land'.) There is a book on Tameran Wicca called Circle of Isis, by Ellen Cannon Reed; I would recommend it strongly to anyone who is interested in interacting with the Netjerw in a neopagan context. She writes about the gods in a way that sounds like she knows the gods I know.
Tameran Wicca is a Wiccan structure, however; it is not Kemetic. Because the Kemetic ideal is a reconstruction, it uses ritual structures and practices that resemble those of the ancients instead of the modern neopagan structure.
7. So how does a Kemetic ritual structure differ from a Wiccan one?
There is no casting and dismissing of circle or elements; ideally, every practitioner has their own sacred space that is dedicated and established as a stable portion of their household.
Typically, a given ritual will include libations of cool water, offerings of fire and incense, and other offerings depending on the practitioner and the festival. It is important that all things offered be consumed, so most Kemetics don't offer things they will not or cannot eat. The gods consume the spiritual layer of the food, and the offerers consume the material; thus a ritual often contains components of a shared meal.
Most Kemetics prefer to keep their images of the gods in some kind of enclosed area except when they are performing rituals; a shrine cabinet is called a naos. (The images of the gods were kept in cabinets in ancient times; They like Their privacy.)
8. Where do these rituals come from?
They are basically attempts to duplicate what we know of the rituals that were performed daily in ancient Egyptian temples. Some of the pieces were translated and extrapolated from wall inscriptions and surviving papyrus, and others from the continuing practices of modern African Traditional Religions.
We do not know what the private rituals and practices of the ancients were like in their homes, though most homes included some sort of shrine space. However, because we know that the ancients strongly believed in repetition and consistency, and also that the Wab priests (purity priests) typically served three months of the year in the temple and the rest of the time working as regular people, we presume that the home rituals were similar to temple rituals.
9. So do you have a Pharaoh?
The question of the Nisut-Bity (the Egyptian term for Pharaoh -- which derives from per-a'a, 'great house'; the word was used for the king and royal family in much the same way 'The White House' is used for the administration of the US or '10 Downing Street' for the Prime Minister of the UK) is a very tricky one for Kemetics. The ancients believed that the Nisut was the Living Horus, the linchpin between the seen world and the unseen world, the one who kept the people and the gods in contact by his work. (I say 'his', because although there were several female Pharaohs, all of them adopted male social portrayals as part of their role.)
Different temples have taken different approaches to this question. The Kemetic Orthodox have a Nisut, Rev. Tamara Siuda. Other temples have noted that the senior priesthood in ancient times existed as those who could act in the name of the Nisut, and have established priesthoods but not named a Nisut. Other organisations and individuals may have established other answers to the question of Nisut, but no Kemetic organisation can really afford not to think about it.
10. Different temples? How many temples are there?
I know of four: the House of Netjer (Kemetic Orthodox), Per Ankh (Kemetic Traditional Religion), Per Heh (Veridical Kemetic Faith), and Akhet Hwt-Hrw. There are also a number of people who are not affiliated with any temple or with several.
The temples each have their issues and their differences in theology. If you want to join a temple, have a look at all of them and see what seems to suit your needs. Most offer some sort of free introductory course to introduce you to the religion.
11. I've heard people objecting to the word "Kemeticism". Why is that?
"Kemeticism" was first coined by an African ethnically based movement, I believe sometime in the sixties. Some people object to having Kemetic reconstruction called "Kemeticism" because of that.
Other people sort of go, "Kemetic really needs a noun form and 'Kemetic reconstruction' takes forever to say and I don't mean one of the specific variants but the whole shebang" and don't worry so much about it.
"Kemetism" is also used, though not as often, and does not seem to raise the same objections as a noun form.
I've personally never gone without and left the house. Maybe one day?
