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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Tony Vargas" data-source="post: 7393004" data-attributes="member: 996">This isn't an answer, just a musing on how the game has evolved.  Back in 1e, the Clerics first two spell levels came from personal devotion, so a sincere believer who strayed from the church or the deity, but who's personal faith was still strong might still go around casting spells.  Higher level spells filtered down from intermediaries of whatever sort served the deity.  Starting, I think, at 5th (and 1e Cleric spells only went up to 7th), spells came from the god, itself.   A Cleric could switch deities, but there were consequences.  IIRC 2e didn't change that, much, though the CPH went into more detail about deities and alternatives to deities (forces & philosophies).  While 3e did not get so explicit about spells coming direct from the deity with it's approval, and even had a PrC, the ur-Priest, that 'stole' divine magic from the gods.By 4e, divine classes received their power through a rite of investure prior to play beginning, and from that point developed those powers and used them as they saw fit, following the dictates of their own faith & conscience.  A Cleric who deviated wildly from the tennets of his religion might be branded a heretic and hunted by others of his faith, but he would continue to wield divine power.AFAIK, 5e, in keeping with it's design philosophy, leaves those sorts of things up to the DM.</blockquote>