Another issue to consider in playing a cleric, in addition to spells and combat, is the role that a cleric character can play in a campaign. If the cleric is part of a temple heirarchy, a PC may find that local officials may talk to that character before someone with no social connections. Additionally, a cleric who is not part of a hierarchy may have some degree of influence with local officials. First, it is generally not a good idea to annoy a spellcaster who can curse you... let alone annoy a cleric's deity.
Similarly, commoners may feel more comfortable interacting with someone who is seen as the representative of a god than some other characters. Clerics and paladins often have high charisma scores, and have diplomacy as a class skill. So, depending on a campaign setting, a cleric can help influence people to be well disposed to an adventuring group.
In the real world, some clergy and religious scholars practiced professions. So, perhaps the local blacksmith in a town is a priest of a god of fire or metallurgy. Or, the local vitner is a priest of Bacchus,
In addition to the "mechanical" benefits of playing a cleric, players should also think about how a cleric character fits into a campaign world. Such a character may have challenges in terms of religious hierarchies and rival faiths, but a cleric can also have a fair amount of social influence on all levels of society, and may actually be involved with a business associated with a deity. (Hmm, perhaps a way to reflect this is that a business run by a cleric of a deity may have higher quality items in stock. Thus, a bowyer/fletcher shop run by a priest of Apollo might have a supply of high quality bows and arrows.)
