The lover priesthood is the most powerful village priesthood that is predominantly female. There is a male adjunct to the lover priesthood, the hunter priesthood (which is actually not primarily concerned with hunting), but it is much smaller and less powerful. Hunter priests are almost always also priests within the other priesthoods as well.

The Lovers have responsibility for contraception (mostly herbal, but quite effective), birth, sexual initiation (Hunters serve this purpose for Androphiles), marriage, prostitution (again, Hunters serve this purpose for Androphiles), treatment of illness, handling of corpses, and determining the timing of berry gathering. They are skilled in several forms of magic, including healing and divination, although their spells have nowhere near the overt power of Choleic Mages, or of the millers. Individual lover priests tend to specialize within the broad range of Lover activities, but they are also expected to be competent at the full range of responsibilities.

Since the end of the Millers War, prostitution that is not controlled by the Lover priesthood has arisen in the Wide Valley, particularly in the capitol city.

Lovers do not have responsibility for divorce (which is considered natural and is extremely common among the Gaetani). Instead, it is overseen by the Brewer priests. Nominally because of this oddity, it is possible, although not particularly encouraged or respected, to practice bigamy and polygamy within Gaetani culture. Just because you have already received the marriage rights doesn't mean that you can't receive them again. Bigamy is considered foolish, and polygamy is considered to be irresponsible and profligate, but both are practiced regularly and generally treated with tolerant (if mocking) condescension.