You NEED a cleric for nothing as many other posters have said. The mentality that you NEED one is holding you back.

Playing Clerics and Bard almost exclusively I will not join a party sitting around waiting for a Cleric. If I see they have started without a Cleric it sends the message you are self reliant and having a Cleric is only an added benifit. If you are in a group sitting around for 45 minutes looking for a healer and have not even started the quest it sends a message of incompetance.