Introduction
Understanding Ancient Roman religion
The Roman religion sought to accomplish the rites exactly in order to preserve the agreement with the divine powers. It was not limited to a copy of Greece: Rome had its institutions, its calendar, its priests and a strong family tradition.
As the conquests progressed, the Romans identified, adopted or reinterpreted many foreign deities.
To be retained
Four essential principles
- The Roman religion sought to accomplish the rites exactly in order to preserve the agreement with the divine powers.
- As the conquests progressed, the Romans identified, adopted or reinterpreted many foreign deities.
- Sacrifices, vows, auspices, processions, games and festivals were rhyming the city.
- roman religion was a way of connecting family, city, empire and divine world by the fulfillment of rites.
Small timeline
A tradition shaped by history
Origins and training
As the conquests progressed, the Romans identified, adopted or reinterpreted many foreign deities.
Historical developments
Cybels, Isis, Serapis and other cults found a place in the Empire.
Ritual life and teachings
Sacrifices, vows, auspices, processions, games and festivals were rhyming the city.
Seed and rediscovery
Imperial worship expressed political loyalty and sacralization of power, with varying forms in different provinces.
History and development
As the conquests went on, the Romans identified, adopted or reinterpreted many foreign deities. Cybels, Isis, Serapis and other cults found a place in the Empire.
Imperial worship expressed political loyalty and sacralization of power, with varying forms depending on the provinces. Coexistence did not mean unlimited modern tolerance: some groups were repressed when they seemed to threaten public order.
Worldview, beliefs and practices
Sacrifices, vows, auspices, processions, games and festivals were rhyming the city. At home, the "paterfamilias" honored the Lares, the Penates and the ancestors.
Augures and haruspices interpreted birds, lightning or sacrificial bowels. The success of the rite often meant more than intimate doctrinal adherence, even though personal prayers and the quest for salvation also existed.
Texts, symbols and transmission
Calendars, votive inscriptions, liturgical formulas and narratives of authors such as Tite-Live, Ovide or Varron. Symbols: Vesta fire, Jupiter eagle, beam, home altar, civic crown.
What research can and cannot say
Literary sources come mainly from elites; epigraphy and archaeology reveal provincial and popular diversity. The term "paganism" was later largely built in contrast to Christianity.
References