Roman Religion

Cambridge Introduction to Roman Civilization

by Valerie M. Warrior

This book provides an introduction to the religion and religious practices of ancient Rome. Examining sites that are familiar to many modern tourists, Valerie Warrior avoids imposing a modern perspective on the topic by using the testimony of the ancient Romans to describe traditional Roman religion. The ancient testimony recreates the social and historical contexts in which Roman religion was practised. It shows, for example, how, when confronted with a foreign cult, official traditional religion accepted the new cult with suitable modifications. Basic difficulties, however, arose with regard to the monotheism of the Jews and Christianity. Carefully integrated with the text are visual representations of divination, prayer, and sacrifice as depicted on monuments, coins, and inscriptions from public buildings and homes throughout the Roman world. Also included are epitaphs and humble votive offerings that illustrate the piety of individuals, and that reveal the prevalence of magic and the occult in the spiritual lives of the ancient Romans.

Genres: History, Religion, Nonfiction, Classical Studies, Ancient History, Roman, Paganism

165 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2001

About the author

Valerie M. Warrior is a scholar of ancient history and religion. She has taught at a number of North American colleges and universities, and is the author of The Initiation of the Second Macedonian War and Roman Religion: A Sourcebook.

Reviews

[Viktor · Rating 4 out of 5]

pictures and quotes, very accessible introduction to the topic

[ARON Duhon · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s impossible for most modern, scientifically minded people to imagine the religious devotion of the ancient Roman. The beauty of Warrior’s book is that she does not force her modern readers to try.

Instead of deploying theoretical models to explain Roman society’s belief to post-enlightenment skeptics, she simply lets the ancients speak for themselves. Here you will find no Jungian excavation of archetypal themes, or sociological musings on class cohesion. She does not refer to any over-used metaphors concerning opium and "the people". Although Warrior seems situated within the “functionalist” camp, she refrains from making those views explicit.

Warrior lets Romans communicate to us across the millennia. She refers to a wide range of ancient media so that most social layers can join the conversation. Of course, she quotes traditional elites; Tacitus, Cicero, and Ovid. Yet interestingly, the book is full of text taken from less standard material; funerary relief, graffiti, household shrines, sacrificial objects such as votive statues, and even coins. They all have stories to tell.

Warrior's source material allows the reader to get an overview of ancient Rome’s religious topography, as experienced by common people and oligarchs alike. Going farther afield, she quotes foreigners such as Polybius (c. 200 BCE).

Warrior tells us what the Romans said about their gods, how they behaved in relation to them, and where they did so. She also shines a light on the places religious stories were told and reenacted. The book contains numerous illustrations and photographs of built and natural sites where religion happened.

Texts produced by elites reveal that they understood religion as a tool to enforce social order and military/political success. All layers of society felt that the gods intervened in individual and state affairs. Everyone wanted to stay on the gods' good side.

It was a matter of public concern to appease and bribe the gods. However, there was simply “no guarantee of divine goodwill” (Warrior, 6). This goodwill or "pax deorum", was the central factor in determining public and private fortune.

Affluent priestly colleges called collegium were kept at public expense. Priests were specialists in ritual performance. It was critical state rituals be enacted correctly. Any mistake could anger the gods and cause more harm than good. The smallest misstep could mean starting the entire ritual again, often at public expense.

Most positions within the standard political "career-path" that Roman elites hoped to follow, the "cursus honorum" were connected to public ritual and held deep religious significance. No state business was conducted without some public religious performance beforehand, overseen and directed by the pontiffs.

The ancient Romans did not imagine any division between "religio" (religion) and the wider economic, political, and family domains that characterize daily life. “Religion” and social living were nearly identical. Cicero boasts that no place in Rome was not “filled with a sense of religio and the gods” (Warrior, 6)

Ornate public religious festivals, parades, feasts, rituals, and so forth formed the “topmost” expression of a universal orientation toward religious life. Below this layer was countless clan, group, family, and individual layers of divine power. Separation of temple and state was unthinkable.

The individual, state, and family entered multiple, sometimes overlapping contractual relationships with the gods. Piety was the proper execution of one’s duty within all these relationships, on all levels. Humans offered sacrifices, said prayers, observed taboos, etc., to receive (from the gods) favorable outcomes in life.

Since the gods were often fickle and had divergent needs, one could not please all the gods all the time however hard she tried. One fulfilled her side of the bargain, hoped for the best, and prepared for the worst. The general religious formula that governed Roman ritual was expressed in the proverb "do ut res" (I give so that you give).

The gods were not subjects of ethical or moral speculation. No moral conundrums or deep lessons informed Roman myth. Romans treated religion like another “fact of life” that required work and attention to achieve concrete goals.

Cicero put it particularly bluntly, asking;

“Did ever anyone give thanks to the gods because he was a good man? No. He did so because he is rich, honored, lucky, and secure. Jupiter is called Best and Greatest not because he makes men just, moderate, or wise, but because he makes them powerful, healthy, prosperous, and secure. When the Romans want to know what is wrong or right, they turned to philosophers, not to priests.” (Warrior, 10).

As the state had its patron deities (Jupiter, Mars, Minerva) so too the family. A family’s "Lares" were protective spirits that could help them grow and prosper. Penates protected foodstuffs by guarding storehouse and pantry. Every home contained a household shrine where the father acted as the chief priest or "paterfamilias". Additionally, Roman households “worshiped” ancestor spirits and local vegetation-agricultural deities. A neighborhood’s guardian spirits were called "Lares Compitales". When a family moved into a new home, the matriarch would offer a coin at their site of worship.

Vesta (goddess of the hearth) was devoutly worshiped by nation and family. Her abode was sacrosanct, and any failure to offer her honor would cause catastrophe for state and family. Tradition held that a fugitive or outlaw could not be harmed while touching her symbol, the hearth.

Her cult was “of great antiquity” (Warrior, 45). In the home, the matriarch was her chief priestess. At the national level, the Vestal Virgins were devoted to her worship and played a vital role in most public rituals. They were charged with keeping the sacred flame (the nation’s hearth) alive. Extinction of the flame would bring Rome to ruin. If any Vestal had sexual intercourse, she would be buried alive.

State religion grew out of early village and clan ritual. Households followed a calendar of religious responsibility that originated among the earliest tribes in Latium. Through the dutiful observance of ritual, all members of the household helped to appease the cosmic powers.

Aristocratic Roman families had temples, ornate shrines, and statues erected to ancient, often semi-mythical progenitors or particularly important male patriarchs. Offerings of fruit, alcohol, salt, or livestock were made to the image. Particularly powerful families often claimed descent from national gods. Aristocrats sponsored feasts in their patron deity's honor. Caesar’s family claimed Apollo as an ancestor. An aristocratic clan's good fortune in war or politics would often mean they financed enormous temples be built and donated to the state.

Ancient Romans believed the cosmos was inhabited by countless powers and spirits that could be petitioned or manipulated. People sought to control nature and her powers through the use of spells, charms, incantations, and prayers. Exotic practices like astrology and numerology filtered in from Babylonia, Persia, and Egypt after the Empire was founded. Traveling specialists in occult arts offered their services to paying clientele. Warrior quotes spells and charms that people hoped would bring them fortune, revenge, or love.

Official attitudes toward "magi" (magicians or sorcerers) were mixed. At first, the Senate often outlawed Eastern cults and practices they felt detrimental to “traditional” Roman values. However, as the Empire spread the prevalent approach was to incorporate foreign cults into the official pantheon.

Overall, Willow presents a very human picture of the Ancient Roman religion. She does not say, but shows, that at the bottom of it was the struggle to protect and strengthen individual and group life. It was a chance to gain a little certainty in an uncertain world. The individual was a part of the family and families made up the state, and all were situated in a great hierarchy with duties and responsibilities at every level. The hope was that by acting dutifully towards unseen powers a little security might be gained. Life was hard and anything that added in the struggle for survival was welcomed.

Although Romans enjoyed the vitality and pleasure of life, they saw hardship and death as humanity’s common fate.

Willow quotes a tomb;

“Tiber was my home, Flavius Agricola my name. I am the one you see reclining here, as I used to do among the living at dinner, carefully tending to myself [and kin] for the few years Fortuna granted me. I was never sparing with wine. My beloved wife, Flavia Primitiva died before me a devoted follower of Isis. With her, I spent 30 happy years. For consolation, she left me offspring…who will tend to our graves with piety and preserve our resting place. You who read this pay attention! Mix the wine, wrap the festive garland around your brow and enjoy. Do not refrain from loving beautiful women when you can because when death comes, everything will be consumed by earth and fire” (Willow, 40).

Whatever they lacked in philosophy the Romans certainly made up for in “horse sense”. Seems to me Flavius left solid advice for any age.

[Dominic · Rating 4 out of 5]

Warrior’s book is a quick yet detailed overview of Roman religion. It has 10 chapters, the first of which is “The Gods and their Worship” and the last that is “The Jews and Christianity,” with everything about the religion contained in the chapters in between. The greatest feature is the fact that the author relies on contemporary figures to explain each aspect that is highlighted, such as politicians, poets/authors, historians, and military leaders, which gives an authentic and mostly trustworthy way of learning about each topic. There are also many images that accompany each chapter, both pictures taken of ancient ruins that still stand today and also of ancient artwork and writings. Of all the figures referenced, Cicero and Livy seem to have the most numerous citations.

The first half of the book up until chapter six, while having each chapter cover its own distinct topic, are really all tied together into the practical and pragmatic aspects of the Roman religion. Warrior makes this point immediately, that for Roman civilization religion is strictly a pragmatic one (5-7). While other religions see their faith as something for spiritual enlightenment, wisdom, intimacy with god(s), the Roman religion was focused entirely on things such as health, agriculture, war, prosperity, etc. Even the topic of ethics was not something the citizens would turn to the religious leaders for; rather, ethics was reserved for the philosophers (9). Prayer and sacrifice were therefore given to each god to gain his or her favor for whatever it was that the god had sovereignty over. A positive outcome meant that the favor was gained, while a negative one of course meant that they were angered.

Continuing with this thought, it also seems that certain topics like metaphysics were not of great concern for most Romans. For example, most didn’t even believe in an afterlife (39). Things like astrology and magic were looked down upon, and many political leaders saw the people practicing these things as charlatans (53-54). The attitude towards magic and witchcraft back then is similar to how it is viewed now in the world of new-age religion, more as a fringe and intentionally heterodox form of piety (94). Genuine worship was conducted by sacrifice at the altars in tandem with prayer. There were various religious positions of different rank, and each served a different purpose depending on the ritual being performed, who it was for, who it was to, etc.

The latter half of the book is where it starts to break off into other topics that aren’t directly related to the practical operation of the religion. The chapter of Rome’s attitudes towards foreign gods and cults are what you would expect of any nation; the fear that foreign religions would expedite the destruction of a nation. History has proven this to be the case for many nations and it had a lot to do with the fall of Rome. What is specifically mentioned here, however, is the introduction of first the Hellenistic and the other Italic cults. It’s obvious that Rome appropriated many of the Hellenic gods, but some of them were synchronized. For example, some people regarded Mars as the god of war, others as the god of agriculture. Likewise some considered Apollo the god of healing, while others considered him the god of prophecy (81). Eventually, gods from Asiatic nations began to creep their way in.

This idea segues into the chapter that has to do with deification, or men becoming god. There isn’t much to comment on here since it is basically what anyone would expect - a powerful leader either deifies himself or his people deify him. Both of these were the cases with various emperors. The only real interesting thing to note is that many of them were deified after their death. Even the great poet Virgil in his own writings deifies Octavian, who he says he will acknowledge always as a god (106).

The last chapter concludes with the Jewish and Christian impact on Rome. It’s already been stated that they did not want foreign religions, but Judaism proved to be even more problematic than most for various reasons, not the least of which includes them not serving in the military, proselytizing Romans, not paying taxes, and destroying statues of other gods (122-123). Interestingly enough, many Jewish communities still continue these behaviors. For example, as I write this review, Orthodox Jews in Israel are refusing to join mandatory military service in Israel and are battling in court to defend their exemption. They also proselytize to non-Jews to abandon their native religions and instead become Noahides. In any case, this of course led to various Jewish revolts and the destruction of Herod’s Temple.

Christianity eventually grew and was seen as a problem. While they didn’t pose as much of a political threat as the Jews did, Roman leaders took note that while Christian congregations grew, their own temples began to shrink in numbers. Severe Christian persecution didn’t start until Nero gained power (127). Trajan also punished Christians severely, but did not actively seek them out, and instead insisted that they be assessed on an individual basis (128). Warrior ends this chapter and the book saying that the transition period that followed the rise of Christianity is too long and detailed for an introductory book like this.

My only complaint with this work is that the chapters could have been organized better to make for more seamless transitions between topics. Chapters 1 and 7 were both about the Roman gods and foreign gods - why not combine them or have them ordered sequentially, rather than being spaced apart by five other chapters? This is why above in this review you’ll notice that I cite page 87 after page 94, in addition to the fact that gods were already addressed in the first few pages of the book. The same can also be said regarding the chapter of deification. This is also the case for astrology, in which many of the same points were made in chapters 4 and 8. Despite this, the book overall serves its purpose as a great introduction. You will learn a great deal about the religion and its development over time and even its continuity until the modern age after reading this.

[Michael Havens · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really good primer on Roman society and the role religion played bot in the daily lives of its citizens and slaves, as well as the influence it had on domestic and foreign policies Rome employed in order to keep harmony within and outside her sphere of authority. A good introduction to those who would like to delve into ancient Roman history.

[Joseph Sanchez · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent introduction to the basics of roman religion in the republic and empire. I would give this to high school students, or someone who has NEVER read anything on Rome. A very easy and short read, probably enjoyable by a brainy middle schooler.

[Brandon Cole · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very informative yet concise description of Roman religious practices while avoiding viewing it through a modern monotheistic lens but also avoiding unfounded extrapolation on how the Romans viewed their religion. Stuck entirely to the facts with minimal bias which is much appreciated.

[Ceilidhchaos · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bought for a term paper and definitely keeping. Enjoyed the analysis and the historic sources

[Astor Teller · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good and short introduction to Roman religion, well-supplied with pictures and quotes from ancient sources.

[Drew Witte · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great intro to the topic. I wonder how stabilizing it could be if we had a college of pontiffs to interpret everyone’s crank internet conspiracies

[Rhiannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this work Warrior truly brings Roman religion to life. She fully explains how Roman religion impacted every aspect of the Roman world. She displays the importance of religion in the context of familial bonds, state loyalty and war. She explains the practices of divination, magic, prayer, and sacrifice in the Roman world. She emphasizes how their ideals were different than our own in these regards. She also ensures that the reader knows how they played a role shaping the calendar through festivals and games, as well as the role apotheosis played in these arenas. Finally, she seeks to explain how Romans viewed foreign cults and why there was such friction with Judaism and Christianity. She is one of a few authors who tackle this subject and she does so in such a way that it is easy to understand. This book, along with its companion, have helped me to better understand Roman religion, not only in its practice, but in how it relates to mythology and how it compares to the religion of the Greeks.

[Abby · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not the kind of book I'd sit down to read for reading's sake, but its fascinating. The Romans were strange. And they had really great names. Think about it: Octavian, Cornelius, Lucious, Romulus, Tiberius. Great names!
Also, the book is full of photographs of temples, artifacts, and sculptures that make the book much more fun and interesting. It is sort of like an Eyewitness book for adults.

[Colin · Rating 5 out of 5]

A scholarly yet visually impressive work that serves as a very basic introduction to the concepts involved in the study of Roman religion. Highly recommended for those with an interest in the theory or practice of the cultus deorum Romanorum.

[Andrew Price · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great overview of Roman Religion