Throughout the history of the Roman Empire, religion played an immense role in society. Romans saw religion as a duty to the state and to the community, not for the love of gods or the willingness to surrender themselves to the gods. During the Roman Empire the Romans practiced religion and worshiped their gods uniquely and in numerous ways. Worships practices, public religion, private religion and superstitious elements exhibit how the Romans practiced religion as well as how they view and worshiped the gods.
To begin, the religious pompa during the festus of saturnalia, was a great guideline of how sincere Roman religious practices were. Romans held great festus in honour of certain gods as a worship practice. Festivals were held by religious …show more content…
Public religion essentially is how Rome as a state and empire dealt with religion, whereas private religion is how the individual or familia dealt with religion. The public religion was the supreme religion of the empire and could also be referred to as “state” religion. State religion was very similar to the public religion, but on a much greater scale. It allowed all other religions to be practiced as long as the belief did not interfere with the state’s beliefs. However, Christianity and Judaism were not accepted by the state because the beliefs associated with these religions required, all other gods and beliefs of former religions to be disowned. State religion was guided by a group of government officials and administrators, which were under control of statewide religious feast days and festivals. The most powerful religious official in Rome was the pontifex maximus. He was the leader of the collegium pontificum [college of priests], which determined the dates of festivals and kept records of when the main religious events were held each year. Plutarch is renowned for stating the duties of the pontifex maximus, “he not only prescribed rules for public ceremony, but regulated the sacrifices of private persons…and giving information to every one of what was requisite for purposes of worship or supplication” (Excitement of a Religious Festival, 59). Religious duties once held by the Roman kings were held by the office of rex sacrorum [king of sacred things], who were appointed for life. The rex sacrorum had a higher religious dignitary at any ritual but had less religious authority than pontifex maximus. Lastly, flamines were appointed officials who served individual gods including Jupiter and Mars, and many lesser gods. The flamines were experts of the particular gods they served, specializing in
To begin, the religious pompa during the festus of saturnalia, was a great guideline of how sincere Roman religious practices were. Romans held great festus in honour of certain gods as a worship practice. Festivals were held by religious …show more content…
Public religion essentially is how Rome as a state and empire dealt with religion, whereas private religion is how the individual or familia dealt with religion. The public religion was the supreme religion of the empire and could also be referred to as “state” religion. State religion was very similar to the public religion, but on a much greater scale. It allowed all other religions to be practiced as long as the belief did not interfere with the state’s beliefs. However, Christianity and Judaism were not accepted by the state because the beliefs associated with these religions required, all other gods and beliefs of former religions to be disowned. State religion was guided by a group of government officials and administrators, which were under control of statewide religious feast days and festivals. The most powerful religious official in Rome was the pontifex maximus. He was the leader of the collegium pontificum [college of priests], which determined the dates of festivals and kept records of when the main religious events were held each year. Plutarch is renowned for stating the duties of the pontifex maximus, “he not only prescribed rules for public ceremony, but regulated the sacrifices of private persons…and giving information to every one of what was requisite for purposes of worship or supplication” (Excitement of a Religious Festival, 59). Religious duties once held by the Roman kings were held by the office of rex sacrorum [king of sacred things], who were appointed for life. The rex sacrorum had a higher religious dignitary at any ritual but had less religious authority than pontifex maximus. Lastly, flamines were appointed officials who served individual gods including Jupiter and Mars, and many lesser gods. The flamines were experts of the particular gods they served, specializing in