Task 3: Christianity Vs. Ancient Roman Religion

Hemisha Jeram

Classics 3.4

Task 3

Ancient Roman Religion vs Christianity

Ancient roman religion

The first Romans lived in Latium which is the region of central western Italy in which the city of Rome was founded and grew to be the capital city of the Roman Empire. According to legend the settlement Rome was founded by Romulus in 753 BC and was ruled by kings for approximately 250 years. Finally a king called Tarquin became rather arrogant and oppressive and he was expelled from Rome. The Roman religion was believed to be created by Numa Pompilius who was the second King in Rome in the late 8th century. Religion in ancient rome revolved around ancestral ethnic religion of the city of Rome that Romans used to define themselves as human beings

For the most typical ordinary everyday Religion was a major aspect of their daily routines. Every home had a household shrine where the prayers and libations to the family's domestic deities were offered. There were many shrines and sacred places in the neighbourhoods of Rome. One way that Rome incorporated diverse people was by supporting their religious heritage, building temples to local deities that framed their theology within the hierarchy of Roman religion. Inscriptions throughout the Empire record the side-by-side worship of local and Roman deities, including dedications made by Romans to local

Small household sacrifices were offered daily or on special occasions. Most prayers were often followed by a sacrifice to win god's approval. Pliny the Elder stated that “a sacrifice without prayer is thought to be useless and not a proper consultation of the gods”. As a sacrifice sometimes something gold, silver, jewelry or clothing might have been offered but sacrifice often involved sacrificing something organic which had to be alive. Animal sacrifice was the most well known and predominately used they typically used domesticated animals which included cattle, sheep and pigs. The victims of the sacrifice had to be willing to give their own life on behalf of the community they had to stay calm throughout the process. “FIrst they visit the shrines and pray at each altar for peace; by ancient custom they sacrifice selected sheep to Ceres the law-giver, to Phoebus, to father Bacchus and above all to Juno, in whose care are the tie of marriage. The lovely Dido herself, taking the bowl in the right hand, pours wine between the horns of a pure white cow or steps before the gods faces to the altars rich in fat, makes sacrifice anew throughout the day, and gazing eagerly into the victim's breasts, consults their still breathing entrails” (Virgil: Aeneid IV 56-64). First they had to choose the animals they were going to sacrifice and they had to tell others to come and watch. On the day