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Roman lit (pt 2) > Religion 1 > Flashcards

Religion 1 Flashcards

1
Q

Some background

A
  • Polytheism: many gods
  • Ancient religion is very local
  • Gods live in the community
  • Aedes (house) is the word for temple
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2
Q

The gods

A
  • Powerful beings who can affect
    human lives
  • Expect worship and respect from humans
  • The gods also include:
  • Deified emperors (Divus Augustus)
  • Personifications (such as Concordia)
  • Di Manes (spirits of the dead)
  • But varying kinds of powers and worship
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3
Q

Communication with gods

A
  • Bendlin emphasizes that prayer and sacrifice are forms of communication
  • Though formulated in very transactional wording
  • And people know the gods may not agree
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4
Q

Orthopraxy vs. Orthodoxy

A
  • Romans value correct practice
    (orthopraxy)
  • Owe proper ritual (cultus)
  • Bendlin: this is communication
  • And dutiful respect (pietas)
  • Don’t separate religious and
    secular
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5
Q

Roman religion

A
  • Religio means worship of the gods
  • Purpose: keep gods favorable to community
  • Contrast: superstitio– improper religion
  • Excessive fear of the gods
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6
Q

Civic religion at Rome

A
  • Publicly funded (temples, rituals)
  • Priests and magistrates contribute too
  • Sacra publica populi romani (public
    rituals)
  • Prayers, sacrifices, vows, festivals,
    games
  • Senate is top decision-maker
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7
Q

Communicating with the gods

A
  • Do habitual actions in the right
    way
  • sacra (rites)– sacrifice, prayer
  • Vows (can be from state or
    individual)
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8
Q

Vows

A
  • Offer gift to the god for services
    in the future
  • God acts first, human second
  • State level (such as Arval
    brothers)
  • Individuals
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9
Q

New communication from the gods

A
  • Augurs read signs from
    the gods in nature (e.g.
    birds)
  • Unexpected events
  • Check entrails of
    sacrificed animals
    (haruspices)
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10
Q

Priesthood

A

It’s part-time work. Acting as a priest is part of public offices or family responsibility. Don’t need special training

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11
Q

Pontiffs

A
  • 15 members
  • Oversee public religion (sacra publica)
  • Ritual
  • Care of tombs
  • Pontifical law
  • Calendar
  • 10 months, later 12
  • Intercalation
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12
Q

Pontifex Maximus

A
  • Head pontiff
  • Elected for life
  • After Augustus, emperor always holds this
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13
Q

Augurs and augury

A
  • Interpret auspicia (signs from
    the gods)
  • Natural signs
  • Bird flight
  • Sacred chickens
  • Magistrates with imperium can
    take auspicia
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14
Q

Haruspices (sing. Haruspex)

A
  • Interpret entrails
  • Omens
  • “Etruscan science”
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15
Q

Quindecemviri (15 men)

A
  • 15 priests
  • Interpret Sibylline books
  • Under their influence:
  • New cults
  • Asklepios 292 BCE
  • Magna Mater 204 BCE
  • Add Greek practices into ritual
  • Feasts
  • Games
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16
Q

Worship in the household
Lararium: shrine of household gods (lares)

A
  • Protect household
  • Shown with ritual vessels or cornucopia
  • There are also lares for roads, for state
17
Q

Also in the lararium

A
  • Penates: storehouse/cupboard (invisible)
  • Genius: a man’s spirit
  • Juno for women
  • Paterfamilias is priest for own house
18
Q

Di Manes

A
  • The deified spirits of the
    dead
  • Worship them at funeral and
    certain festivals
  • Obligation to worship largely
    goes with inheritance
19
Q

Roman funerals

A

Exposed body causes pollution, May cause angry spirit

20
Q

Funeral rites

A
  • Lying in state
  • Funeral held at night
  • Procession to tomb
  • Hired mourners
  • Music
  • Actors and wax masks (for
    patricians)
  • Eulogy (speech)
21
Q

Cemeteries and tombs

A
  • Must be outside pomerium (religious boundary of city)
  • Republican tombs large and competitive
  • Empire: emphasis on interior decoration
22
Q

Commemorative rites: offerings to manes

A
  • Food, wine
  • Libation tubes in some graves
  • Altars
23
Q

Cremation, Republic and early Empire

A
  • Pyre
  • Collect ashes into urn, bury that
  • Mausoleum, family tombs
  • Burial clubs (called collegia)
24
Q

Columbarium: tomb with slots for many urns

A
  • Some are for familia of
    wealthy family
  • Plaques to name dead
25
Q

Inhumation

A

Shift to inhumation (burial) starts in 2nd c, Hadrian is buried, not cremated

26
Q

Curse tablets (defixiones)

A
  • Also called “binding spells”
  • Want to bring the target under the writer’s control
  • One scholar calls this “cheating”
  • ca. 1600 curse tablets from Greece
    and Rome
  • Lead is the preferred material
27
Q

Types of curses
Percentages reflect curses in Latin (N=600)

A
  • 20% Legal curses
  • 20% Agonistic curses (re. games and sports)
  • 8% Erotic curses (though 25% of curses in Greek are about love)
  • 52% “Prayers for justice”

Roman lit (pt 2) (13 decks)

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