Women in religion

• Pantheon of gods


  Both the Greeks and the Romans believed in a pantheon of gods
• Greek gods and Roman gods


  Although the gods of Greece were different from the gods of Rome, there were many similar deities (e.g. Hera was similar to Juno, Zeus similar to Jupiter, Aphrodite similar to Venus)
• The gods of the Greeks and Romans were not omnibenevolent (well-meaning/kindly) and did not love humankind. They were more like people, loving some humans but hating others, and having a whole range of emotions and personality traits.
• Stories about the Greek goddess Hera


  • After Zeus had an affair with a human, Hera hated Herakles
  • Hera supported the Argonauts in their quest for the Golden Fleece, aiding them on many occasions. Jason had earlier won her favour
• Reciprocal relationship between mortals and gods

  Both the Greeks and the Romans believed that the gods would only show favour to them if they earned it first. Mortals thought they could earn affection and thus favour from their gods through giving gifts. Similarly, they believed that if they did not offer appropriate gifts or if they offended the gods, then they would be punished.
• The idea of a reciprocal relationship between mortals and gods was rooted in superstition, as the Greeks and Romans had a limited understanding of their bodies and the world around them.
• Common types of sacrifice

  • Votive offerings (objects)
  • Libations (valuable liquids)
  • Food offerings
  • Animal sacrifice (also called "blood sacrifice")
• Any type of sacrifice could be made by an individual, a group of individuals or by the state. Mortals believed that the gods took pleasure in receiving their sacrifices.
• The act of sacrifice also reinforced the hierarchy, with the gods at the top and mortals at the bottom. Mortals who challenged this hierarchy by trying to compete with or overrule the gods were guilty of hubris (blasphemous pride), and almost always met a sticky end in myth.
• Reasons for sacrifice


  • To thank a god for something good that's happened
  • To ask the god for a particular favour
  • As part of an established ritual or festival (for fear the god would be angry if you didn't)
• Types of things sacrificed

  • Wine
  • Olive oil
  • Small objects such as statuettes
  • Large objects such as buildings or items of personal value such as one's childhood toys, one's bulla, one's tools, a lock of one's hair
  • Domesticated animals (cows, pigs, sheep, goats, chickens etc.)
• Temples


  Temples were not like modern places of worship. A temple was a home for the god it was dedicated to, and would usually include a statue of the god (called a cult statue) to represent the god's presence in the building. Temples were big and ornate to show reverence to the gods, and would often contain treasure sacrificed to the god(s).
• Ordinary people did not go into the temple to worship.
• Festivals


  A festival was a celebration of a god or gods that took place at regular intervals (e.g. annually or every 4 years) and involved specific religious rituals. The Greek and Roman calendars were full of festival days, which acted as breaks from work. Each festival had specific rituals that had to be observed to please the god(s), and usually involved sacrifice of some kind.
• Priesthoods


  Both Greece and Rome appointed specific people to oversee aspects of religious ritual. These people were called priests (male) or priestesses (female). They served the gods by taking care of the temple they were assigned to and its cult statue, and taking an active role in particular festivals & sacrifices.
• Ancient priests/priestesses were not like vicars/rabbis/imams in that they did not offer pastoral support or spiritual guidance for their communities. They served the gods.
• Divination


  Both Greeks and Romans believed that the gods would send messages to mortals, and the art of deciphering these messages was called divination. These messages could indicate whether the gods approved or disapproved of a particular action, or give an instruction to the mortals, e.g. to offer additional sacrifices. Anyone could engage in divination, but they believed certain people were more able to divine messages from the gods, such as oracles, prophets or soothsayers.
• Types of omens


  • Birdfight
  • Behaviour of other animals
  • Dreams
  • Changes in the weather
  • Appearance of heavenly bodies (e.g. comets)
  • Plagues
  • Signs in fiery smoke
  • The entrails of sacrificial victims
  • Sneezing!
• Prophecies


  In the ancient world a prophecy was a verbal sign from the gods, spoken through a prophet/oracle/soothsayer. Prophecies could be about the future, but more likely would indicate the gods' (dis)approval or advice, or be an instruction. The gods could have some knowledge of Fate (that which will happen in the future) and sometimes they shared this knowledge with mortals.
• Religious pollution


  The Greeks and Romans believed that some actions made people impure in the eyes of the gods. A person could undertake ritual purification to remove the pollution, as it was believed that a polluted person would be hated by the gods and could bring misfortune to themselves and those close to them.
• Ways of becoming polluted and the rituals to remove

  • Having sex-thoroughly wash yourself
  • Coming into contact with a new-born baby or a dead body-staying outside of sanctuaries for a certain amount of time
  • Killing someone outside of war, voluntarily or involuntarily (murder or manslaughter) - this was severe pollution and elaborate rituals were required, usually involving sacrifice. You would visit a prophet/oracle/soothsayer for advice about which rituals you needed to perform.
• Where would a Greek priestess work and for who?

  In a sanctuary in honour of a god, they also served goddesses
• How could a woman become a priest

  It was an elected position, so women would have to be selected to the priestess chosen by lottery
• Main roles of a priestess

  • Worship of the gods
  • Dressed in special clothing
  • Looking after the sanctuary and the buildings inside it
  • Performing rituals
• Benefits of the position of priestess

  • They were highly respected
  • Some were paid very well
  • They had considerable influence
• Athene Polias


  Athena, protectress of the city (polis)
• The cult of Athene Polias was the most important faction of Athenian religion since it ensured the city walls wouldn't be broken by invading armies
• The high priestess of Athena Polias was by far the most important religious position in Athens
• Differences between priesthoods in Athens and Rome

  • The vast majority of Roman priests were men, while in Athens female gods usually had female priests so there were lots of priestesses
  • Religion and politics in Rome were very closely intertwined, with members of influential families holding the most important religious and political jobs, which excluded women from important religious jobs like priesthoods
  • Women could not be actively involved in animal sacrifices in Rome, with a few exceptions
• Responsibilities of the Vestal Virgins


  • In charge of taking care of the temple of Vesta
  • Attend certain public festivals and sacrifices
  • Tend to ceremonial fire inside the temple; make sure it didn't die
  • Assist with the worship of Bona Dea and Vesta by making blood sacrifices
  • Bake the sacred sour cake used at state sacrifices
  • Act as guardians of important documents, including wills and treaties
• Rights enjoyed by the Vestal Virgins

  • They were free from a paterfamilia
  • They had the right to manage their own property and write their own will
  • They were the only women in Rome allowed to travel by carriage with a lictor
  • They were protected - harming a Vestal Virgin was sacrilegious and punishable by death
  • If they met a person on their way to execution, that person could be pardoned
  • They had special seats reserved for them at shows and festivals
• Restrictions placed on the lives of Vestal Virgins

  • Couldn't have sex or would be executed
  • Any small infraction led to death
• The House of the Vestal Virgins/The Atrium Vestae
• Date: 113 CE (after the Republican period)
• Location: in the Roman Forum, next to the Temple of Vesta
• Significance: Home to the College of Vestal Virgins
• The Atrium Vestae was like a palace. A fifty-room, three-storey complex built around a rectangular courtyard with two decorative pools, this house reflected the power and status of the women who resided there.
• The porticos were decorated with statues of senior Vestals. As well as private rooms for each of the serving Vestals, the house contained a private shrine (lararium) and functional rooms including kitchens, a mill and an oven that the Vestals probably used to bake the ceremonial salt cake.
• The Flaminica Dialis
• Little is known for certain about her role in Roman religion, since so little was written by ancient authors about her.