Fall of Roman Religion

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Im doing an essay about the Roman Religion.
And im ordered to have the last two headlines to be.
"Fall of the Roman religioN"
Why/How/When.

And "Similarities with religions today"
Similarities is easy.

But the fall of Roman Religion is harder.
Can anyone help me. direct me to a site or anything so i can get info about this.
PLEASE i beg of you.
I know the interest of the roman empire is grand.
SO hopefully someone can help (OOC: Essay shall be handed in this thursday)

 

[driftwood]

I don't know about any websites ... did you try a Google search on Roman religion?

Really, it's an invalid question. Christianity is indelibly stamped with all the characteristics of Roman religion. It emerged in a climate of competition among many similar mystery religions coming from the eastern provinces and spreading through maritime ports and the army. It naturally accomodated itself to the structure and customs of the empire. Its most winning traits were that it fulfilled needs generated by an evolving Roman society, which older cults ignored. The Pope still stamps PONT[ifex] MAX[imus], Head Priest, wherever he can, 2500 years after the position emerged during the early Republic.

OTOH, there are a few official death dates for non-Christianity. Constantine is a poor candidate, since his edicts were of universal tolerance, although he did patronize the Church on an enormous scale. Theodosius I banned pagan worship and defeated a major rebellion, by the pagan Senator Symmachus in 393 or 394, which is usually seen as the death knell of aristocratic paganism. That clearly can't be true, because paganism continued to suffer final deaths throughout the 5th and 6th centuries, probably culminating in Justinian I's closure of the Academy in Athens in the mid-6th century. After that, the pagans no longer had a locus to organize about.

But that would mean that Roman religion was just neo-Platonic paganism, as it was anachronistically resurrected in the 4th and 5th centuries. That's wrong, because most Romans were following simpler, folk versions which were absorbed into Christianity, or mystery cults (such as Mithras, Isis, Bacchus, Sol Invictus, etc.). Plus, Christianity appropriated the language and substance of neo-platonism through the Church Fathers. So there.

driftwood

 

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I do not agree with the term "roman" , roman's religion was the universal religion or mediterranian with many hindu & messopotamian elements.As about the "death" this religion is still active in varius places in italy-france-greece-spain (with that order)and luckily the followers of the ancient gods do not get burned or choped as by the christians as they used to in the past

 

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Roman religion - for rich people,
Christianity - religion for everyone with hope for better life after death (2nd birth),
One God (the way you call Him is't important), one faith...
Maybe because of it???

 

[Crazy_Ivan80]

Originally posted by Themistofelis
I do not agree with the term "roman" , roman's religion was the universal religion or mediterranian with many hindu & messopotamian elements.As about the "death" this religion is still active in varius places in italy-france-greece-spain (with that order)and luckily the followers of the ancient gods do not get burned or choped as by the christians as they used to in the past

You sure? Any sites. Or are they just re-enacting?
Althouh I wouldn't be surprised if there were still Mithras-worshippers around in military circles. It was a secretive religion after all.

 

[driftwood]

Most of the popular 3rd and 4th century religions were mystery cults (including Christianity). However, it was common knowledge that they existed, at least. Besides which, Mithraism used ceremonial caves which were intricately decorated on the inside. And the cult of Sol Invictus was probably more popular in military circles.

So I kind of doubt it's still practiced.

driftwood

 

[Crazy_Ivan80]

Originally posted by driftwood
Most of the popular 3rd and 4th century religions were mystery cults (including Christianity). However, it was common knowledge that they existed, at least. Besides which, Mithraism used ceremonial caves which were intricately decorated on the inside. And the cult of Sol Invictus was probably more popular in military circles.

So I kind of doubt it's still practiced.

driftwood

Sol Invictus is still practised... all over the Christian world in fact. Or don't you people celebrate Christmas? (both are 25 december and the same)

 

[Agelastus]

Originally posted by Themistofelis
I do not agree with the term "roman" , roman's religion was the universal religion or mediterranian with many hindu & messopotamian elements.

A good description in many ways-the Romans tended to be very inclusive, either associating gods of the regions they conquered with Roman equivalents, or absorbing them wholeheartedly into their pantheon as in the case of certain near eastern faiths (such as the worship of "Magna Mater".)

Christians were publicly much more intolerant-although in actuality many of the rituals of paganism survived in Christian worship.

 

[Duque de Bragança]

Originally posted by Crazy_Ivan80


Sol Invictus is still practised... all over the Christian world in fact. Or don't you people celebrate Christmas? (both are 25 december and the same)

Good one ! But one could also trace back Christmas to the Saturnalia or simply Winter Solstice. The Saturnalia inspired Carnival as well.
Not to mention the Bacchus cult still practised by many people
links about Roman Religion :
http://www.novaroma.org/religio_romana/
http://italian.about.com/library/weekly/aa120600a.htm
this one about the roman pagan origin of christmas

 

[driftwood]

Originally posted by Crazy_Ivan80


Sol Invictus is still practised... all over the Christian world in fact. Or don't you people celebrate Christmas? (both are 25 december and the same)

Well, not being Christian, I don't celebrate Christmas.

But the pagan roots of many Christian rituals is a far cry from claiming that people still actively worship Sol Invictus, unless there are widespread cults of sun-worshippers that I'm unaware of.

driftwood

 

[Crazy_Ivan80]

Originally posted by driftwood


Well, not being Christian, I don't celebrate Christmas.

But the pagan roots of many Christian rituals is a far cry from claiming that people still actively worship Sol Invictus, unless there are widespread cults of sun-worshippers that I'm unaware of.

driftwood

don't tell me you don't exchange gifts during that period. Because tha'st what it is for the majority of us. All the religious mumbo-jumbo is just that.

Of course no-one is actively celebrating the sun, but because X-mas is the inheritor of Sol Invictus... So on some deep down level.

Aah well, back to topic.
And seeing how most of it is said.
What about those few Zoroastrians left, the parsi IIRC.

 

[Basil II]

The Roman Catholic Church is very much a Roman religion, and still very much exists today.

In fact, it's the single largest institution of any sort in the world, and carries on the dream of universal empire in the form of a universal Church.

 

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Well, my family and I aren't so-called "sun-worshippers", but we definitely have a good celebration every time the winter solstice rolls around... heck, that's the shortest day of the year and they all get longer after that on the way to spring... if that's not a cause to celebrate, I don't know what is!

We celebrate Christmas too.

 

[unmerged(5978)]

Originally posted by Basil II
The Roman Catholic Church is very much a Roman religion, and still very much exists today.

In fact, it's the single largest institution of any sort in the world, and carries on the dream of universal empire in the form of a universal Church.

Could not have said it better myself. Every time I go to Mass I still get that thought.

 

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It sort of has to guys. For jees sakes, the word "Catholic" means Universal.

 

[Aetius]

Gibbon lists 5 reasons
Inflexible, intolerant zeal of christians
doctrine of a future life
miraculous powers ascribed to church
pure auster morals of christians
union and discipline of christian state within the heart of the roman empire

Russell adds:
The existence of a holy book, documenting the providance of christianity
Cheap initiation rite compared to competing cults e.g. The Great Mother
Doctrine was built on Hellenistic ideas like Orphism, platonism and neo-platonism so found a ready audience amongst the Greek educated classes
borrowed elements from eastern mystery religions such as a dying god born again

Funnily enough the inflexible, intolerant zeal of christians caused the demise of the Byzantine Empire by alienating the Nestorians and Monophysites, which lead to them helping the Muslims

 

[driftwood]

Well, just because Gibbon says, it does not have to be true. Seriously, I don't think anyone will ever successfully escape his shadow.

Anyway, in the West, the Christians were just as zealous, except over less arcane matters (e.g., the Donatist heresy). There's no question that the zeal destroyed any chance of an emperor having some flexibility in his religious policy, but the fact is that the Nestorians and Monophysites showed themselves even LESS willing to compromise during 2 centuries of efforts to either bridge the gap or at least agree to disagree.

Christianity was never exclusive in having those elements, but the early Christians certainly took what they had and ran with it. They also put far more effort into universal proselytizing than any of their "competitors".

Also, on a semantic note, most historians start using the term Byzantine Empire exclusively only when the eastern provinces were lost, so it might be more accurate to say that religious inflexibility caused the demise of the Eastern Roman Empire. The former implies the struggles and reduced frontiers of the next 800 years, while the latter implies a relatively easy continuance of the eastern domains of the late empire. But, it's just a semantic quibble.

driftwood

 

[unmerged(2833)]

Originally posted by Heliumgod
if that's not a cause to celebrate, I don't know what is!

Summer solstice

 

[Aetius]

Originally posted by driftwood
Well, just because Gibbon says, it does not have to be true. Seriously, I don't think anyone will ever successfully escape his shadow.

I thought I read that someone needed help with an essay. Reffering to Gibbon and Russell can't be bad in that case, even if taking up the work the Manicheans put in and the use of Stoic philosophy in promoting Christianity would probably help more. Not as easy to find clear cut sources in that case though.

 

[driftwood]

Hehe, I think that essay was due 2 months ago.

driftwood