Monday, December 1, 2008

Why did the the Romans worship the gods?

Before researching we think that the gods of Rome provided support to the Roman's. For example the gods provided them with land and food.

In Rome the Romans believed in deities(spirits, gods, or goddesses), they used geities to try to make sense of the unexplainable events in nature.
The Roman myths began to resemble those of the Etruscans and the Greeks. The early deities began to take on human form. These gods and goddesses also gained personalities. The early Romans were farmers and shepherds who spent most of their time outdoors. They did not understand why droughts, floods, and lightning struck or why the conditions of their world were so unpredictable. The farmers and shepherds began to worship and make offerings to different spirit forces, or deities, that they believed circled all around them in the fields and forests and in their homes.
The early Roman deities were only ideas and did not take any human form like the Greek gods and goddesses. To protect themselves from evil influences and to secure the goodwill of these powerful deities , the early Romans worshipped at simple altars, upon which they left offerings of food, wine, and incense. (Book: Roman Mythology by: Evelyn Wolfson)


The roman gods originated in the ancient village of rome.Roman gods can most likely be explained by the pantheistic belief of "numen",which holds that gods and spirits which inhabits places, objects, and living things.The romans also believed that every thing in nature was inhabited by numina. (Website: http://www.allaboutthishistory.org/roman-gods.htm)


A Roman did not have to worship gods if he didn't want to, but he might anger his fellow citizens by outraging their feelings. However, to a normal person the service of the gods was a daily duty and each important event of human life had its appropriate observances. The head of every family was considered its priest. The children were his assistants in carrying out the worship of the gods, who guarded the house and fields and all the living creatures.
Unlike Christianity where God is worshiped out of love and trust the Romans worshiped their god out of fear. They participated in festivals, offered sacrifices and offerings, and created family religious practices in the home. Also the Roman had more than 20 types of gods and goddesses and spirits in which they believed would watch over and take care of them if they were
worshiped properly.
(other-website : http://www.richeast.org/htwm/Greeks/Romans/Bass/index.html)


Conclusion:
What we thought was right the Romans looked to to the gods for good crops and land they also looked to them for safety over there family.