Rites and religion in Rome.
CNRS| N° d'inventaire | 21929 |
| Format | 14 x 22 |
| Détails | 300 p., paperback. |
| Publication | Paris, 2019 |
| Etat | Nine |
| ISBN | 9782271124180 |
Prolific, inventive, and constantly in touch with the life of the city, Roman religion differed radically from our modern religions. It did not require any belief in accordance with a doctrine, nor did it recognize meditative practices, nor readings of sacred texts, nor contemplative and internalized prayers. The "faithful" of the Roman gods were not believers caught up in their personal religious lives, but citizens conceived in their collective being and their community aspirations. In ancient Rome, every collective act had a "sacred" aspect, and every religious act a civic aspect. It is this singular ritual universe that the great specialist in Antiquity John Scheid revisits here, drawing on the most recent advances in archaeology. Temples of the gods, community buildings, rules of consecration, liturgical calendars, divinatory acts, the power of auspices, purification rites, priestly roles played by consuls, governors, centurions, presidents of colleges of artisans, fathers of families... John Scheid underlines the extraordinary vitality of Roman rites, highlights their power of incantation and their ambition to bring men and gods together at every moment. He also deciphers the social role of sacrifices and offerings of animals, cooked plants, wine, incense...
Prolific, inventive, and constantly in touch with the life of the city, Roman religion differed radically from our modern religions. It did not require any belief in accordance with a doctrine, nor did it recognize meditative practices, nor readings of sacred texts, nor contemplative and internalized prayers. The "faithful" of the Roman gods were not believers caught up in their personal religious lives, but citizens conceived in their collective being and their community aspirations. In ancient Rome, every collective act had a "sacred" aspect, and every religious act a civic aspect. It is this singular ritual universe that the great specialist in Antiquity John Scheid revisits here, drawing on the most recent advances in archaeology. Temples of the gods, community buildings, rules of consecration, liturgical calendars, divinatory acts, the power of auspices, purification rites, priestly roles played by consuls, governors, centurions, presidents of colleges of artisans, fathers of families... John Scheid underlines the extraordinary vitality of Roman rites, highlights their power of incantation and their ambition to bring men and gods together at every moment. He also deciphers the social role of sacrifices and offerings of animals, cooked plants, wine, incense...