Mithras: Roman army god
Roman Mithraism in the second and third century AD was one of the most popular cults among Roman army soldiers. Evidence lies in the mithraea we see all through the ever expanding Roman empire. Since the late nineteenth century, it is thought that Roman Mithraism indeed owed its success to the Roman army. However, there nowadays is a debate going on in academic fields: is this the best explanation possible? The link between the army and Mithraism still continues to make certain sense. In Roman Mithraism, certain values were promulgated, such as training, loyalty and discipline. These values of course befitted a Roman soldier well. Despite the little evidence that is available for research, social network analysis could help explain how mithraea spread.
On its essentials
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The Roman Empire and cults
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One of the issues Roman Mithraism has to deal with, is about its origins. Scholars vary on this point: Merkelbach and Clauss believe that Roman Mithraism is invented in the surrounding of Rome and Ostia – where indeed no less than fifteen mithraea were excavated – while others tend to point to Persia for its supposed descent. Contemporaries never spoke of something as religion: they mentioned the mysteries so essential for Roman Mithraism. The most renown myth by far is the myth in which Mithras slays a bull, representing – probably – the creation of the worldly orders. Adherents had to perform certain tests to attain higher degrees by which one could attain secret information.
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Roman emperors supported Roman Mithraism, because it promoted loyalty to the emperor and respect for hierarchy in general. All sorts of cults were tolerated in Roman society as long as they did not put a threat to social stability - as was the case with Christians and Jews in some cases. Mithraic sanctuaries and dedications are numerous in Rome, Ostia, Britain, Higher Germania, the Danube region and the Euphrates. This supports the thesis that Roman Mithraism was closely linked to the Roman army. However, this thesis can rightfully be questioned when we take the situation of Egypt and Asia Minor into account. There, virtually no evidence exists of Mithraic cults.
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A Mithraeum... in London?
As a case study, I have examined the London Mithraeum in order to analyze in how far there might have been local differences in the spread of mithraea throughout the Roman empire - as can be seen in the picture above this text. I have used the five principles of Beck, one of the most prominent Mithraic researchers in the field, to see if the London Mithraeum fits with the overall picture. Closer examination of these principles indicate that the London Mithraeum is quite similar to the ideal image of what a Mithraeum should have been like. There are some small differences: the apse differs as do the sleeping walls. These can be called minor differences. Mithraea throughout the Roman empire, in essence, mostly had the same lay-out. Safely hidden in a cave-like situation, for the Mithraeum was supposed to represent the universe. And the outside was, obviously, of no interest.
Roman Mithraism and social networks
There are, unfortunately, no written records left of adherents to the Roman Mithraistic cultus. This means that it is hard to validate any theory whatsoever considering the spread of Roman Mithraism. There are, however, several options in which one could do research on the spread of Mithraism. Firstly, the dynamics in the cities, in which all sorts of cults have been "invented", could be put to some more examinations. Greg Woolf is worth mentioning in this perspective. Secondly, one could argue that a mithraeum, as a cell, virtually cloned itself and, in doing so, gave shape to the spread of Roman Mithraism. That also implies that each cell was at least connected by one degree of influence. Furthermore, social network analyses claims that every hub is connected to another by no more than six degrees between them. This might be a challenging paradigm for research in Roman Mithraism. However, difficulty lies in the current academic debate: it is thought by several scholars that each cell in Roman Mithraism operated completely autonomous. That restriction, though, could be avoided when, thirdly, strong ties are examined between members. For sure, many Roman soldiers have joined in the Mithraist mysteries. In the Roman army, ties could not be stronger, since one had to fight for their own and each other’s lives. I can not think of any stronger tie that such a tie.
Bibliography
- Beck, Roger. The Religion of the Mithras Cult in the Roman Empire: Mysteries of the Unconquered Sun. Oxford University Press: Oxford, 2006.
- Claus, Manfred. Mithras: Kult und Mysterien. München: C.H. Beck’sche Verlagsbuchhandlung: München, 1990.
- Clauss, Manfred. The Roman Cult of Mithras: The God and His Mysteries. Routledge: New York, 2001.
- Gordon, R.L. “Mithraism and Roman Society: Social factors in the explanation of religious change in the Roman Empire.” In Religion 2 (1972), 2.
- Rives, James B. “Graeco-Roman Religion in the Roman Empire: Old Assumptions and New Approaches.” Biblical Research 8, no. 2 (2010).
- Shepherd, John. The Temple of Mithras in London: Excavations by W. F. Grimes and A. Williams at the Walbrook. London: English Heritage, 1998.
- Southern, Pat. The Roman Army: A Social and Institutional History. Santa Barbara: ABC CLIO, 2006.
- Speidel, Michael P. Mithras-Orion: Greek Hero and Roman Army God. Leiden: E.J. Brill, 1980.
- Wetherell, Charles. “Historical Social Network Analysis.” In International Review of Social History no. 43, Supplement, pp. 125-144, 1998.
- Woolf, Greg. “A Sea of Faith?” In Mediterranean Paradigms and Classical Antiquity, ed. Malkin, Irad. Londen en New York: Routledge Taylor & Francis Group, 2005.
- Claus, Manfred. Mithras: Kult und Mysterien. München: C.H. Beck’sche Verlagsbuchhandlung: München, 1990.
- Clauss, Manfred. The Roman Cult of Mithras: The God and His Mysteries. Routledge: New York, 2001.
- Gordon, R.L. “Mithraism and Roman Society: Social factors in the explanation of religious change in the Roman Empire.” In Religion 2 (1972), 2.
- Rives, James B. “Graeco-Roman Religion in the Roman Empire: Old Assumptions and New Approaches.” Biblical Research 8, no. 2 (2010).
- Shepherd, John. The Temple of Mithras in London: Excavations by W. F. Grimes and A. Williams at the Walbrook. London: English Heritage, 1998.
- Southern, Pat. The Roman Army: A Social and Institutional History. Santa Barbara: ABC CLIO, 2006.
- Speidel, Michael P. Mithras-Orion: Greek Hero and Roman Army God. Leiden: E.J. Brill, 1980.
- Wetherell, Charles. “Historical Social Network Analysis.” In International Review of Social History no. 43, Supplement, pp. 125-144, 1998.
- Woolf, Greg. “A Sea of Faith?” In Mediterranean Paradigms and Classical Antiquity, ed. Malkin, Irad. Londen en New York: Routledge Taylor & Francis Group, 2005.
Pictures
[Header] "London Mithraum excaveted in 1952" http://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/32448 (consulted June 3rd).
[Fig. 2] Manfred Clauss, The Roman Cult of Mithras: The God and His Mysteries (Routledge: New York, 2001), 27-28.
[Fig. 3] John D. Shepherd, The Temple of Mithras, London: Excavations by W. F. Grimes and A. Williams at the Walbrook (English Heritage and the Museum of London: Londen, 1998), 23.
[Fig. 2] Manfred Clauss, The Roman Cult of Mithras: The God and His Mysteries (Routledge: New York, 2001), 27-28.
[Fig. 3] John D. Shepherd, The Temple of Mithras, London: Excavations by W. F. Grimes and A. Williams at the Walbrook (English Heritage and the Museum of London: Londen, 1998), 23.