The Roman concept of religion was very different from the modern view of religion: there was no separation of secular life and religion. In her book A History of God: The 4,000-year Quest of Judaism, Christianity and Islam, Karen Armstrong writes:
“In the Roman empire of late antiquity, people worshipped the gods to ask for help during a crisis, to secure a divine blessing for the state and to experience a healing sense of continuity with the past. Religion was a matter of cult and ritual rather than ideas; it was based on emotion, not on ideology or consciously adopted theory.”
In general, Roman religion was based on a mutual trust between the people and their gods.
In Roman Britain a number of different religions were practiced: this included the worship of native gods, classical gods, gods from the Near East; and, in addition, both the Imperial Cult and Christianity were found. The Imperial Cult was the state religion and everyone had to worship the Emperor’s power and the major state gods (Jupiter, Juno, Minerva).
Jupiter is concerned with oaths and treaties; Juno is the female counterpart of Jupiter and is connected with all aspects of women; Minerva is the goddess of handicrafts, the professions, the arts, and war. These three deities make up the Capitoline triad of deities.
In Britain, the Roman era began in 43 CE and lasted through 410 CE. While the Romans did not conquer all of Scotland, there is a Roman influence in the region, particularly in southern Scotland. The military occupation of Scotland amounted to just 50 years and no Roman towns or villas were built. The National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh has a number of displays relating to Roman religion.
Roman religion was tolerant and flexible. Gods which were not a part of the Roman pantheon were adopted and worship. On the northern frontier, for example, some Roman soldiers worshipped Brigantia, the goddess of southern Scotland. The name of the Celtic goddess Brigantia, whose name seems to come from a Proto-Indo-European word meaning “the high one” or “the exalted one”, was inscribed by the Romans on a number of altars, including one on Hadrian’s Wall.
According to one display in the National Museum of Scotland:
“Roman soldiers worshipped a family of Roman gods and goddesses, all related to Jupiter, father of the gods. Neptune and Ceres were his brother and sister; the rest were his children or grandchildren by a variety of mothers.”
Ceres was the goddess of the harvest; Neptune ruled the oceans; Venus was the goddess of beauty and fertility; Mars controlled war; Diana was the goddess of hunting.
With regard to the Roman stone altars, Lesley Adkins and Roy Adkins, in their book A Thesaurus of British Archaeology, report:
“The altars were dedicated to classical gods, native gods, foreign gods, or personified spirits.”
According to the display:
“The phallus was a popular symbol believed to guard against the evil eye and encourage fertility. It was depicted on amulets and everyday objects such as lamps.”