Foreign Judaism in Ancient Rome

It seems that the Romans were mostly supportive of Judaism until around the first century. Just like other foreign cults, such as the ones from Egypt or Greece, Romans allowed this religion to practice due to its ancient origins. Emperor Claudius even says, “Do not dishonor any of the traditional practices connected with the worship of their God” (Warrior, 14.8). This shows how Romans were protective in their early relationship with Rome because of the Jews ancient roots. The Jews views clashed with much of Roman worship but they were allowed to be different in most cases. Many times in Warrior Judaism is associated with Egyptian religion as well showing where Judaism was placed in the pantheon of foreign cults and religions. Rives even says that Judaism was perceived as “divine” in some ways due to its understanding of truth (193). The Jews were allowed many rights during the Roman Empire but I think the thing that changed that was the coming of Jesus. Jesus changed religion and created a tension.

This tension was not only with Romans but with Judaism as well. As the strength of Christianity grew so did Roman elites fear of all other foreign religions. Tiberius was one of the first emperors to start discriminating against the Jews eventually leading to a tax just for being Jewish (Warrior, 14.19). Tacitus reveals a lot in his excerpt from Warrior about the feeling towards foreign religions in the Roman Empire. Tacitus shows both his knowledge and ignorance of Judaism. He cites Moses and The Sabbath but questions where they come from and why Jews are so “weird and abominable”. He argues that Jews only do these things, such as circumcision, to be different than other peoples. Tacitus makes two connections to Judaism and Egyptian religion both in their sacrificing and burial rituals. While writing about Moses’ laws he says, “In theses everything that we regard as sacred is held to be profane. On the other hand they permit things that for us are taboo” (Warrior, 14.21).

Cult worship of Isis

In the secondary readings from Gail Corrington Streete, the incredibly popular goddess Isis and her mystery cult were discussed. Obviously, there are several different versions of the story of Isis depending on which surviving materials are examined. Some of the common themes present Isis as the sister and wife of King Osiris, the mother of Horus, and Isis would eventually be considered the ultimate ruler of the cosmos. Most importantly Isis was considered a divine being who conquered death and fate. There are a few elements of the goddess Isis and her cult that are markedly different from that of the Greek religious traditions we have examined thus far. Foremost, the priests and devotees that worshipped her actively sought to proselytize and spread the cult. Secondly, this proselytizing was often aimed at the poor and powerless in societies. Lastly, and most importantly, unlike the many Greek gods with specific tasks and areas of control, Isis was responsible for any and all happenings in the cosmos. Writers in the Isis Aretalogy and the Isis Hymn reflect this notion, giving a long list of responsibilities that otherwise would have been diffused amongst dozens of individual Greek gods.  In the Aretalogy, for example, Isis controls warfare (Athena), thunderbolts (Zeus), calming and agitating the sea (Poseidon), and discovered fruit for mortals (Demeter). Isis is also responsible for inventing written language, seafaring, civilization, agriculture, marriage, ending murder, and creating justice systems that oversee human interaction. Unlike the divine-human interactions that have been observed in the Classical Age that are characterized by charis, Isis often gave commandments to her devotees in dreams and promised a better life and afterlife. Mikalson has an insight regarding the popularity of Isis that states, “Unlike a Greek god or goddess, Isis alone now could, for her devotees, fulfill virtually of their religious needs.” (pg. 189) In this way, the all-encompassing cult worship of Isis in the Mediterranean world helped paved the way for the concepts of monotheism that would take shape in the Christian community.