Franz Cumont, Dover, New York, 1956 (1906)
This is an examination of the influence of the religions of Syria, Asia Minor, Egypt and Persia on Roman paganism from the time of the introduction of the Great Mother in 204 BC (Nones of April to be precise) to the end of antiquity. The author examines how the religions spread, and most important why. This leads him to offer us the understanding that there was ethical and moral depth to these beliefs and most especially to that of Sol Invictus (which title was applied to Mithras p. 146) The pages on astrology make interesting reading. The point driven home in this book is that there was a transformation in all of these faiths as time passed, so that to criticize them by reference to their origins was to demonstrate unawareness of present (e.g. 3rd C AD) reality. Even more were they distant from traditional Roman paganism. Indeed, in his preface to the first edition, M. Cumont has the following delightful sentence,
The faith of the friends of Symmachus was much further removed from the religious ideal of Augustus, although they would never have admitted it, than that of their opponents in the senate.
Quintus Aurelius Symmachus is seen as the leading pagan aristocrat in the late 4th Century and the "opponents" were, of course, the Christians.
This review first appeared in the 51st edition of APAPLEXY, published on January 20, 1990.