Latest / Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History / The Stoic Emperor's Lonely Gods: Marcus Aurelius and Roman Religion
Transcript
- Lucas: So we've talked a lot about Marcus Aurelius as a Stoic, as a general, as a reformer — but one role we've barely touched on is his job as Rome's chief priest. He was pontifex maximus, the head of the state religion, for nearly twenty years. Luna: That's a huge part of being emperor, isn't it — the religious duties? Lucas: Absolutely. The emperor wasn't just a political leader; he was the living link between Rome and its gods. The pax deorum — the peace of the gods — depended on him performing the right rituals at the right time. And for a man whose personal philosophy was deeply rational and introspective, that must have created some real tension. Lucas: Marcus wrote the Meditations in Greek, often addressing himself or the universe, but he rarely mentions the traditional Roman gods by name. When he does talk about gods, it's usually in a vague, almost pantheistic way — 'the gods,' 'nature,' 'the whole.' He doesn't sound like someone who believed Jupiter was literally throwing thunderbolts. Luna: But he still performed all the public rites — animal sacrifices, processions, consulting the Sibylline Books? Lucas: Yes, and with great care. Cassius Dio tells us that during the Marcomannic Wars, when things were going badly, Marcus personally presided over a week-long purification ritual in Rome, importing foreign priests and even bathing in the Tiber. He did whatever he thought might restore divine favor. Lucas: And it wasn't just traditional Roman religion. He consulted an Egyptian priest named Harnouphis — we mentioned him in the Rain Miracle episode — who claimed to have summoned a thunderstorm. Marcus took that seriously enough to have it recorded on his column. Luna: So he was open to foreign cults, as long as they served the state? Lucas: Exactly. He was particularly devoted to Serapis, a Greco-Egyptian god popular among Roman soldiers. Coins from his reign show Serapis with the legend 'CONSERVATORI AUGUSTI' — 'to the protector of the emperor.' Marcus needed divine protection, and he wasn't picky about where it came from. Lucas: But here's the fascinating contradiction: in the Meditations, he writes things like 'Either the gods have power or they don't. If they do, why worry?' That's not the language of a man who's terrified of offending the gods. It sounds more like a man going through the motions because it's his duty. Luna: Did anyone at the time call him out for that — for seeming too philosophical, not pious enough? Lucas: Not directly, but there were rumors. The Historia Augusta — which is often unreliable but captures contemporary gossip — says that when he was dying, he told his son Commodus not to bother with too many religious observances. 'Live as if the gods exist,' he supposedly said, 'but don't be a slave to superstition.' Lucas: If he really said that, it's a perfect summary of his approach: public piety, private skepticism. He maintained the state cults, restored temples, and even revived archaic priesthoods, but his own writings suggest he saw divinity as something more abstract — a rational principle suffusing the cosmos. Luna: That must have made the Christian situation tricky. Didn't he persecute Christians? Lucas: He did. There's a famous passage in his own writings where he says Christians die 'out of sheer perversity' — not because they believe, but because they're stubborn. He saw them as a threat to social order because they refused to participate in the state cult. To him, that wasn't just religious dissent; it was treason. Lucas: The martyrdoms at Lyon in 177 CE happened on his watch. Christians were tortured and killed. And the irony is that the same man who wrote 'Live a good life. If there are gods, they will not care how you worship' — one of his most famous quotes — authorized those executions. Luna: That quote isn't actually from the Meditations, is it? I've heard it attributed to him, but I don't think he wrote those exact words. Lucas: You're right — it's a paraphrase. The Meditations don't contain that sentence exactly. But it captures the spirit of his private thoughts. In Book 6, he says, 'To the gods I owe good thoughts and good intentions.' Not sacrifices, not temples — thoughts. Lucas: And yet, he spent a fortune on public sacrifices. During the Antonine Plague, he ordered special supplications and even brought a statue of the healing god Asclepius to Rome. He did everything a traditional Roman emperor was supposed to do. Luna: So was he a hypocrite, or just practical? Lucas: I think practical. The Stoics believed that you should act in accordance with your role in society. His role was emperor and pontifex maximus. Performing the rituals wasn't a lie — it was part of his duty to the empire. Private belief didn't have to match public action. Lucas: There's a wonderful passage where he says, 'The gods either have power or they don't. If they do, use them. If they don't, why care?' That's not cynicism; it's pragmatism. He's covering all bases, but his real faith is in reason and virtue. Luna: And he never tried to reform Roman religion — no attempt to make it more philosophical, like Julian would later try with Neoplatonism? Lucas: No, he didn't. He wasn't a religious revolutionary. He was a conservative who maintained traditions even if he didn't personally believe in them. His Meditations are private, not a public manifesto. He never tried to turn Rome into a Stoic utopia. Lucas: What's striking is that after his death, he was deified — made a god. His son Commodus pushed for it, and the Senate reluctantly agreed. So the man who may have doubted the traditional gods became one himself. That's the ultimate irony. Luna: I guess if you do your job well enough, you become what you served. Lucas: Exactly. His piety — real or performed — cemented his legacy. And it's a reminder that being a Stoic emperor wasn't just about writing philosophy; it was about keeping the empire together, and that meant keeping the gods happy, or at least appearing to. Lucas: If today's conversation helped you see Marcus in a new light, the way these episodes stay ad-free is through listener support. If you'd like to help, you can find us at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. It's a simple way to keep the show going. Luna: Yeah, it really does make a difference. And it keeps us independent, which means we can dig into topics like this without worrying about sponsors. Lucas: Absolutely. So back to the gods — one more detail I love: Marcus wrote a letter to the Roman Senate after a military victory, and instead of thanking Jupiter or Mars, he thanked 'the gods and the Stoic philosophy that taught me to endure.' That's him in a nutshell. Luna: He's giving equal credit to divine powers and his own training. That's such a Stoic move. Lucas: Exactly. For Marcus, religion and philosophy weren't opposed — they were two languages for the same truth. The public language was ritual; the private language was reason. And he spoke both fluently.