Religion was the cornerstone of Rome’s judicial, social and political order. It accompanied the lives of its citizens during the religious festivities of the calendar and at the rituals performed in sanctuaries by the priesthood, which was divided into several colleges (Pontiffs, Augurs, Vestals, Flamens). Cicero saw the Romans as being the people who, more than any other, were inclined to worship and respect the gods, and that this was a direct cause behind the greatness of the Republic. Codified according to tradition, sacrifice was a central element of Roman religion and crucial for communicating with the gods.
Sacrifices were performed on a variety of occasions, to give thanks, to invoke favorable events, to atone for evil actions either made or received, to expressly request divine approval for human undertakings. The interpretation of the will of the gods was entrusted to priests versed in reading the signs, either in the entrails of sacrificed animals or in natural or meteorological phenomena, a custom which originated with the Etruscans. The correct performance of a ritual was essential for a favourable outcome in communing with the divine.
In colonies and municipalities, religio followed the traditions of Rome as a means of providing a symbolic and concrete grounding for the correct functioning of society. An essential element was the establishment of the cult of Jupiter, Juno and Minerva in the temples (Capitolia) of all Roman colonies. The Capitoline Triad made up of these three deities was a mark of Rome’s presence – along with its political and cultural order – across Romanised Italy, thereby ensuring the cohesion of the state.