Runyon 1 September 29, 2010
Spartucs and the Slavew Wars
It’s hard to tell what the complete reason for the slave revolt was; because of the outcome of the war. There are no first hand reports from the slaves, as to why they revolted. Mistreatment, lack of food and water, all of these played a role in the slave revolt of the first and second century. But what role did religion play in the slave wars? Was there any religion and how did it help the slaves in there rebellion?
The first slave war, on the island of Sicily, was guided by a magician named Eunus. The slaves on Sicily were maltreated beyond tolerance, and left to fend for themselves, forming gangs of bandits and causing murder all over the island. There was one group of slaves under the masters, Damophilos, and his wife Megallis; they decided to rebel against their masters. Before they could go through with their plan to rebel they went to Eunus and asked him if the God’s supported their plans to rebel. The fact that they did not rebel without asking for the God’s blessings shows some of how important religion played in the first rebellion. Eunus, being a magician used some wonder working and told the slaves that the God’s favored them, and they should undertake their plans at once.
So for the most part theirs was no religious reason that helped the slave’s motivation to rebel against their masters, slaves believed in God’s but they believed in many different God’s.
The Essay on Ares: The God Of War
Greek mythology is one of the greatest creations created of all times. It is filled with vivid and descriptive stories about the Greek gods and heroes that were part of their religion in that time. Greeks worshipped each of these gods and heroes, also creating different temples in various cities. As a result, many of these gods still have enormous influences on how our world works today. One of ...
The second slave was extremely similar to the first one in the sense of where and why it occurred. The major difference was the causes. But there is no real religious reason that helped the slaves come to the decision to revolt against their masters. For the most part the people with wealth and land had more religion than the slaves, simply because they could afford to be more knowledgeable on the God’s. But usually the slave that lead the revolt would use religion when trying to get more slaves to revolt. They would say “that the God’s are on our side” and if you wish to pleas the God’s you will follow us and kill your masters. This was a way to get slaves motivated to rebel, because they did not have all the tools needed for a war against Rome and their masters. In the first and second century’s people believed in more than one GOD. There was a God of water “Poseidon, “and “Zeus” the father of God’s and men.
Many people believed in these multiple God’s and that upsetting them would bring devastation to them and their loved ones. So the role of religion in the slave wars was probably more significant than what we have been led to believe. The more knowledgeable you are, the easier you can persuade people to follow you; and by using the “words of the God’s” they were able to convince the other slave to rebel.
The third and final slave war was led by a man named Spartucus, once a normal citizen, he was now a slave, and was forces to be a gladiator. Spartucus along with Crixus, organized the gladiator slaves, and started a war on Rome. There was no religious motive for them to rise up and leave.
In conclusion, the slave wars of the 1st and 2nd century had little to no religious motivation. There was a firm belief in the God’s and their power over the people. But nowhere in the documents does it say they rebelled for a religious purpose or even a religious meaning. For the most part the leaders of the rebellion would ask for the God’s favor their plans. They would use psychology on the weak-minded individuals; by telling them we have the God’s on our side. So no there was not a big religious reason or involvement in the slave wars.
The Term Paper on Prayer In School Religion Religious People
Religion in Our Society: Everyday Ritual of Life In our time of progress and technological evolution, it is hard to imagine more powerful force, except nuclear weapon, maybe, to destroy the universe. However, humans invented machines and guns, became strong and defensive against each other, but not against their beliefs and morals. It is very easy to destroy a building if you have a rocket ...