Speaking of Rome, and seeing that we are in the Christmas holiday season, let us turn to the subject of Roman festivities. It is well known that the ancient Romans, who dominated the world, liked to enjoy themselves and were certainly not averse to amusement, the more so because they observed a religion that was all but monotheistic, involving instead the veneration of a very long series of divinities.

Aside from the major divinities, there were many half-gods and also various heroes. Since it was well known that the gods were very jealous and envious of each other, in order to avoid any discontent among them the Romans would dedicate one or more celebrations to each and every one of them, without distinction.