Why were there so many Roman gods?

Answer 1

Based upon a massive worldwide study of the most ancient inscriptions and the earliest levels of civilization, Dr. Wilhelm Schmidt (in his twelve-volume Der Ursprung Der Gottesidee) concluded that the original belief in Europe and elsewhere was monotheistic (see footnote 1, below). It was a simple belief in the Creator (Sky-Father; Dyeus Pater) with no imagery of any kind. It gave way relatively quickly to polytheism and idolatry, but its traces could still be seen by the careful researcher, just as (for example) Proto-Indo European has left indelible marks within the later languages.

The process by which the belief in many gods developed, has been described by Scandinavian researchers (see note 2) as splitting ("Gottespaltung"): the people gradually viewed God's attributes of truth, battle, righteousness, fertility etc., as separate from Him, and afterwards personified and worshiped the attributes themselves, until God was largely forgotten.

Maimonides (see note 3) describes a comparable process (which probably happened alongside the aforementioned one), as follows: A couple of centuries after the Creation, mankind made a great mistake: They said that since God had created the stars and spheres and placed them on high, accordingly it is fitting for people to praise and glorify them and to treat them with honor. They perceived this to be the will of God, that people should magnify and honor the stars. They began to praise and glorify them with words, and prostrate themselves before them, because by doing so, they would - according to their false conception - be indirectly honoring God too.

Footnotes:

1) Albright, "From the Stone Age," p.170; and J.A. Wilson, "The Culture of ancient Egypt," p.129. Also Baron, "A Social and Religious History," vol. I, p.44 and 311. Also James Meek, "Hebrew Origins," p.188, quoting Langdon, Lagrange and John Ross. Also Martin Nilsson, Handbuch der Altertumswissenschaften, 2nd ed., p.61, 141, 220 and 394.

2) G. W. Anderson, in "The Old Testament and Modern Study," p.287. Also Friedrich Baethgen, in Beitraege zur Semitischen Religionsgeschichte, p.288. Also Pallotino, "The Etruscans," p. 158 and 167.

3) Maimonides' Mishneh Torah (Hilchot Avodat Kochavim ch.1).

Answer 2

There is some evidence that early Bronze Age belief throughout the Mediterranean and Near Eastern regions was based on a monotheistic belief in the mother goddess (Gaia). By the Late Bronze Age, there was an addition of large numbers of mostly male, celestial gods. The number of gods began to fall in the Late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age, so that regions generally had fewer than about ten gods to worship.

As the Romans moved from a primitive animistic form of worship, they adopted the gods of their neighbours, the Etruscans. As their reach extended, they began to adopt the Greek gods, although in some cases, they recognised Greek gods as identical to the Etruscan gods. With the expansion of empire the Romans came to learn of many other gods in the conquered territories and, in some cases, added those gods to their pantheon. The number of gods worshipped by the Romans was once again growing. In some cases, Romans adopted the cult of a single god and paid little attention to the other gods, or even, in the case of Mithraism or Christianity, as the only true god.

Answer 3

Like the Greeks, the Romans thought to explain most things in nature and human life to the actions of gods. Different things - different gods.