One Goddess Had Her Own Cult
Ancient Romans borrowed deities from all kinds of cultures, and one of the most culturally significant was Cybele. Also known as Magna Mater (Great Mother), Cybele was a Phrygian goddess who symbolized fertility, motherhood, and the earth. She even had her own cult of followers with some interesting rituals.
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The worship of Cybele involved ecstatic ceremonies, with the males devoting themselves to her service through castration. The cult of Cybele was officially recognized by the Roman Senate in 204 BC, and the annual festival in her honor, known as the Megalesia, became one of the most important religious festivals in Rome.
