Varro himself seems to have favored the philosophical approach: he harshly criticizes the myths of the poets as containing much that is contrary to the dignity and nature of the immortal gods, and elsewhere points out that civic institutions are likewise not in keeping with nature. Yet even so he considers myth as suitable for literature and populare entertainment, upholds the traditional religious institutions of Rome, and says that the speculations of philosophers are better within the walls of schools than in pubilc squares. Varro was evidently not worried about consistency: although myths and civic religous institutions might be wrong from a philosophical point of view, they were not to be rejected for that reason, but remained appropriate enough within their own spheres.引自 Approaches to the Divine
On modern western culture ,philosophy is often regarded as an abstract intellectual pursuit ,remote from and often irrelevant to people's actual lives.In Crawford-Roman antiquity the situation was very different :"philosophy would for many people have suggested first and foremost a whole way of life...Philosophers even composed what w might call "missionary tracts",intenred to convert people from shallow worldly values to the pursuit of wisdom and virtue.引自 2.4 Philosophy
Even though the interpretation of a public ritual in terms of myth or philosophy might have been an important part of someone's religious experience, the interpretation itself was so to speak part of the private sphere. On the other hand, their concern with actions extended only to those that might affect relations between the community as a whole and the gods; the religious behavior of people in their private lives was of no interest unless it threatened to have some negative impact on the wider community. As a result, most people were able to conduct their own religious lives as they saw fit. Obviously, then, a great deal lay outside the scope of these civic religious officials' authority.引自 3.1 Authority
