ABSTRACT
Defining such concepts as masculinity, paternity and patriarchy can be relatively simple in the abstract yet much more complicated in the social and cultural dimension and even more diversified in lived reality. They are not universal concepts that remain unchanged over time, culture and context. However, I do not think that anyone would argue with the claim that ancient and late antique Rome was a patriarchal society, albeit one in which the interpretation of patriarchy and the power of the father needs careful nuancing (Sailer 1994: 2). Roman society considered government by paternal right part of the natural order: patria potestas (paternal power) was one of the foundation blocks of Roman ideology, a concept that embodied both self-definition and social control which originated in the household and worked its way up. Patria potestas defined both the role and function of the paterfamilias (father/head of the household) and the social expectations that accrued to that title. Enshrined in law codes and social custom, it worked on both a practical and a symbolic level and was an essential element in the ideology that underpinned the Roman state. One of the foundations of patriarchy in such a system is fatherhood and the ability to produce heirs. Here I want to explore theories of procreation that were current in the ancient world and how these contribute to the construction of society. This chapter presents a brief look at how these theories were absorbed by, and indeed created and supported, the traditional Roman model of the cosmos and how they were appropriated by Christianity, particularly in the West, to fit its own version of cosmological truth. Alongside this I shall also examine the constant undermining of such a patriarchal ideal by the recognition of the important, if inferior, role of the mother in both the procreative process and the wider social realm. Finally I will consider how much difference it makes to the world view to have a religion in which the mother’s role is theologically vital.
