Let's talk about where 'liberty' comes from.
Roman god 'Liber', god of the vine & male fertility, was later merged with Bacchus. He was son of Ceres, brother/consort to Libera.
Liber pater ('Free Father') was patron god of plebians, patron of male virility & boys becoming men.
Roman god 'Liber', god of the vine & male fertility, was later merged with Bacchus. He was son of Ceres, brother/consort to Libera.
Liber pater ('Free Father') was patron god of plebians, patron of male virility & boys becoming men.
A Liberalia was a festival of the cult of Liber Pater & it was celebrated when boys took manly toga virilis w phallic symbols & "a giant penis on a trolley".
Liberalia celebrated drinking, free speech & overthrow of political structures, making cult dangerous to establishment.
Liberalia celebrated drinking, free speech & overthrow of political structures, making cult dangerous to establishment.
The point is that Liber Pater was in favor of the poor & powerless getting drunk & overthrowing leaders. He was a god of anarchy & plebian values.
In late Republic, Cicero was careful to say that "Liber was not identical to Bacchus": rebellion & equality, not chaos.
In late Republic, Cicero was careful to say that "Liber was not identical to Bacchus": rebellion & equality, not chaos.
So "liberty", as we think of it today, is shaped by a Roman god of drunken rebellion who advocated for the plebs & personified the young man leaving his father's house for his own destiny.
Young men sacrificed their first beard to Liber Pater to signify manhood.
Young men sacrificed their first beard to Liber Pater to signify manhood.
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