Final answer:
Roman governors were responsible for collecting taxes, maintaining order, and keeping peace in their provinces. Protecting religious freedom was not typically within their set of responsibilities, as the Roman authorities were more concerned with stability and loyalty. Governors enforced tax collection systems and ensured adherence to Roman laws and practices.
Step-by-step explanation:
Governors in the Roman provinces had various responsibilities, which included collecting taxes, maintaining order, and keeping the peace, among other civic and administrative duties. Importantly, one of their primary concerns was to ensure the efficient collection of taxes to fund the Roman government and its public programs. Governors were instrumental in the establishment and enforcement of tax systems, such as those described under Emperor Augustus, where a wealth tax and a flat poll tax were introduced to be more uniform and fair than the previously imprecise system managed by the publicani.
In addition to maintaining economic stability through tax collection, Roman governors also played a key role in maintaining order and keeping the peace within their provinces. These areas of governance would include bolstering Roman law, overseeing military matters, and ensuring the continued loyalty of provincial subjects. Governors, however, did not typically have responsibilities related to protecting religious freedom. While certain levels of religious practice were permitted in the provinces, the priority for Roman officials was to keep the empire stable and loyal to Roman rule, rather than to promote or protect freedom of religion. In fact, the imperial cult and other state-sanctioned religious practices denoted the public aspect of Roman religion. Governors, being representatives of Rome, would reinforce the imperial cult and other practices that supported the Roman state.