The religious festival linked to the scandal that led Caesar to divorce Pompeia was Bona Dea.
In 62 BC, Pompeia hosted the secret Bona Dea rites at Julius Caesar’s home. The ceremony was reserved for women, and men were forbidden to attend. Publius Clodius Pulcher allegedly entered in disguise, reportedly hoping to meet or seduce Pompeia. His presence was treated as a religious violation, and the rites had to be repeated.
The affair became both a religious scandal and a political trial. Cicero testified against Clodius, but Clodius was eventually acquitted after a contentious prosecution. Caesar divorced Pompeia even though she was not accused of wrongdoing. His reported justification became the famous principle that “Caesar’s wife must be above suspicion.”
Bona Dea is sometimes confused with Floralia or other Roman festivals, but those were separate observances. Bona Dea’s rites were associated with women, fertility, healing, and protection of the Roman state, and were conducted under strict secrecy.