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<p><p>In the vast majority of cases it is non-sensical to speak of Christan smear campaigns or attempts by "the" Christians to wipe out "the" pagans and their culture. The reality is that by far most Germanic pagans voluntarily adopted Christianity. Some earlier, like the Goths and some a lot later like the various peoples of Scandinavia. </p><p>Clearly, conflicts arose from time to time with Christian rulers rallying their troops under the pretence of Christianization or solidifying their rule with the help of the clergy. On the other hand, some missionaries were killed some pagans persecuting Christians (again the Goths under Athanaric serve as example). On the whole, however, it makes no sense to portray history in this Christian-pagan dychotomy. Usually, the pagans shifted to Christianity gradually and voluntarily meaning that they at least considered the gains bigger than the losses. This does not mean that there are people today that clamour for the ancient pagan religions, of which they know so little and which they certainly don't understand.</p><p> </p><p>Cheers,</p><p>Dirk<var id="yui-ie-cursor"></var></p><p> </p></p>
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