When Christianity was introduced in Scandinavia in the eleventh century, the region was a mosaic of different religious communities, most of them pagan and based on family cults. Christianity was quickly added to that mosaic, but it did not dominate for several centuries. In fact, says Thomas DuBois, associate professor of Scandinavian studies, both Christianity and local religions were altered in significant and telling ways as a result of their close contact.

"There is a tendency to think of the Christian influence as monolithic, coming in and taking everything over, but the reality is that it was one more small and very diverse religion," explains DuBois. "It was constantly changing and people were shifting religions slowly. It was a multigenerational process."

	Thomas DuBois. Photo by Nancy Joseph.

DuBois, fascinated by what this period tells us about religions in contact, has written a book on the subject, Nordic Religions in the Viking Age, which will be published later this year. "Most studies of the Viking era end with the eleventh century, with the introduction of the Christian era, as if that is the end of the story," he explains. "I think that bracketing that time differently and following the religions for several more centuries gives you a different story."

The oldest stratum of religions in the Nordic region were family cults, says DuBois. People buried their dead in the local mountains and believed that their ancestors would take care of them. In addition, each religious community adhered to particular gods, depending on their region and occupation. It would not be unusual or problematic for farmers, the wives of farmers, and local aristocrats each to be interested in different gods.

"It appears that those two systems--the familial system and the god system-- really could co-exist," says DuBois. "Then Christianity arrived. It entered the region as the aristocratic religion of wealthy traders, so it came with prestige."

Leaders of paganism were intrigued by Christianity but resistant to some aspects of the religion. "What irked them most was that Christianity was peace-loving, with a philosophy of 'turn the other cheek,'" explains DuBois. "Basically they thought Jesus was a wimp. Their gods were warlike and grim or fecund and sexual. And while Christianity presents heaven as a peaceful place of rest, pagan heaven was at its best a place of war and feasting."

"What irked them most was that Christianity was peace-loving, with a philosophy of 'turn the other cheek.'"

Nevertheless, the leaders of paganism were influenced by Christianity and soon leaned toward a single god with a singular symbol. Just as Christ has a cross as his symbol, Thor had a hammer and Othinn had a spear as a symbol of power. "The different communities looked at what their neighbors were doing and tried to come up with something comparable," says DuBois.

Christianity also adjusted to increase its following in the region. "Overt resistance was the least of Christianity's problems," says DuBois. "It was the natural continuities that were difficult for people to give up--the feeling that 'this is how we've always done it.' To counter this, Christianity became increasingly paganized."

One example was the Christmas holiday, which acquired "all sorts of strange customs" from paganism when it moved into Northern Europe: feasting, straw as a symbol of rejuvenation, and the idea of the return of the light--a very important concept in pagan midwinter celebrations.

"The two religions came closer and closer together and eventually merged," explains DuBois. "It was a complex process."

Among the major lessons of his research, says DuBois, is that "to really change one's entire belief system is a very difficult thing. You can only change what you are conscious of. And religion is much more than just what you are conscious of. History clearly demonstrates that."

[Winter 1999 - Table of Contents]