Dream Of The Rood: The Spread Of Christianity

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When discussing The “Dream of the Rood” many try to classify the poems portrayal as either completely Christian or Pagan, however in the work there is evidence of both Christian and Pagan themes scattered throughout. It is important to remember that most of Europe did not start off as Christian but assimilated into the religion or became Christian. During the 5th and 6th century northern Europe still had many who were paganistic in their beliefs, however through works like “Dream of the Rood” the spread of Christianity was able to take root and assimilate easier into Anglo-Saxon culture and eventually replace their “outdated” polytheistic beliefs. It is more likely that the work was written by someone who was a pagan, but was trying to make the conversion into Christianity. One could argue that the literature is strictly Christian or Pagan but I…show more content…
For instance, during the Spanish conquest of what is now Mexico the natives there were resistant to Christianity so to make the transition easier they began to revere saints because they were depicted with having qualities that were similar to their gods and this is also why many images of Lady Guadalupe seem to have indigenous features. Countless also celebrate holidays that come from paganistic beliefs like our Halloween or Christmas, these among many have undergone Christianization to better assimilate others but were once Gaelic or Germanic. From my perspective, I see “Dream of the Rood” as a way to draw in the Anglo-Saxon men and women of this time into the Christian religion by bringing together this sense of paganism with the use of the cross and meshing it together with the crucifixion of Jesus. From this poem it is without difficulty that one could see how Christianity and Paganistic beliefs have been intertwined over
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