The pagan as country dweller is not the whole story. Apparently Roman legionaries used the term like the way we use civilians to refer to, well, civilians. So part of the story is that if you are a member of a Christian army, then the non-members are civilians or, thus, pagans. So it was in use before Christianity, and in a similar way to refer to the not-us. The fact that cities have population closer to centres of power and are more sensitive to control by the state may have led to a folksonomy (but not an untrue one). I haven't confirmed this but I read last week in Jones, Prudence, and Nigel Pennick. A History of Pagan Europe. New York: Barnes & Noble, 1999.
Also RE: Catholicism & George Pell and why true Catholics do bad things, well, because it is an order. He joined one after all. That's why they are called orders. https://whyweshould.substack.com/p/to-build-a-better-world-we-should
The pagan as country dweller is not the whole story. Apparently Roman legionaries used the term like the way we use civilians to refer to, well, civilians. So part of the story is that if you are a member of a Christian army, then the non-members are civilians or, thus, pagans. So it was in use before Christianity, and in a similar way to refer to the not-us. The fact that cities have population closer to centres of power and are more sensitive to control by the state may have led to a folksonomy (but not an untrue one). I haven't confirmed this but I read last week in Jones, Prudence, and Nigel Pennick. A History of Pagan Europe. New York: Barnes & Noble, 1999.
I loved every bit of it this week - reading it in Ottawa, btw! Thanks, as always, Nicholas!
Thanks!