Paganism

====Early Modern Renaissance====
Interest in pagan traditions was first revived during the [[Renaissance]], when [[Renaissance magic]] was practiced as a revival of [[Greco-Roman magic]]. In the 17th century, the description of paganism turned from a theological aspect to an [[ethnology|ethnological]] one, and religions began to be understood as part of the [[ethnic]] identities of peoples, and the study of the religions of so-called primitive peoples triggered questions as to the ultimate historical [[origin of religion]]. [[Jean Bodin]] viewed pagan mythology as a distorted version of Christian truths.<ref name="Franklin 2017 p. 413">{{cite book | last=Franklin | first=J.H. | title=Jean Bodin | publisher=Taylor & Francis | year=2017 | isbn=978-1-351-56179-2 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DkQrDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA413 | access-date=2023-01-24 | page=413}}</ref> [[Nicolas Fabri de Peiresc]] saw the pagan [[religions of Africa]] of his day as relics that were in principle capable of shedding light on the historical paganism of Classical Antiquity.<ref>"It would be a great pleasure to make the comparison with what survives to us of ancient {{sic|hide=y|reason=Miller used lower case; verified with online copy found in search results.|paganism}} in our old books, in order to have better [grasped] their spirit." Peter N. Miller, "History of Religion Becomes Ethnology: Some Evidence from Peiresc's Africa" ''Journal of the History of Ideas'' 67.4 (2006) 675–96.[http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/journal_of_the_history_of_ideas/v067/67.4miller.html]</ref>