No, they are not trivial. I think it's a function of a certain mentality rather than a product of religion per se, however: the Stalinist purges weren't conducted out of a religious mania, for instance.
And although the Christian church was ultimately responsible for the witch trials, the worst witch hunts in the far north of Europe were conducted where clerical influence was weakest, suggesting that in some areas, the church was a moderating influence on people's urge to gratuitously persecute their neighbours.
And to be honest, paganism isn't exempt, when one starts to consider the Nazis' peculiar Norse preoccupations.
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2007-08-27 12:01 pm (UTC)And although the Christian church was ultimately responsible for the witch trials, the worst witch hunts in the far north of Europe were conducted where clerical influence was weakest, suggesting that in some areas, the church was a moderating influence on people's urge to gratuitously persecute their neighbours.
And to be honest, paganism isn't exempt, when one starts to consider the Nazis' peculiar Norse preoccupations.