Editing Runestone (section)

===Conversion===
Swedish men who travelled to Denmark, England, or Saxony and the [[Byzantine Empire]] played an important part in the [[Christianization of Scandinavia#Sweden|introduction of Christianity in Sweden]],<ref name="Jansson113">Jansson 1987:113</ref> and two runestones tell of men baptized in Denmark, such as the runestone in Amnö, which says "He died in christening robes in Denmark."<ref name="Jansson112">Jansson 1987:112</ref><ref name="rundatau699">Entry U 699 in [[Rundata]].</ref> A similar message is given on another runestone in [[Vallentuna]] near Stockholm that tells that two sons waited until they were on their death beds before they converted: "They died in (their) christening robes."<ref name="harrison199"/><ref name="rundatau243">The entry U 243 in [[Rundata]].</ref> Christening robes or baptismal clothes, ''hvitavaðir'', were given to pagan Scandinavians when they were baptized, and in Uppland there are at least seven stones that tell of convertees having died in such robes.<ref name="Jansson112" /><ref>A monk in the [[Abbey of St. Gall]] tells of a group of Norsemen who visited the court of the Frankish king [[Louis the Pious]]. They agreed to get baptized and were given valuable baptismal robes, but, as there were not enough robes, the robes were cut up and divided among the Norsemen. One of the Vikings then exclaimed that he had got baptized 20 times and he had always received beautiful potatoes, but this time he got rags that better fit a herdsman than a warrior. (Harrison & Svensson 2007:199)</ref>

The language used by the missionaries appears on several runestones, and they suggest that the missionaries used a rather uniform language when they preached.<ref name="Jansson113"/> The expression "light and paradise" is presented on three runestones, of which two are located in Uppland and a third on the Danish island [[Bornholm]]. The [[Risbyle Runestones#U 160|runestone U 160 in Risbyle]] says "May God and God's mother help his spirit and soul; grant him light and paradise."<ref name="Jansson113"/><ref name="rundatau160">Entry U 160 in [[Rundata]].</ref> and the Bornholm runestone also appeals to [[Michael (archangel)|Saint Michael]]: "May Christ and Saint Michael help the souls of Auðbjôrn and Gunnhildr into light and paradise."<ref name="Jansson113"/><ref name="rundataDR399">Entry DR 399 in [[Rundata]].</ref>

Christian terminology was superimposed on the earlier pagan, and so ''[[Paradise]]'' substituted ''[[Valhalla]]'', invocations to [[Thor]] and magic charms were replaced with Saint Michael, [[Christ]], [[God]], and the [[Theotokos|Mother of God]].<ref name="Jansson113"/> Saint Michael, who was the leader of the army of Heaven, subsumed [[Odin]]'s role as the [[psychopomp]], and led the dead Christians to "light and paradise".<ref name="Jansson114">Jansson 1987:114</ref> There are invocations to Saint Michael on one runestone in Uppland, one on [[Gotland]], on three on [[Bornholm]] and on one on [[Lolland]].<ref name="Jansson113"/>

There is also the Bogesund runestone that testifies to the change that people were no longer buried at the family's grave field: "He died in [[Ekerö|Eikrey]](?). He is buried in the churchyard."<ref name="Jansson118" /><ref name="rundatau170">Entry U 170 in [[Rundata]].</ref>