167.
Though the Finnish beliefs affected to some extent the Russian peasantry, the Russian faith ultimately prevailed.

This can be explained without taking into consideration the inherent superiority of Christianity over all forms of paganism.

The Finns had no organised priesthood, and consequently never offered a systematic opposition to the new faith; the Russians, on the contrary, had a regular hierarchy in close alliance with the civil administration.

In the principal villages Christian churches were built, and some of the police-officers vied with the ecclesiastical officials in the work of making converts.

At the same time there were other influences tending in the same direction.