http://icelandmag.visir.is/article/heathenry-iceland-america-and-germany-mainstream-and-fringe
>Unlike Iceland, where one religious organization includes nearly all Heathens, America and Germany have a large number of national organizations, regional associations, local groups and lone practitioners.
>The Ásatrúarfélagið focuses on Icelandic heritage.
>Given the nation’s rich literary past and mostly monocultural society, its members can look to purely Icelandic sources for information on pre-Christian religion, mining the medieval Eddas and sagas for texts to be used in blóts (religious rituals) and for models of how these rituals may be performed.
>Members gather to discuss Old Icelandic poems, and several leaders of the organization actively participate in re-enactment of music, crafts and fighting techniques of Iceland’s early settlers.
>American Heathens tend to be more omnivorous in their studies. This is understandable, in light of the great cultural diversity of American society. >American Heathens incorporate elements from Iceland’s Eddas and sagas into their practice, but they also delve into literary sources from England, Denmark, Germany and the Roman Empire.
>German Heathens are interested in Icelandic materials, but largely turn to the pre-Christian history of their own region for inspiration and guidance.
>Written accounts of Germanic Heathens include Latin texts by Caesar and Tacitus; archeological evidence stretches back hundreds of years BCE.
> Andreas Zautner, a member of the German Heathen organization the Eldaring, stresses the importance of local history: “Specific historical Heathen events play an important role for Heathens in Germany.
>One event common to most Germans is the defeat of the Roman legions by Hermann the Cherusker. The two-thousandth anniversary of the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest was celebrated by German Heathens only a few years ago.”