I had a copy of 'Os Lusiadas' (the epic poem written by the portuguese Camões), with a preface written by a contemporary (XVI century) bishop. 

I do not remember the exact words, by the general idea was: "I must inform the reader that the book deals with the ancient pagan religion of Rome and its deities, and in many instances, it is written as if they were true. But as it is not expected that anybody takes this seriously, nor there are any true followers of this old religion, it is not a problem. Besides that, we may also find similar literary forms related to the roman deities in the old roman classics which we all enjoy."

see, people were smart back there, too.