That is correct. It allowed Christians (it s a proper noun, you know), to worship without being killed. It was a form of hiding in plain sight, which any religion might have done in a pagan society where religion was not allowed.
The important thing is paganism is not a theology. There may have been ritual, but there is no God. The pagans would have reacted badly to Jews as well.
We should not equate atheistic clubs with monotheistic religions. Paganism, while ritualistic, is no more a religion than my ritual of getting up every morning, taking a shower, and commuting to work. Tens of thousands join the ritual in my city. You could set you clock to it, just like you can set your clock to the sun rising over Stonehenge on the equinox. That does not may our morning ritual a religious exercise.
I am a pagan
I worship Thor
I worship Odin
I worship Tyr
I worship Val
I worship Eastare
I worship Freya
I worship Frigg
I believe in the goddess Hel (another term stolen....)
I believe in Loki
we have many gods.. as many as you have angels
The term pagan came from paganus which was a term for anyone of a “non-Abrahamic faith”