Happy Atheist Forum

Did anyone watch the History Channel's LAME two hours of preaching on the "Gates of Hell" ?  I watched the first half hour of it and after I finished throwing up for the next half hour, I was shocked.  It was clearly an attempt to shove the Christian idea of Hell on those watching, or at the very least, an attempt to legitimize the concept of an actual Hell.

I'm not sure what the rest of the show was about, but the part I watched had some serious "fire and brimstone" preaching going on, and there was an actual statement that proposed that hell might actually be a place.  I'm just really "fired" up about the whole thing... pun intended.

Any comments?

History Channel has a long, ahem, history of sensationalism at the expense of factuality.

They probably get this stuff cheap, and I hear there is demand for it in the US.

I watched it for a little while and had the same reaction. I wasn't paying super close attention, but it seemed like everything they said was presented as a fact. "Jesus Christ died on a Friday and became a zombie on Sunday and in between he went to hell to save some souls. BUT! What about those he left behind? What TORTURES did they have to SUFFER?" That's when I got annoyed and decided to watch Seinfeld instead.

Please tell me I was not the only one sitting on the couch correcting their 'idea's on the mesoamerican version of what the underworld was?  Or what half the other myths actually were?  I mean seriously, we call this sensational bias drama BS "Hamming It Up" in this house.

And here I was hoping to learn new stuff  

History channel fail on numerous accounts.

The quality of programming on History Channel has been sliding for 3-5 years already. Where they used to show a lot of
quality documentary (actual history) programming, they have now become almost exclusively a source of pseudo-science, religion discussed as if it were fact, and conspiracy theorist crap.

Well at least I'm not the only one noticing it

Quote from: "parrotpirate"The quality of programming on History Channel has been sliding for 3-5 years already. Where they used to show a lot of
quality documentary (actual history) programming, they have now become almost exclusively a source of pseudo-science, religion discussed as if it were fact, and conspiracy theorist crap.

Like Magic Pudding alluded to, I think this is a result of what most viewers want to see...unfortunately.

I haven't had cable for a while, are they still over playing that terrible gangland show?  I really did not find that show interesting most of the time and it seemed to be on a lot.  

Yes, I'm watching it now, they've gone off the deep end. There's such a Christian curve to it too. Not all underworlds were based on punishment for crimes or sins, as is reiterated over and over in this show. I wonder if these legitimate experts are upset about being bamboozled into such a ridiculous production that claims the secrets to the reality of hell. Assuming they were bamboozled, and that they are legit.

Thanks folks, I just wanted some input on what I was thinking.  I used to love the history channel, years ago, but now it's just as one of you said, mostly a Christian slant to nearly everything.  History International is just about as bad... makes my butt twitch.

Quote from: "Sophus"Not all underworlds were based on punishment for crimes or sins

My point exactly!

Quote"Jesus Christ died on a Friday and became a zombie on Sunday and in between he went to hell to save some souls. BUT! What about those he left behind? What TORTURES did they have to SUFFER?"

Too funny... became a zombie. That's pretty good. For some reason, that just cracked me up today.

Quote from: "pinkocommie"I haven't had cable for a while, are they still over playing that terrible gangland show?  I really did not find that show interesting most of the time and it seemed to be on a lot.  

Oh man don't get me started on that.  I watched one of them.  The content was interesting, but I couldn't help having an overwhelming feeling that HC was glorifying the gang life.  It did nothing to downplay the ugliness of it.

Not only that, it played out like an advertisement.  I can only imagine teens watching this show and lining up for initiations.

I remember watching episode after episode before realizing that they rarely if ever showed religious tattoos/tags.  If you watch the show, you know they often talk about body art and tagging and they show tattoos and tags that the gangs use but they hardly ever show religious imagery.  At least not Christian religious imagery and from my experience in the South and in California, religious imagery is more often then not a pretty big aspect of gang culture - especially among skin heads and Latino gangs.  That's not only a huge thing to gloss over, but it's somewhat questionable that they would seemingly ignore it, isn't it?  

Man, I remember LOVING the History Channel when I was a kid - I'd watch it all the time with my dad.  Now it just reeks of agenda and slant.  

It's interesting, and somebody correct me if I'm wrong, but in the Bible, it's basically Jesus who popularizes the notion of hell, and it doesn't seem to be about sin. It seems to be about not accepting him as God. Sinners are fine in his book. He hangs out with them all day. What really seems to get him is those who won't become what he is--by eating his flesh, drinking his blood, and "giving up their life."

If he were alive today, I have no doubt his followers would be the gothic crowd...well, them and me. But if you get passed all your emotions about the Church, you end up asking yourself what's hidden in the message? He doesn't want us to just follow him; he wants us to become him. And thus, the Gospels leave us with a very interesting question (one he asked his disciples) what was he?

God, conscious of himself from within his creation, perhaps?

Was his message ultimately: evolve or die? Become God or go to hell? Hmmm...  Maybe there's more to the Gospel than the Church is willing to admit. I mean, what would happen to the structures of authority if we all walked around like Jesus.

Being a WWII history fanatic all my life, I have found The History Channel has had a few things wrong. It has also omitted various things in order (my opinion only) to skew the subject in various ways. Most of those being American patriotic propaganda.

There have been several shows dealt with religion on History Channel. They go all out to appease the majority of viewers who are theists. After all, what real history is there one can glean from the Bible? So the producers (who may be theists themselves) go along with the belief of the status quo.

At least I get Science, NatGeo (which lately has shown some creep towards the questionable) and Military Channel.

Quote from: "Gawen"Being a WWII history fanatic all my life, I have found The History Channel has had a few things wrong. It has also omitted various things in order (my opinion only) to skew the subject in various ways. Most of those being American patriotic propaganda.

There have been several shows dealt with religion on History Channel. They go all out to appease the majority of viewers who are theists. After all, what real history is there one can glean from the Bible? So the producers (who may be theists themselves) go along with the belief of the status quo.

Yep.  Even when they get the fact-checking right, their spin (even on non-religious programming) is suspect, to say the least.

You should have seen their special about the anti christ! It was pretty horrific.

Quote from: "NothingSacred"You should have seen their special about the anti christ! It was pretty horrific.

I saw that one, and laughed the entire time... it was SICK, really sick...  

Quote from: "Edward the Theist"It's interesting, and somebody correct me if I'm wrong, but in the Bible, it's basically Jesus who popularizes the notion of hell, and it doesn't seem to be about sin. It seems to be about not accepting him as God. Sinners are fine in his book. He hangs out with them all day. What really seems to get him is those who won't become what he is--by eating his flesh, drinking his blood, and "giving up their life."

If he were alive today, I have no doubt his followers would be the gothic crowd...well, them and me. But if you get passed all your emotions about the Church, you end up asking yourself what's hidden in the message? He doesn't want us to just follow him; he wants us to become him. And thus, the Gospels leave us with a very interesting question (one he asked his disciples) what was he?

God, conscious of himself from within his creation, perhaps?

Was his message ultimately: evolve or die? Become God or go to hell? Hmmm...  Maybe there's more to the Gospel than the Church is willing to admit. I mean, what would happen to the structures of authority if we all walked around like Jesus.

Well, you do pose an interesting thought there, dude.. (note the use of DUDE, yet again)  I'm actually not convinced that the Jesus of the New Testament ever really existed, certainly NOT in the magical form that is presented by the Christian Church/Religion.  There may well have been a Jewish Rabbi/Teacher named Jesus, but the name was relatively common for the time, but I can't purchase into the idea that he (the Biblical Jesus) could heal the sick, raise the dead, suspend the laws of physics, and rise from the dead; there simply isn't enough evidence to support this kind of behavior or fantasy.

Hold on now

The History Channel does have some interesting documentaries on religion.

The series on the Seven Deadly Sins was excellent.

They also had a 2 hour special on books that were left out of the Bible, like the Infancy Gospel and the Gospel According to Mary.  Just to name a few that is.

However, that Hell show was awful.  I blame it mostly on the narrator, though.  He narrates How the Earth Was Made, and he just plain stinks.  He constantly uses colorful words over and over and over "Astonishing, amazing, incredible, shocking!"  Especially, "Shocking discovery!!!"

It's like he's trying way too hard.  It's like he's trying to read from a phone book but make it sound like he isn't, but he is anyway.