'Vikings' Portrays Crucifixion as Normal Church Punishment for Apostates

NewsBusters ^ | April 4, 2014 | P.J. Gladnick

[PJ-Comix]

Your humble correspondent is a fan of the History Channel show, "Vikings." However, its historical accuracy leaves something to be desired to the extent that a week ago I posted a thread at IMDB, Things I Learned While Watching 'Vikings', which humorously mocked such inaccuracies as well as anachronisms on the show. Along with noticing that Rollo wore L.A. Ink type tattoos, I also took note of a completely unhistorical type of punishment meted out to the apostate monk Athelstan: "The Church punished apostate monks by crucifying them and doing their best to make them appear like Jesus including a crown of thorns and a lance in the side."

As a history buff, I could recall of no instance in which the Church punished apostasy by crucifixion. Well, several websites researched that subject and found it not only to be completely unhistorical but also absurd. A.J. Delgado even contacted a well-known medieval history professor and got this response:

[PJ-Comix]

Also laughable on that show is that a Viking chick claimed to have something called a "boyfriend." When I heard that I almost expected to hear the tune "My Boyfriend's Back" being played.

[shove_it]

The show must have hired some of 0bama’s retread writers this season. The story has gone awry.

[E. Pluribus Unum]

Those Viking chicks are hot, though.

[oh8eleven]

the History Channel
History Channel? You mean the Pawn Shop Channel.

[cripplecreek]

Yep. That’s what I’ve learned.

[Michael.SF.]

Damn right!

[blueunicorn6]

You give your Viking wife a compliment and she stabs you in the eye and some guy cuts off your head.
Your Viking neighbor invites your company to go on a fishing trip, and then he locks your employees in the barn and burns them up.
The Vikings.....don’t go to their parties.

[Michael.SF.]

Watching Vikings for historical accuracy is like watching David Letterman for laughs; Occasionally it is there, but you can't depend on it.

Think of this also: They both will be finished soon.

[freerepublicchat]

Tax entertainment.

That will get the left's attention.

[GeronL]

it was a Roman Empire thing and pre-Christian at that

[BenLurkin]

GOLD SILVER BRONZE - Clockwise from the top.

[BenLurkin]

http://www.johnspeedie.com/healy/brilliant.wav

[dfwgator]

"Crucifixion?"
"Yes."
"Good...Out of the door....line on the left, one cross each."

[Ruy Dias de Bivar]

Ever notice, in the movie KING ARTHUR (2004) how those “evil” monks are torturing pagans to force them to become Chrisitans?

Never get your religious beliefs or historical learning from the movies.

[BitWielder1]

It's not a documentary, that much is obvious.
It's entertainment, loosely based on the myth of the Vikings.

[PJ-Comix]

The Bronze turned into a MILF last night.

[deweyfrank]

I don’t watch it for historical value. Although the crucifixion scene was kind a bizarre, I watch it for pure entertainment value. And it is great from that perspective. There is so much going on in one hour, you can’t help but be entertained. Great show.

[Georgia Girl 2]

Yeh the boyfriend thing was a stretch but c’mon its a great show. Its entertainment not historical fact.

[Bigg Red]

Although, I watch almost no drama on TV, I watched this series last year because I thought I would learn some history. The only reason, I think, that I did not give up on it when it veered off into stupid stuff was that the lead male actor looks very much like my deceased son.

There is so much history that could have been done well here, but they just had to junk it up. Will not be watching this year.

[kickstart]

Painted lips, eye and face make-up, and plucked eyebrows. Viking women were just like todays women.