This is a series about secrets of the inquisition. As someone who is not a historian, and only having a basic understanding of the history of Christianity in Europe (still probably more than most), I found it informative.For example, I didn't know that the inquisition spanned 600 years. And I didn't know that it existed outside Spain. And I didn't know that Napoleon tried to put an end to it. And I didn't know that it was still going on in the 19th century. And I didn't know that the current Pope held the office of inquisitor, now renamed something more publicly acceptable.The fact that the series dwells on records from the Vatican doesn't bother me. The title of the series suggests that, and the introduction to each episode makes clear that the series is based on access to Vatican records, and that even that access was limited, so we're not getting the whole story as even the Vatican knows it.However, there is slight bias in the series, tending to justify Catholic actions by blaming them on the times, while neglecting the obvious which is that religions claim to produce better people, so the defence of blaming bad behaviour on the times is invalid. One inexplicable scene minimizes the obvious torture of being immersed in boiling oil, by accepting at face value the claim that the victim was stoic and silent, and showing him that way in the re-enactment. People can endure a lot with proper training, but I simply don't believe a person can be cooked to death in boiling oil (taking 15 minutes) and not make any expression of anything.One thing people might take note of... If the Roman Catholic church, with all its power, could not censor the printing press, I think it's folly for anyone to try to censor the internet. That won't stop many from trying, but we can smile knowing they will be defeated.

I had the pleasure of hearing the director (David Rabinovitch) speak this past summer about not only this film but in regard to documentary film making in general. He spoke of the importance of getting the "facts" right when making films and this project (probably because of the possible emotional reactions) it was especially important to go to the source. The producers of "Secret Files of the Inquisition" were given access to actual records of inquisitions as recorded during the times. He said he was quite moved in reading records of the trials. He also felt privileged in having the Vatacan open these records to him. We all will see things from different perspectives and film makers are certainly not above putting their own spin on things. The "facts" in this film came from the archives of the Vatican. Each will have their own interpretation. I suggest this film is certainly worth a watch.

The four-part series, "The Secret Files of the Inquisition", was disappointing for its repetition of both narrative and visuals and its superficial treatment of this perverted travesty of Catholicism.The narrative was shallow: too little time was devoted to too few historians; the "company man" speaking for the Vatican was inept; credible Catholic commentators were absent.In this series. sensationalism overwhelmed serious inquiry. The iniquitous Inquisition warrants penetrating discussion. The series was a largely waste of four hours of viewing and what must have been great amounts of time, money and talent in the making.(This comment was also sent to the PBS Ombudsman.)

Saw this "documentary" on PBS. The production values are first-rate and the direction takes a page (or a whole script's worth) from mini-series melodramas in its non-stop use of flaming motifs such as burning Church candles fading in dramatically to Jews dying in bonfires under the approving eye of Catholic villains.The program then goes on to juxtapose images of noble individual heretics with spurious claims such as the following from the episode 'The Tears of Spain'- "In its first five years the fires of the Inquisition had purified the souls of thousands, and one Spanish historian wrote that in its first hundred years, the Inquisition had touched the lives of 15% of Spain's population". By now, even lapsed Catholics like myself can discern the dishonest slight-of-hand used by the writer, director and producers of this show.One has to scour the PBS website to discover the name of this Spanish "historian" is none other than the discredited Juan Antonio Llorente, the ex Catholic official who sided with the Napoleanic invaders against his native Spain in the 1808 War between the French and Spanish. Later, when Napoleon and the French anti-Catholics were expelled from Spain, Llorente fled with them back to France to avoid a traitor's punishment. During the French invasion, Llorente helped oversee the repression of the Spanish Church and shuttering of Catholic Monasteries. But despite this shady background, the director and producers try to hustle the thinking audience by quoting Llorente anonymously. Clearly, Llorente's horror fables were exploited with a firm eye on ratings and over-the-top t.v. melodrama.To be sure, thousands were killed in the Inquisition fires but modern up-to-date scholarship like that of Henry Kamen of Yale University show that 350 years of the Inquisitions resulted in. . . 3500 deaths(average less than 10 a year). Many more were subjected to trial and torture, nonetheless, PBS continues in its well-earned reputation for factual manipulation and Church-bashing.One can imagine this show's producers throwing each other a cynical wink as the narrator breathlessly claims that "everything in the series is true". What is even more troubling is the media elite's contempt for the online audience's ability to instantly verify their show's claims. Maybe the producers felt they could pass off the Black Legend libel as unquestioned fact because liberal Jews, nominal Protestants and secular elites form much of PBS' core audience. The show's producer's are then simply serving the prejudices of their target demographic under the guise of "documentary". Interestingly, the Canadians bestowed a Gemini award on the the director of this fairy tale. Apparently, Canadians don't consider historical accuracy a criteria for documentary awards. Michael Moore must be jealous.