Scientology?

Question

Could someone sum up Scientology for me? Thanks!

Answer 1

Scientology, which questionably calls itself a new "religion", is the brainchild of science fiction writer & occult enthusiast L. Ron Hubbard. The organization, by means of Hubbard’s self created psychotherapy technique called “Dianetics”, claims to be able to help rid members of any & all mental constraints including but not limited to emotional scarring (from this & "past" lives) due to "engrams" (past negative experiences stored in our unconscious mind), psychological disorders & chemical imbalances (the solution is to convince members that these things don't actually exist) & drug dependence (including legally prescribed psychopharmaceuticals which counteract the effects of psychological disorders Scientologists believe to be nonexistent). Their “treatment” of substance abuse includes little more than massive doses of vitamins and extended sessions in a sauna.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dianetics#Scientific_evaluation_and_criticisms

Dianetics review: http://dir.salon.com/story/books/review/2005/06/28/dianetics/index.html

http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,812852,00.html

http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~dst/Narconon/detox.htm

http://www.nypress.com/20/22/news&columns/feature.cfm



Scientology is most certainly NOT a religion. In fact, one of the only reasons they enjoy "tax exempt status" on religious ground in the United States is because they bullied the IRS into a "deal" through extremely aggressive barratry (which is the offense of persistently instigating groundless lawsuits) against the IRS & IRS officials, and arranged to drop all 2,500 frivolous lawsuits only when an "agreement" was reached. In addition, Scientology's lawyers hired private investigators to dig up any "dirt" on IRS agents which was then used to blackmail or publicly smear all "vulnerable" agents. It was an all-out WAR that Scientology had waged against the IRS, and was even described as such by Scientology's "CEO", David Miscavige, in his 1993 speech to the International Association of Scientologists.

http://legalminds.lp.findlaw.com/list/fedtax-l/msg00445.html

http://www.lermanet.com/scientologynews/nytimes/nyt-irs-030997.htm

http://www.factnet.org/headlines/give-away.htm

http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~dst/Cowen/essays/irs.html



The official Scientology organization is composed of a number of “levels”. One begins as a “preclear” & works their way up. One must purchase virtually every service crucial to advancement directly from the "church" & at staggering prices. "Auditing", for example, is purchased in 12½ hour blocks, costing anywhere from $200-$750 for introductory sessions to between $8,000 & $9,000 for advanced sessions. Basically, Scientology claims to possess exclusive knowledge of the path to religious redemption & then charges obscene amounts of money for every tiny incremental step towards this end. Visit this link to see how $380,000 is a conservative estimate for the total cost of moving all the way up the Scientology hierarchal ladder: http://www.xenu.net/archive/prices.html

These are the total costs for auditing alone: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientology_as_a_business#Costs

Here’s an explanation of what “auditing” is: https://answersrip.com/question/index?qid=20061224182319AA2nnd6



At level OT III (Operating Thetan Level 3), some very strange & fiercely guarded secrets are imparted upon worthy members who have paid enough money to advance to such a level (and no, this isn't a joke): The evil alien ruler Xenu killed millions of aliens (Thetans) from around the universe by kidnapping them, bringing them to earth in golden DC-8 “space-planes”, stacking them around volcanoes & blowing them up by dropping “h-bombs” into the volcanoes. Scientologists believe the souls of these aliens (these souls are "Body Thetans") were captured, brainwashed & released; they then attached themselves to our ancestors (and according to Scientology’s belief in Thetan immortality, they also attached to us during “past lives”) & cause many of our mental & physical ills to this day. Auditing is said to “clear” us of these Body Thetans as well as the “mental implants” they supposedly impose on our minds. http://www.spaink.net/cos/essays/atack_ot3.html

http://sf.irk.ru/www/ot3/spaink-ot3.html

http://xenu.net/archive/leaflet/Xenu-Letter.pdf

http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~dst/OTIII/



Scientology has taken a very hostile stance towards psychiatry & psychiatric drugs irrespective of the fact that some people require medication to remain adequately functional during everyday life. It doesn’t recognize legitimate conditions like autism, epilepsy, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, or ANY neurological disorder / chemical imbalance at all, & the “church” has been known to withhold prescription pharmaceuticals from members (often with harmful & deadly results). The “Church” blames psychiatry for the Holocaust, as well as school shootings & even September 11th. It’s been suggested that Hubbard’s vehement opposition was born of the psychiatric community’s rejection of his “tech” as a valid treatment method, but it’s also possible that Hubbard chose psychiatry as a scapegoat. Organizations like Scientology are notorious for villainizing a specific out-group because their “stand against the enemy” fosters cohesion within said organization, & psychiatry was an effective rallying point considering many people already distrust & oppose the mental health profession.

http://www.anti-scientologie.ch/usa-scientology.htm

http://www.lacitybeat.com/article.php?id=3137&IssueNum=136

http://dir.salon.com/story/news/feature/2005/07/01/sci_psy/index_np.html?pn=1

http://perkinstragedy.org



L. Ron Hubbard, the man behind the creation of Scientology, was & still is a controversial figure. Biographies & lists of personal accomplishments differ greatly between Scientology & non-Scientology publications as the “church” tends to exaggerate & outright lie about his early life, his education, his travels, his achievements etc, preferring to paint a distorted, flattering picture. Several books & articles present facts which flatly contradict these church-published accounts (links to free online copies of these books & articles are provided below), showing conclusively that he was NOT the brilliant, accomplished figure revered by Scientologists. During his autopsy, the sedative Vistaril™ was present in his body, which several of his assistants would later attest was only one of many psychiatric & pain medications Hubbard ingested over the years. It had also been said by many who knew Hubbard personally that at the end of his life he was “a psychopathic insane person screaming about BT's [Body Thetans]…”

http://www.apologeticsindex.org/Bare%20Faced%20Messiah.pdf

http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~dst/Library/Shelf/atack/contents.htm

http://www.clambake.org/archive/books/mom/Messiah_or_Madman.txt

http://lisatrust.bogie.nl/scientology/essays/jeff-hubbard.htm



To be blunt, Scientology is a cult. It employs semi-legitimate psychotherapy & self-help methods to keep people loyal & convinced of its merit while it simultaneously sucks them dry financially & attempts to keep them far away from ANYONE, even friends & family, who would dissuade them from remaining in such a harmful situation. It bullies all known critics, opponents, “enemies”, etc, often through malicious litigation & character assassination. It’s a particularly greedy as well as manipulative & dangerous cult that takes its anti-psychiatry fanaticism to deadly limits.

http://www.solitarytrees.net/racism/harass.htm#start

http://www.factnet.org/Books/SocialControl/scs.html#toc

http://www.freedomofmind.com/resourcecenter/groups/s/scientology/pignotti/

http://www.sptimes.com/2006/06/24/Tampabay/The_unperson.shtml

http://www.xenu.net/archive/personal_story/funkydonny.html

Answer 2

That gets asked all the time. Do you want the standard joke answers? Or a long cut-n-paste "researched" answer?



Im an ex-scientologist. I tried it for a bit and then quit. Didnt hear any of the stuff I see posted here by such well informed internetters :)



Mostly they believe that your problems are in you, and so are the answers. Not drugging it away, or praying it away. Like most SciFi writers, the guy that started it was a decent researcher and gathered alot of self-help techniques from all over the world and put them into a logical package (easy to take courses). Of course back in the early 50's you had to be either medical or religious to make the claims he did about how well the stuff worked.



Most people (62% according to an anti-scientology site) just take the first couple of cheap courses then quit like I did.



If you want longer answers you should read back thru the previous times it was asked. Yahoo doesnt like cut-n-paste and answering this every day gets old.

Answer 3

terracot...

Nothing "nutty" about this , RIGHT ?



(From wikipedia link supplied by terracot)



"In Dianetics, Hubbard proposed that the cause of "aberrations" in a human mind was an accumulation of pain and unconscious memories of traumatic incidents, some of which predated the life of the human. He extended this view further in Scientology, declaring that "thetans" have existed for tens of trillions of years (several orders of magnitude greater than what mainstream science generally estimates the age of the universe to be). "

"According to Hubbard, some past traumas may have been deliberately inflicted in the form of "implants" used by extraterrestrial dictatorships such as Helatrobus to brainwash and control the population. Hubbard's lectures and writings include a wide variety of accounts of complex extraterrestrial civilizations and alien interventions in earthly events, collectively described by Hubbard as "space opera." There is a huge Church of Spiritual Technology symbol carved into the ground at Scientology's Trementina Base that is visible from the air. Washington Post reporter Richard Leiby wrote, "Former Scientologists familiar with Hubbard’s teachings on reincarnation say the symbol marks a 'return point' so loyal staff members know where they can find the founder’s works when they travel here in the future from other places in the universe."

Answer 4

Did you ever wonder why there are so many hate groups against one religion? (Like it or not, it's passed the tests to have the right to call itself a religion in over 60 countries).



Scientology protractors like to spin that the IRS was bullied into approving tax-free status, parroting several main anti-Scientology groups (xenu and cmu.edu). I guess they think that Scientology bullied all the other countries that recognize it as a Church.



These same anti-Scientology groups would like everyone to believe that their opinions are broadly agreed upon by plastering the same thing over multiple sites. Just a game with them to see if they can distract you from reading the other side by twisting and altering Scientology technology to make it unreal. - or even more symptomatic of other agendas, they deliberately exclude the pro-scientology sites in their links. These folks expect that you will robotically accept anything they say because it has the apparency that it's from "everyone". I can betcha that there are maybe only 10% of these protractors and nay-sayers who have ever tried to research for themselves and read the books. Scientology is wide open to anyone who can read. The Scientology and Dianetics Books are in the libraries and on the internet. There for everyone.



The founder of Scientology was an Engineer and used his writing of Science Fiction, Explorer Club, and other fields' works to subsidize his research of Dianetics. If you were to read Dianetics: Evolution of a Science you would see how he discovered that technology.



I have been a Scientologist for 35 years and I have read nearly all of the basic books for about the 3rd time now. Scientology helps me spiritually and in life and has given me a love of my fellow man. My aims are the Aims of Scientology.



The idea of past and future lives isn't new in this world. In fact, it's only been in the last 100 years or so that the idea that man IS a soul - vs has one, or has no soul (per the psychologists and psychiatrists) has come about. All of this is covered at www.Scientology.org.



As far as the drugs are concerned, think about it. It isn't just Scientology that has been exposing the psychiatric pushing of drugs on you in lieu of "cures" which they admit they can't do.

Answer 5

Do a search for Scientology questions - there's a poster here that has a wealth of information and links on it. Including a question earlier tonight.

Answer 6

Scientology is an extremely dangerous mind-control cult invented by L. Ron Hubbard to swindle vulnerable followers out of every last cent they have. They seek to destroy the lives of anyone who opposes them. Please check out these links. The second one is the most informative article I've ever read on the subject and shows how scary and demented this cult really is, it's an interview with founder L. Ron Hubbard's son who was part of the organization for 20 years before realizing how evil it is.



www.xenu.net



http://www.lermanet.com/scientologynews/penthouse-LRonHubbardJr-interview-1983.htm

Answer 7

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientology



All religions have their extremists. Look at Christians, walking around with signs on their backs talking about the end of the world. Or murdering others because their "possessed" by the devil! Please!! For the person before me that said "nutty", well- nuts are in every kind of church. But hopefully this will give you a little more insight.



In reply to allure, not everyone believes everything about all religions but do you think its any less"nutty" to believe Christians drink blood of Christ from wine, Jonah lived in a whale, "magic" cures the blind. Pentecostals actually believe in the speaking of tongues, etc., etc.,etc., some might even go as far as saying that is God any different than believing in another life form that came to this planet????? Basically, to each his/her own. I won't mess with your God and your beliefs if you don't mess with mine. F.Y.I. you CAN be a Christian and still practice Scientology. Also, what you said about conditioning of the mind from past traumatic events is also taught in every Psych. class. Scotomas or blind spots are the results of past learned examples of conditioning and how you were raised. Read up on Lou Tice or other books like the Secret.

Answer 8

Scientology: Is there a religion so completely moronic that not even God could comprehend the beliefs of its followers?

Answer 9

Scientology is a difficult religion to summarize. Scientology has gained popularity due to some Hollywood celebrities who have embraced it. Scientology was founded in 1953 by fiction author L. Ron Hubbard, just four years after he made the statement, “I'd like to start a religion—that's where the money is.” That is where he found wealth, also—Hubbard became a multi-millionaire.



Scientology teaches that mankind is an immortal being (called a Thetan) not originally from this planet, and that man is trapped by matter, energy, space, and time (MEST). Salvation for a scientologist comes through a process called ”auditing,” whereby ”engrams” (basically, memories of past pain and unconsciousness that create energy blockage) are removed. Auditing is a lengthy process and can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. When all engrams are finally removed, the Thetan can once again control MEST instead of being controlled by it. Until salvation, each Thetan is constantly reincarnated.



Scientology is a very expensive religion to pursue. Every aspect of Scientology has some sort of fee associated with it. This is why Scientology's “pews” are filled only with the wealthy. It is also a very strict religion and very punitive against those who would try to leave behind its teachings and membership. Its “scriptures” are limited solely to the writings and teachings of L. Ron Hubbard.



Though scientologists will claim that Scientology is compatible with Christianity, the Bible counters each and every belief they hold to. The Bible teaches that God is the sovereign and only creator of the universe (Genesis 1:1); mankind was created by God (Genesis 1:27); the only salvation available to man is by grace through faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ (Philippians 2:8); salvation is a free gift that mankind can do nothing to earn (Ephesians 2:8-9); and Jesus Christ is alive and well and is seated at the right hand of God the Father even now (Acts 2:33; Ephesians 1:20; Hebrews 1:3), awaiting the time when He will gather His people to Himself to reside with Him for eternity in heaven. Everyone else will be cast into a very real hell, separated from God for eternity (Revelation 20:15).



Scientology categorically denies the existence of the God of the Bible, heaven, and hell. To a scientologist, Jesus Christ was simply a good teacher who unfortunately was wrongfully put to death. Scientology differs from biblical Christianity on every important doctrine. Some of the most important differences are summarized below:



God: Scientology believes that there are multiple gods and that some gods are above other gods. Biblical Christianity, on the other hand, recognizes the one and only true God who revealed Himself to us in the Bible and through Jesus Christ. Those who believe in Him cannot believe the false concept of God as taught in Scientology.



Jesus Christ: Like other cults, Scientology denies the deity of Christ. Instead of having a biblical view of who Christ is and what He did, they assign to Him the characteristics of some sort of lesser god who has obtained legendary status over the years. The Bible clearly teaches that Jesus was God in the flesh and through His incarnation He could act as a sacrifice for our sins. It is through Christ’s death and resurrection that we can have the hope of eternal life with God (John 3:16).



Sin: Scientology believes in the inherent goodness of man and teaches that it is despicable and utterly beneath contempt to tell a man he must repent or that he is evil. On the other hand, the Bible teaches that man is a sinner and the only hope for him is that he receive Christ as his Lord and Savior (Romans 6:23).



Salvation: Scientology believes in reincarnation and that personal salvation in one's lifetime is freedom from the cycle of birth and death associated with reincarnation. They believe that religious practice of all faiths is the universal way to wisdom, understanding, and salvation. In contrast, the Bible teaches that there is only one way of salvation and that is through Jesus Christ. Jesus Himself said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life, no man comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6).



Comparing the teachings of Scientology with the Bible, we see that the two have very little, if anything, in common. Scientology only leads away from God and eternal life. Scientology, while sometimes disguising its beliefs in Christian-sounding language, in fact diametrically opposes Christianity on every core belief. Scientology is clearly, and most definitely, not Christian.



Kingdom of the Cults, rev. and updated ed.

Edited By: Ravi Zacharias

http://www.christianbook.com/kingdom-the-cults-rev-and-updated/walter-martin/9780764228216/pd/228218?event=AFF&p=1011693&

Answer 10

Scientology = as crazy as Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Hindu, and every other religion in the world.

Answer 11

I'd have to say it's a scam. It's not even legally recognised as a religion in my country. I asked a scientologist what it is, they said they don't believe in God(s), or aliens, and that it is all about self help.

Answer 12

Nutty

Answer 13

a religious system based on the seeking of self-knowledge and spiritual fulfillment through graded courses of study and training..



the government more than frowns on it..

(i saw that in wikipedia)

Answer 14

L. Ron Hubbard's how to make money through religion.

Answer 15

It is a mind control cult and it is there to take your money from you and I will also give you a link to a video and see it better explained there.



http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=rD9bCdHqU3s

Answer 16

Xenu. Need I say more?

Answer 17

just watch south park episode

lol

later

Answer 18

"SOMETHING

EXTRAORDINARY

IS HAPPENING ON OUR PLANET





THAT WILL CHANGE THE FUTURE OF MANKIND

FOR THE NEXT TRILLION YEARS..."