Anonymous asked this question on 4/24/2000:
I am reading all these messages and I can't follow any of it. What is Scientology?
desertphile gave this response on 4/24/2000:
Hi Larry. Please excuse the length of my answer here, but Seekon answered the question "What is Scientology" much better than I could in the time available to me, so I thought I would let her answer the question. Her answer goes into excellent detail, and addresses the major points that one can think to ask when considering the Church of Scientology.
Without further ado---
What is Scientology? By SEEKON http://www.netcom.com/~seekon
A NEW RELIGIOUS MOVEMENT
Scientology was created in 1952 by L. Ron Hubbard, a "penny-a-word" science fiction writer, allegedly because "the way to make some real money is to start a religion". He was successful at least in this part of his endeavors.
I LOVE RON
L. Ron Hubbard alone wrote or dictated the materials constituting the "scriptures" of Scientology. He was extraordinarily prolific in this regard, producing several hundred taped lectures, and a hundred or so books, and numerous bulletins, orders, and other papers. Scientologists think of this material and Hubbard as "Source" - the fount of a fantastic understanding of life, on which they depend exclusively in all aspects of their lives. To question Hubbard is a literal heresy. One cannot do so for any extended time and remain a Scientologist in good standing.
Scientology does not formally claim to adore Hubbard, but in practice he is idolized as the savior. No org is without a large, prominent picture of him, nor an office reserved for his return. If you ask a Scientologist if Hubbard was perfect, the Scientologist will answer "no". But if you ask what was wrong with Hubbard, he or she will have no answer.
L. Ron Hubbard died in seclusion in 1986. His body was cremated and his ashes spread in the Pacific Ocean.
EXORCISE YOUR SPACE ALIENS, BECOME A GOD
Scientology has three major levels of belief. The final level is secret, to be revealed only after sufficient "preparation".
The first level of belief is essentially a pop psychology, as described in the book Dianetics-The Modern Science of Mental Health. Dianetics asserts that the mind has two major components (the unconscious reactive mind and the rational mind), and that all mental and physical ailments are the result of the reactive mind retaining and reacting on bad memories, called engrams. Dianetics claims that the cure to all these ailments is to rid the reactive mind of the engrams by a process called auditing, thereby enabling the rational mind (which is perfect) to take control. The auditing process is reminiscent of Freudian psychoanalysis, and requires the practitioner to think back and locate these memories, whereupon their effect is eliminated.
The second level of belief is what most practicing Scientologists know. It ascribes the reactive and rational minds to a spiritual entity called the thetan, that is immortal and reincarnates through many lives. The auditing process introduces the use of a simple galvanometer, called the e-meter, to (supposedly) assist the identification of engrams, and extends the location of engrams not just to past this-life experiences, but to experiences in previous lives as well. This process is supposed to produce a "clear", a person with perfect memory and health, clairvoyant, and of immense intelligence.
The final (secret) level of belief asserts that in fact people are composed of clusters of thetans that are the spirits of dead space aliens, who were brought to earth 75 million years ago by an evil intergalactic tyrant named Xenu, and who were killed with hydrogen bombs in volcanos by him. These spirits were captured afterwards by Xenu on electronic ribbons, and were given implants (a form of engram) that kept them from remembering any of this. Since each of these thetans has a reactive mind, auditing must be performed on all of the millions or billions of these to get them to "blow" (be exorcised), at which point the primary (or operating) thetan controlling the body will realize his godhead, with power over matter, energy, space, and time (MEST), including the power to create galaxies and life.
COMPATIBLE WITH OTHER RELIGIONS
Scientology has a distinct theological basis that is at variance with nearly all other religions on one point or another, so it cannot be said that it is compatible with other religions. For example, the belief of reincarnation is not compatible with conventional Judaic, Christian, or Islam theology. And the tenet that there is no single god, or alternately that each person is a god who can recover his powers, is heretical in all of these religions.
In its highest level, Scientology claims that Jesus Christ did not exist, and that religions are simply implants designed to control the thetan.
YOU HAVE SERIOUS PROBLEMS
People may be brought into scientology because they are convinced by enthusiastic family, friends, or acquaintances already in Scientology to try it; or because they become convinced that scientology can help them with some aspect of their life.
The Personality Test is probably the most famous Scientology sales tool. The "mark" is offered the test as a way to scientifically and unambiguously identify the source of their difficulties. Not surprisingly, the test almost always identifies one or another character flaw that Scientology can cure. As used by Scientology, it can be quite seductive. Scientology also proclaims itself the only way to make the world a better place, and plays on those hungers of most people with some effect.
Scientology also draws people in through various front companies. Sterling Management, for example, is a consulting company whose answer to improving performance includes Scientology training. Narconon is a drug-treatment program whose answer to drug abuse is a Scientology purification routine and training. Applied Scholastics puts forward Scientology "word-clearing", communications courses, and other Scientology training as the answer to educational difficulties.
People will typically enter Scientology as "publics". Publics are people who pay for their courses. Courses are provided only after the payment of large, fixed fees for them, although the fees are called donations. Publics without large cash reserves may take out loans to pay for the courses, or max out their credit cards. Scientology's rapacity for money is one of primary areas of controversy about Scientology.
People without money to pay for courses may become "staff". Staff members perform administrative work, and may receive training to become auditors. In return, they are promised free coursework and auditing Staff members work very long hours for typically very little pay, and additionally find they do not receive the coursework they believe they were promised.
Especially zealous Scientologists may join the Sea Organization, the elite corps of Scientology, and the source of a large amount of the controversy surrounding Scientology.
Scientology claims to have 8 million followers, but these claims are simply not credible. Best estimates of the number of practicing Scientologists indicate that there are between 50,000 and 100,000 worldwide, with the majority of these in southern California. There are several hundred Dianetics Centers and Scientology "orgs" world-wide, but the number of scientologists at many of these is quite small.
[Majority cut--- see original at the URL above]
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