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During the dawn of the mid 20th century a new idea began to formulate within the mind of L. Ron Hubbard that would later give birth to what is known today as one of the fastest growing religions of the 21st century; this controversial religion is called Scientology. Scientology has acquired many individuals from all walks of life, ethnicities, and International regions of the world into its membership.
According to the New Oxford American Dictionary the definition of Scientology is “a religious system based on the seeking of self-knowledge and spiritual fulfillment through graded courses of study and training.” In addition, Scientology claims to comprise the remedies used to deliver people from drugs and alcohol abuse, as well as, therapeutic solutions to help others recover from serious injuries at an astonishing progressive rate. In essence, this movement’s main agenda is to bring order to a world of chaos through spreading its teachings, improving environmental conditions on planet earth, and developing the holistic being through using different methodologies and technologies.
Moreover, by obtaining a basic understanding of Scientology and its purpose we can now explore and uncover the answer to a question that sparks the curiosity of outsiders in western civilization; such a question is How did it Begin? The origins of this culture began in the year of 1923 when L. Ron Hubbard started his studies of the mind and spirit. Likewise, such studies resulted in the creation of a manuscript entitled Excalibur; this book was completed in 1938 but was never published. Furthermore, it was in this unpublished work that the word “Scientology” first appeared. The literal interpretation of the phrase means “the study of knowing how t...
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...sion, my answer to the “church” of Scientology pertaining to the existence of God will be in the form of a philosophical question that states, if a tree falls in the forest and no one is around to hear it does it make a sound?
Works Cited
1) Cooper, Paulette “The High Cost Of Scientology.” The Scandal Of Scientology. Web. 28th Nov. 1997
2) Communication Office Bulletin (HCOB). Hubbard, L. Ron. 18 July 1959.
3) “Dianetics.” New Oxford American Dictionary. Version 2.0.3 2005-2007.
4) lronhubbard.org/biography. N.P., 1995-2010. Web. 6 Nov. 2010
5) patheos.com. N.p., 1 Jan. 2008. Web. 6 Nov. 2010
6) “Scientology.” New Oxford American Dictionary. Version 2.0.3 2005-2007.
7) The New King James Version (NKJV) Bible. Ed. Thomas Nelson Nashville: 1982.
8) Watchman Fellowship. “What Christians Should Know about the Church of Scientology.” Web. 1 Jan. 2009.
The film begins with David Miscavige, the present leader of Scientology, standing on a stage alone in a ceremony which indicates his absolute power in the organization. This single figure worship was created by L. Ron Hubbard, the founder of Scientology in 1953. Controversy arose how Miscavige came into the position after Hubbard's death. According to Mark Rathbun, the church's former second-in-command, Miscavige was never elected, but became chairman by worshipping
Voodoo, sinister cult or respected religion? You be the judge after reading my brief report on this exotic religion. To create this report I have reviewed three current articles on voodoo and one encyclopedia entry. In its entirety the report will consist of some history of voodoo, misconceptions, purpose of rituals and my personal reflection. Using these current articles I am going to take a in depth look at one of the most misunderstood religions ever.
Many people have heard of the religion practice called Scientology. The Scientology religion deals with the human spirit and its relationships to the universe and its Creator. It teaches that its laws of life can help people gain a happier and more fulfilling way of living. Scientology teaches many different methods that can help people who are dealing with stress as well as many other situations find a sense of personal belonging. Although scientology is seen as a new way of understanding ones self and others, many people are opposed to this religion because of its secretiveness, extreme method of teaching, and its powerful use of mind control. Scientology was discovered
The Church of Scientology is a global organization with over 270 churches or missions worldwide. For decades, it has possessed followers with an almost fanatical devotion to their leader, L. Ron Hubbard. Since the advent of the Internet, the Church has begun to resort to various legal actions to maintain the secrecy of their “scriptures.”
Many believe that they influence the world, some in greater ways than others, some for better some for worse, but none quite like Aleister Crowley, none hated and slandered more than he and his silent truth. Aleister Crowley, often associated with various groups, had come to know L. Ron Hubbard when he had learned about Hubbard’s friendship with Jack Parsons, who at the time was Master of Agapé Lodge No. 2, one of the American lodges of Aleister Crowley’s Ordo Templi Orientis. Hubbard and Parsons had started a business together and began the ridiculous Babalon Working. Crowley was right to be frantic, the business partnership ultimately ended in shambles, Hubbard ran off with Parsons’ boat, and went on to start his sci-fi religion, Scientology, yes, the creator of Scientology in which famous actor Tom Cruise is a member of, was in fact a dear friend, as Hubbard would like to believe, of Aleister, who never really thought much of Hubbard. Among his diligent work at advancing his wisdom in life Aleister was often known for being quite the comedian. Aleister Crowley’s best humor was often at someone else’s expense, but overall he had a kind heart and a deep concern for the well-being of every man, woman, and child alive. Indeed, in 1924 he dedicated his life to serving humankind, and from then on he worked tirelessly and exclusively for the cause of human liberty. It would be impossible to survey Crowley’s extraordinary wit in this small space. Suffice to say, all of his prose is packed with humor. Aleister Crowley’s original writing is far funnier than any of the parodies of his work, “One would go mad if one took the Bible seriously; but to take it seriously one must be already mad.” — Liber ABA, Part II, Chapter ...
We can distinguish among other religions of such history – Scientology is a complete transformation on a human being. Scientology came about because of Man's increased knowledge of energy (Hubbard, 2007). This movement is a based on the self revelation of the human inner spirit to heal and take on new forms of living. Auditing plays an important role for all Scientologists who learn to believe that our lives need to be controlled in order to develop a higher spirituality. The idea is to confess all of our past endeavors and be cleared path to the "ideal being". The core belief of the religion is that humans are immortal alien beings who have forgotten their true nature. In order to rediscover their inner selves -- the thetans -- Scientologists undergo practices such as auditing (Yapp, 2006). Recognized as a form of technology, the human being is taught to free itself from the barriers and recognize it's true self because of such religious
For years, there have been problems surrounding the definition of the term 'cult'. The literal and traditional meanings of the word cult, which are more fully explored at the entry Cult (religion), come from the Latin cultus, meaning "care" or "adoration," as "a system of religious belief or ritual; or: the body of adherents to same." In French or Spanish, culte or culto simply means "worship" or "religious attendance"; therefore an association cultuelle is an association whose goal is to organize religious worship and practices. The word for "cult" in the popular English meaning is secte (French) or secta (Spanish). In formal English use, and in non-English European terms, the cognates of the English word "cult" are neutral, and refer mainly to divisions within a single faith, a case where English speakers might use the word "sect". Hence Roman Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy and Protestantism are cults within Christianity. However, in common usage, "cult" has a very negative connotation, and is generally applied to a group in order to criticize it. Understandably, most groups, if not all, that are called "cults" deny this term. Some groups called "cults" by some critics may consider themselves not to be "cults", but may consider some other groups to be "cults". Although anti-cult activists and scholars did not agree on precise criteria that new religions should meet to be considered "cults," two of the definitions formulated by anti-cult activists are: Cults are groups that often exploit members psychologically and/or financially, typically by making members comply with leadership's demands through certain types of psychological manipulation, popularly called mind control, and through the inculcation of d...
Feesh calmly replied, “Listen to me. That new president has just announced that the government has been completely taken over by the Church of Scientology. That could mean the end of the world as we know it.”
To be fair, I was looking for information on Katie Holmes agreeing with Tom that she and her children will have to turn only to Scientology treatment when dealing with mental or terminal illness, however, I find this excerpt about Sofia and Scientology to be more interesting. “Unlike her daughter, this devout Catholic was not given an armful of literature as she left. All conversion efforts were focused on Sofia-they had been since she first met Cruise” (Morton 261). I found this quote to be the most shocking, and another reason why I choose this excerpt, because it shows the Scientologist's desperate attempt at trying to get Sofia to join. I also found it interesting that this text seems to focus more on Sofia's view of the relationship, in a biography about Tom
Scientology is a religion that is becoming more and more popular and known. One of the reasons for this is the amount of press it gets. One of the biggest churches for scientology is located in LA this could result in the amount of celebrities involved in this religon. There is also a great amount of controversy concerning this religion. After taking this world religions class I have come to learn that this controversy is true with all religions.
Robinson, B.A. "About the Church of Scientology A Religion Founded by L. Ron Hubbard." http://www.religioustolerance.org/scientol.htm
Scientology does not regard itself as a religion, but more as technology that helps people to find freedom and release through spirituality. It falls on the lower end in terms of followers, with only. The Church of Scientology was founded by Scientologists in 1954 but the subject and ideology was founded by L. Ron Hubbard in 1949.
Scientology was created back in 1953, after the avid science fiction writer, L. Ron Hubbard, had his book Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health become a bestseller. With 1,084 published books, the current world record (Business
Cults have existed throughout history since the beginning of time. A cult is defined in Webster’s dictionary as a “system of religious worship with a devoted attachment to a person, principle, etc.” Over the past thirty years numerous religious cults have caused “ tens of thousands to abandon their families, friends, education’s, and careers to follow the teaching of a leader they will never meet”(Beck 78).
Religious cults and their development in America has been an interesting topic in many sociological and religious studies. Since the begging of the 1800’s, certain religious cults and sects have been classified as new religious movements, specifically defined as “[Religious movements that] offer innovative religious responses to the conditions of the modern world,” according to Encyclopedia Brittanica (Rubinstein 2016). According to David Bromley’s book, Teaching New Religious Movements, “While the number of people involved in new religious movements (NRMs) is small, the attention they have received in the popular media and academic discourse suggest a greater significance. In the popular media, NRMs are most often seen as a social problem. In academic studies, they are more often associated with processes of social change and the critique of modernity” (Bromley 2007). UFO religions, defined as religious beliefs centrally