Actually, I do think Scientology is a religion.
I have a broad view of religion. If a philosophy is trying to answer the ultimate questions of life (why are we here, do we have an immortal existence, is there a god, how should we act, etc.) then it's a religion. And of course, a religion can be evil - for example, Satanism is a religion, and so was the human-sacrifice religion of the Aztecs. I'd even view atheism as a religion. My standard really isn't the beliefs - there are many religions with strange beliefs - but rather the purpose. I also think cult and religion are not mutually exclusive.
So I'm not for a moment saying Scientology is a good religion or a positive force in the world, but I do think it's a valid religion. Specifically, my view is:
- Scientology was absolutely and unquestionably made a religion for tax/legal purposes.
- Hubbard was unquestionably a charlatan. It's complicated because there's a lot of first-hand accounts of him doing Scientology, auditing, etc., often for long periods by himself. In his paranoia he often raved about getting rid of his BTs. If it was just a scam, I think he would have taken the money and departed at some point, or at least not put in the time himself. So you have someone who's produced a system of belief that is part chicanery, part his own views, with an overriding interest in money and power. The chicanery and money lust are dominant themes, but even if you eliminated those, you still have a complex world view that Hubbard produced and some people accept.
- Although though a lot of what I see in Scientology (again, I've never practiced) appears to be padding and of course the entire "bridge" is structured to maximize revenue, there's no doubt that there's some of Hubbard's own beliefs in the system. I think he did genuinely believe in BTs, etc. though it may be impossible to separate what was added as padding, what is recycled science fiction, and what is actually stuff he believed in. Hubbard also had well-documented mental issues. I heard once that Scientology is really a journey into Hubbard's mind, however warped it was.
- No doubt really that Hubbard started Scientology for money-making purposes, but I think it for many people it evolved into a religion. When you see people who were born into Scientology and grew up with that belief system, even though it's obviously a destructive cult, it is still their religion. There are certainly other isolated groups (now, and historically certainly) that are cult-like but it's still a valid religious practice.
It's very complicated because I doubt the Scientology leadership (Miscavige) truly believes it, though he was raised and indoctrinated young, so likely a lot of his worldview is Scientology-authored. However, other than the top leadership, I think most of the SeaOrg and publics do believe in the answers to ultimate questions that Scientology provides. So while Miscavige may be milking members for cash, those members are genuine believers.
Again, just to be clear, I'm not defending Scientology at all, just saying that if people want to call it a religion, I can see that, even though its origins and practices may be unorthodox, even criminal, compared to the other major faiths. Even the idea of giving tons of money, being separate, disconnection, physical ordeals, etc. is not unique to Scientology - one could describe 19th century Mormonism the same way, and Mormonism is certainly a valid faith.
Honestly, what Scientology needs is a reformation - discard the leadership and jettison some of the OT space opera. If Scientology was just people who believed in being thetans and doing auditing without the exorbitant costs, brainwashing, and control issues, then it wouldn't be any worse than several other religions on the planet.
As for Xenu...well, it's strange. Honestly, I'm a devout Christian and I'm quite aware that things like the virgin birth, the resurrection, etc. are things that others would find strange. Of all the Scientology beliefs, I find the auditing and some of the trance-like rituals to be more disturbing that Xenu, which is an arbitrary story. It's clear (no pun intended) to Xenu, etc. was added because Hubbard needed to keep adding levels and that enabled the BT story. On the other hand, he did believe in his own BTs, so...