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Scientology, a religion? a Sociological approach.

Anonycat

Crusader
http://retosinternacionales.campusq...entology-¿a-religion-a-sociological-approach/

I found this short article interesting - it tells from the writer's perspective what their evaluation is, in examining scientology from this outside. To read the entire article, click the link above.

Oct 13, 2010
By Maria Zafeiropoulou



When I first opened the folder that I was given from “The Church of Scientology” in Athens for this paper, I found a DVD, a magazine and several leaflets talking about Scientology. Overall, I realized that a very little part of the material given to me was related to the Scientology’s beliefs, ethics, history and rituals. What I mean is that most of the material did not seem to have any religious content.

More specifically, the first twenty minutes of the three-hour DVD was dedicated to describing and explaining what Scientology is, its beliefs, its history and so on.

Furthermore, even during the first twenty minutes one could not easily figure out clearly that this was a religious movement. Most would claim that it has to do with self-help therapies and philosophical courses. In other words, the religious element was not so strong if not absent. The rest of the film had to do with anti-drug and human-rights campaigns, rehabilitation, educational and environmental programs that are organized by Scientology. The film extensively described the role of Scientology in leading and supporting such humanitarian missions worldwide. Another significant part of the video was the description of “The Way to Happiness” program.
 

Veda

Sponsor
Video on Religious cloaking:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gZvqeGrbILw

The complete document:

http://www.lermanet.com/reference/brennan-dec.pdf


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Quoted posts by others are in sienna (brown).

By Rmack:

I just had to vent a little about a pet peeve I have. People who, even though critical of this cult, still call it a church.

It's well documented that the whole church facade was taken on by Laffy for the benefits it bestowed, like potential tax exemption, the e-meter being protected as a 'religious artifact' to avoid being prosecuted for using it to treat medical conditions, etc. They went from being a clinic with 'doctors' to a religion with 'ministers', but the practices stayed pretty much the same.

Scientology is a money making fraudulent cult, not a church.

I like the adage attributed to Abraham Lincoln that goes 'How many legs does a dog have, if you call the tail a leg? Answer; four. Calling the tail a leg doesn't make it a leg.'



Tax exempt status had been sought by Hubbard since he first launched his "religion angle," complete with ministers in clerical collars, crosses on "Churches," and the accompanying benign-sounding 'Creed of the Church', meant to invite agreement from "wogs," as they were "gradiently" led into agreement with the idea that Scientology is a "religion."

It's the religion angle and religious cloaking that allow Scientology to get away with so much fraudulent and abusive behavior.

For years, Scientology has been dressing up Scientologists in minister's costumes, erecting huge crosses on buildings, saying, "religion," "my religion," "the Scientology religion," etc., and, through sheer repetition, the message has penetrated, just as L. Ron Hubbard said it would, the malleable minds of those at "lower awareness levels," etc. No matter the arguments, the Bronx cheers, and the protests, it's still penetrated.

If Scientology's religion angle and its religious cloaking prevail, and to the point where even critics of Scientology are calling it - without "quote" marks - a "religion," and a "Church," then there's no chance that Scientology will reform. Why should it?


About the IRS deal with Scientology:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4D1PkZ81gn4


This man was convicted of "interfering with a religion," for picketing outside Scientology's heavily armed, razor-wire enclosed, base outside Hemet, California. He was sent to jail.

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From Dulloldfart:

From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Scientology_organizations

Principal Organizations
Religious Technology Center (RTC)
Church of Spiritual Technology (CST)
Church of Scientology International (CSI)
Church of Scientology of California (CSC)

Trademark Service Organizations
Inspector General Network (IGN)
IGN International AB
Dianetics Centers International (DCI)
Dianetics Foundation International (DFI)
Hubbard Dianetics Foundation (HDF)
WISE, Inc.

Financial Trusts
Author's Family Trust
Church of Scientology Religious Trust (CSRT)
Scientology International Reserves Trust (SIRT)
Trust for Scientologists
United States Parishioners Trust
Flag Ship Trust (FST)
International Publications Trust
Scientology Defense Trust

Financial Service Organizations
SOR Services Ltd.
Nesta Investments Ltd.
FSO Oklahoma Investments Corporation
Theta Management Ltd. (TML)

Publishing Houses & Publication Organizations
Golden Era Productions
Author Services Inc. (ASI)
Bridge Publications Inc. (BPI)
New Era Publications ApS
Scientology Publications Ltd.

Secular & Social Management Entities
Association for Better Living and Education International (ABLE)
Applied Scholastics Inc.
Citizens Commission on Human Rights International (CCHR)
Criminon International
Narconon International
Way to Happiness Foundation International
World Institute of Scientology Enterprises International (WISE)

Other Management Organizations
Church of Scientology Celebrity Centre International (CC Int.)
International Hubbard Ecclesiastical League of Pastors (IHELP)
Scientology Missions International (SMI)

Service Organizations
<snip mostly Church names>

Membership Organizations

Unincorporated Associations
International Association of Scientologists (IAS)
Hubbard Association of Scientologists International (HASI)

Membership Service Organizations
International Association of Scientologists Administrations, N.V. (IASA)
Membership Services Administrations (UK) Ltd. (MSA)

There are 41 names there, only 5 of which include the C-word. Local service orgs in the US and other religion-favouring countries usually include the C-word, and in countries that don't favour religions they don't. Expediency reigns supreme.

Question for any residents of the "non" countries: when the cult hits the news there, is the main organization ever referred to, or is it just the name of the local branch? For example, does the media in Russia ever refer to CSI spokeperson Karin Pouw by name and title?

Paul



I use the term CofS, when writing, although I really should use quotes around "CofS," and I sometimes write "Church" of Scientology, as that's easier than writing the so called Church of Scientology. It's more difficult to do when speaking unless one wishes to make quote marks in the air with one's fingers when speaking. Senator Xenophon is very clear in that he means "Church" of Scientology.

Scientology has a decades long history of using the "religion angle" and "religious cloaking" to gain advantage, and to exempt itself from inspection and from laws.

Scientology is a for-profit blackmail-collecting global scam masquerading as a religion.

Prof. Steven Kent on 'Is Scientology a Religion?':

http://www.bible.ca/scientology-not-religion-kent.htm

Scientology doesn't really care whether some "wogs" or "SPs" or "DBs" think it's a "good religion" or a "bad religion." The "wogs" and "SPs" and "DBs" can argue about that all day long, as long as Scientology is regarded as a "Church" and a "religion."


It's rare to encounter a Scientologist who knows what Scientology is, not because they're stupid, but because Scientology discourages its followers from finding out what it actually is and, ultimately, places them in a state of mind where they don't want to know even when they have the opportunity.

A few bus loads of people such as this are useful for Public Relation purposes, especially when they are wearing big yellow Scientology is my religion buttons.

These are the well-intentioned dupes, and are an essential component of the Scientology charade.

If someone want to take some pieces of Dianetics and some pieces of Scientology, and use them benignly, or even "religiously," that's fine; however, Scientology it isn't.

Scientology is a nasty piece of work, and is neither sincere nor religious.


Responding to the assertion by another poster that Scientology's status as a (tax exempt, and exempt from various laws) "Church" is a "done deal":

From Div6:

I'm with Veda on this. Only in the US is it anywhere near "a done deal". In mexico it is a "philosophical society."


From Senator Nick Xenophon:

"What we are seeing is a worldwide pattern of abuse and criminality... On the body of evidence, this is not happening by accident; it is happening by design.

In 1955, L. Ron Hubbard secretly authored this booklet http://www.forum.exscn.net/showthread.php?2697-Table-of-Contents-Psychopolitics-revisited to be used as a black propaganda vehicle for attacking his critics, by identifying them with Russian Communism. Some years later, the booklet slowly faded into obscurity. It was no longer useful as a propaganda vehicle. During the period of the Vietnam war, Hubbard had decided that "Nazi," not "Communist," was a more effective "button" to push, to influence public opinion to Scientology's advantage. Another reason for this booklet fading into obscurity was that Hubbard was now using many of its ideas and methods on his own followers, and on others. Hubbard had been doing this for many years prior, but it was now intensified. These ideas and methods are interwoven into Scientology doctrine, and integral to that doctrine.

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Senator Nick Xenophon continued:

Scientology is not a religious organisation. It is a criminal organisation that hides behind its so-called religious beliefs."

It's noteworthy that the first official body to recognize Hubbard's use of this booklet's ideas and methods was from Australia in the 1960s and, now, another Australian official is continuing the tradition of insightful and courageous truth-telling regarding the secretive cult of Scientology.

From Free to shine:

Why not just call it scientology???

I have never called it a church and I never will. I don't even use a capital S unless it's the start of a sentence. I was there when it was decided that it should be a religion, and I know what a farce it was.

I think it's only those who feel the need to be politically correct who use the word "Church", in the media and so on to avoid getting dogpiled for 'religious discrimination'.


Group2.jpg



From Lermanet, replying to Veda and Gadfly:

In 1994, one of the used (Im not saying correct, just one of methods used) ways to guess who was either OSA or duped by osa or too dumb to be of any worth to the expose scientology movement anyway, was to see if they could say "XENU"...

Ten years later, the rule of thumb *I* use, on all except for the very-newest-escapees, to determine this is DO THEY CALL IT A CHURCH or refer to it as a RELIGION. I feel it works for me, you're mileage may vary.

Thoroughly understanding the materials collected on my RELIGIOUS CLOAKING PAGE leads to the inescapable conclusion that $cientology is an elaborate hypnotic FRAUD that has been CLOAKED using RELIGIOUS CLOAKING.



This point is not lost on their own lawyers, and thorough application of such comprehensions demonstrated here.. in the last time $cientology tried to depose me in 1997 at the Law Offices of Mr Sinclair in Alexandria Virginia, a camera had been set up to video this, if you want proof ask OSA to post this video:

DEPOSITION STARTS

Clam lawyer Rosen asked: Mr Lerma, why do you continue to say bad things about the Church of Scientology???

Lerma: Mr Rosen, in your question, are you referring to the international psychopolitical terrorist organization running a rapidly shrinking but still brisk fraud upon innocent citizens worldwide dba scientology and related entities and front groups???

Rosen (Face gets red) said (acting angry) (waving arms around) : Mr. Lerma, you can't describe the CHURCH OF SCIENTOLOGY that way.

Lerma: Mr Rosen are trying to trick me into committing perjury on your behalf?

Rosen: This deposition is OVER.

THE END.


Try to remember this one lesson:

A person takes his first step to becoming a scientologist when they start to believe the first one of scientology's LIES and they are NOT really out of scientology's field of influence until they stop believing every lie.

Arnie Lerma


Lermanet.com Exposing the CON since 1993
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