Church of Scientology
Encyclopedia
The Church of Scientology is an organization devoted to the practice and the promotion of the Scientology
belief system
. The Church of Scientology International
is the Church of Scientology's parent organization, and is responsible for the overall ecclesiastical management, dissemination and propagation of Scientology. Every Church of Scientology is separately incorporated and has its own local board of directors and executives responsible for its own activities and well-being, both corporate and ecclesiastical. The first Scientology church was incorporated in December 1953 in Camden, New Jersey
, by American science fiction
author L. Ron Hubbard
. The church has been the subject of much controversy
. Its world headquarters are located in the Gold Base
, unincorporated
Riverside County, California
.
by L. Ron Hubbard
, his wife Mary Sue Hubbard
, and John Galusha, although the Hubbard Association of Scientologists International
(HASI) had already been operating since 1952 and Hubbard had been selling Scientology books and other items. Soon after, he explained the religious nature of Scientology in a bulletin to all Scientologists, stressing its relation to the Dharma
. The first Church of Scientology opened in 1954 in Los Angeles.
Hubbard stated, "A civilization without insanity, without criminals and without war, where the able can prosper and honest beings can have rights, and where man is free to rise to greater heights, are the aims of Scientology."
Hubbard had official control of the organization until 1966 when this function was transferred to a group of executives. Though Hubbard maintained no formal relationship with Scientology's management, he remained firmly in control of the organization and its affiliated organizations.
In May 1987, following Hubbard's death, David Miscavige
, one of Hubbard’s former personal assistants, assumed the position of Chairman of the Board of Religious Technology Center
(RTC), a non-profit corporation that administers the trademarked names and symbols of Dianetics and Scientology. Although RTC is a separate corporation from the Church of Scientology International
, whose president and chief spokesperson is Heber Jentzsch
, Miscavige is the effective leader of the movement.
system, Dianetics
.
Scientology teaches that people are immortal spiritual beings who have forgotten their true nature. The story of Xenu is part of Scientologist teachings about extraterrestrial civilizations and alien interventions in Earthly events, collectively described as space opera by Hubbard. Its method of spiritual rehabilitation is a type of counseling known as "auditing
", in which practitioners aim to re-experience consciously painful or traumatic events in their past, in order to free themselves of their limiting effects. Study materials and auditing courses are made available to members in return for specified donations. Scientology is legally recognized as a tax-exempt religion in the United States and other countries, and the Church of Scientology emphasizes this as proof that it is a bona fide religion.
Scientology describes itself as the study and handling of the spirit
in relationship to itself, others, and all of life. One purpose of Scientology, as stated by the Church of Scientology, is to become certain of one's spiritual existence and one's relationship to God, or the "Supreme Being."
One of the major tenets of Scientology is that a human is an immortal alien spiritual being, termed a thetan
, that is presently trapped on planet Earth in a physical "meat body." Hubbard described these thetans in "The Space Opera
" cosmogony. The thetan has had innumerable past lives and it is accepted in Scientology that lives preceding the thetan's arrival on Earth lived in extraterrestrial cultures. Descriptions of space opera incidents are seen as true events by Scientologists.
Scientology claims that its practices provide methods by which a person can achieve greater spiritual awareness. Within Scientology, progression from level to level is often called The Bridge to Total Freedom
. Scientologists progress from "Preclear", to "Clear
", and ultimately "Operating Thetan
".
Scientologists are taught that a series of events, or incidents
, occurred before life on earth. Scientologists also believe that humans have hidden abilities which can be unlocked.
and a commercial enterprise. Some of the Church's actions also brought scrutiny from the press and law enforcement. For example, it has been noted to engage in harassment and abuse of civil courts to silence its critics, using fair game
policies and procedures against people it perceives as its enemies.
In 1979, several Scientology members were convicted for their involvement in the church's Operation Snow White
, the largest theft of government documents in U.S. history. Scientologists were also convicted of fraud, manslaughter and tampering with witnesses in French cases, malicious libel against lawyer Casey Hill and espionage in Canada.
administration to investigate, as determined in an internet poll run by the presidential transition team soliciting public input for the incoming administration. The U.S. State Department has criticized Western European nations for discrimination against Scientologists in its published annual International Religious Freedom report, based on the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998
.
In some countries Scientology is treated legally as a commercial enterprise, and not as a religion or charitable organization. In early 2003, in Germany, The Church of Scientology was granted a tax-exemption for the 10% license fees sent to the US. This exemption, however, is related to a German-American double-taxation agreement, and is unrelated to tax-exemption in the context of charities law. In several countries, public proselytizing undergoes the same restrictions as commercial advertising, which is interpreted as persecution by Scientology.
In Israel
, Scientology does not use "Church" as part of its name.
Unlike many well-established religious organizations, Scientology maintains strict control over its names, symbols, religious works and other writings. The word Scientology (and many related terms, including L. Ron Hubbard) is a registered trademark
. Religious Technology Center, the owner of the trademarks and copyrights, takes a hard line on people and groups who attempt to use it in ways unaffiliated with the official Church (see Scientology and the legal system
).
or OSA), Church members organized and committed the largest penetration of United States federal agencies ever perpetrated by an organization not affiliated with a foreign government (that is, one such as the KGB
). This was known as Operation Snow White
. In the trial which followed discovery of these activities the prosecution described their actions thus:
The Church has also in the past made use of aggressive tactics in addressing those it sees as trying to suppress them, known as Suppressive Person
s (SPs) first outlined by L. Ron Hubbard as part of a policy called fair game
. It was under this policy that Paulette Cooper
was targeted for having authored The Scandal of Scientology
, a 1970 exposé book about the Church and its founder. This action was known as Operation Freakout
. Using blank paper known to have been handled by Cooper, Scientologists forged bomb threats in her name. When fingerprints on them matched hers, the Justice Department began prosecution, which could have sent Cooper to prison for a lengthy term. The Church's plan was discovered at the same time as its Operation Snow White actions were revealed. All charges against Cooper were dismissed, though she had spent more than $20,000 on legal fees for her defense.
Of these activities the current Church laments:
Yet it has continued to aggressively target people it deems suppressive. In 1998, regarding its announcement that it had hired a private investigator to look into the background of a Boston Herald
writer who had written a series on the church, Robert W. Thornburg, dean of Marsh Chapel at Boston University
, said, "No one I know goes so far as to hire outsiders to harass or try to get intimidating data on critics. Scientology is the only crowd that does that." It has apparently continued as recently as 2006 when BBC journalist John Sweeney
was making Scientology and Me
, an investigative report about the Church and was the subject of harassment:
street. Following the collision, she exited her vehicle, stripped naked and showed further signs of mental instability. Hospital staff agreed that she was unharmed, but recommended keeping her overnight for observation. Following intervention by fellow Scientologists, McPherson refused psychiatric
observation or admission at the hospital and checked herself out after a short evaluation. She was taken to the Fort Harrison Hotel
, a Scientology retreat, to receive a Church sanctioned treatment called Introspection Rundown
. It was her second time on the rundown, her first time having been in June. Her appearance after death was that of someone who had been denied water and food for quite some time, being both underweight and severely dehydrated. Additionally, her skin was covered with over a hundred insect bites, presumably from cockroaches. She was locked in a room for 17 days. When she later died, the state of Florida pursued criminal charges against the Church. The Church has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing, and now makes members sign a waiver before Introspection Rundown specifically stating that they (or anyone on their behalf) will not bring any legal action against the organization over injury or death. These charges attracted press coverage and sparked lawsuits. Eight years later Elli Perkins, another adherent to Scientology's beliefs regarding psychiatry
, was stabbed to death by her mentally disturbed son. Though Elli Perkins's son had begun to show symptoms of schizophrenia
as early as 2001, the Perkins family chose not to seek psychiatric help for him and opted instead for remedies sanctioned by Scientology. The death of Elli Perkins at the hands of a disturbed family member, one whose disease could have been treated by methods and medications banned by Scientology, again raised questions in the media about the Church's methods.
by Scientology literature. The test, despite its name and the claims of Scientology literature, has no connection to Oxford University or any other research body. Scientific research into three test results came to the conclusion that "we are forced to a position of skepticism about the test's status as a reliable psychometric device" and called its scientific value "negligible".
Further proselytization practices - commonly called "dissemination" of Scientology - include information booths, flyers and advertisement for free seminars, Sunday Services in regular newspapers and magazines, personal contacts and sales of books.
) have caused the organization to publish extensive legal documents that cover the rights granted to followers. It has become standard practice within the organization for members to sign lengthy legal contracts and waivers before engaging in Scientology services, a practice that contrasts greatly with almost every mainstream religious organization. In 2003, a series of media reports examined the legal contracts required by Scientology, which state, among other things, that followers deny any psychiatric care their doctors may prescribe to them.
In addition, the Church has been implicated in kidnapping members who have recently left the church. In 2007, Martine Boublil was kidnapped and held for several weeks against her will in Sardinia by four Scientologists. She was found on 22 January 2008, clothed only in a shirt. The room she was imprisoned in contained refuse and an insect infested mattress.
On Friday 28 March 2008, Kaja Bordevich Ballo, daughter of Olav Gunnar Ballo
, Norwegian parliament member and vice president of the Norwegian Odelsting, took a Church of Scientology personality test
while studying in Nice
. Her friends and co-inhabitants claim she was in good spirits and showed no signs of a mental breakdown, but the report from the Church of Scientology said she was "depressed, irresponsible, hyper-critical and lacking in harmony". A few hours later she committed suicide by jumping from her balcony at her dorm room leaving a note telling her family she was sorry for not "being good for anything". The incident has brought forward heavy criticism against the Church of Scientology from friends, family and prominent Norwegian politicians. Inga Marte Thorkildsen
, parliament member, went as far as to say "Everything points to the scientology cult having played a direct role in making Kaja choose to take her own life".
es have recently included questions about religious affiliations, though the United States Census Bureau
states that it is not the source for information on religion.
In 2007, the German national magazine Der Spiegel
reported about 8 million members worldwide, about 6000 of them in Germany, with only 150-200 members in Berlin. In 1993, a spokesperson of Scientology Frankfurt had mentioned slightly more than 30,000 members nationwide.
The organization has said that it has anywhere from eight million to fifteen million members worldwide. Derek Davis stated in 2004 that the Church organization has around 15 million members worldwide. Religious scholar J. Gordon Melton
has said that the church's estimates of its membership numbers are exaggerated: "You're talking about anyone who ever bought a Scientology book or took a basic course. Ninety-nine percent of them don't ever darken the door of the church again." Melton has stated that If the claimed figure of 4 million American Scientologists were correct, "they would be like the Lutherans and would show up on a national survey".
The "Scientologists Online" website presents "over 16,000 Scientologists On-Line".
Statistics from other sources:
Scientologists can attend classes, exercises or counseling sessions for a set range of "fixed donations"; however, membership without courses or auditing is possible. According to a sociological report entitled "Scientology: To Be Perfectly Clear", progression between levels above "clear" status cost $15,760.03 in 1980 (without including additional special treatments). Scientologists can choose to be audited by a fellow Scientologist rather than by a staff member.
Critics say it is improper to fix a donation for religious service; therefore the activity is non-religious. Scientology points out many classes, exercises and counseling may also be traded for "in kind" or performed cooperatively by students for no cost, and members of its most devoted orders can make use of services without any donations bar that of their time. A central tenet of Scientology is its Doctrine of Exchange
, which dictates that each time a person receives something, he or she must give something back. By doing so, a Scientologist maintains "inflow" and "outflow", avoiding spiritual decline.
or a cult
. Sociologist Stephen Kent published at a Lutheran convention in Germany that he likes to call it a transnational corporation
.
Early official reports in countries such as the United Kingdom (1971), South Africa (1972), Australia (1965) and New Zealand (1969) have yielded unfavorable observations and conclusions.
On 18 November 2009 the Church came under fire from an Independent senator in the Commonwealth Parliament, Nick Xenophon
. Under parliamentary privilege
in the Senate
, Xenophon declared that the Church of Scientology is a criminal organisation.
s Church of Scientology, Jean-Jacques Mazier, was convicted of fraud and involuntary homicide and sentenced to eighteen months in prison for his role in the death of a member who committed suicide after going deeply into debt to pay for Scientology auditing
sessions. Fourteen others were convicted of fraud as well. In 2009, members of the church were sued for fraud and practicing pharmacology without a license, and the Church was convicted of fraud in October 2009, being fined €600,000, with additional fines and suspended prison sentences for four officers.
In an interview on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
current affairs
radio program
The Current
with Hana Gartner
, former high-ranking Scientology official Mark Rathbun
commented that the decision to convict the Church of Scientology of fraud in France would not have a significant impact on the organization. "On the France thing I don't think that's going to have any lasting impact, simply because they got a nine hundred thousand dollar fine I think - which is like chump change to them. They've got literally nearly a billion dollars set aside in a war chest," said Rathbun.
vis-à-vis psychiatry and other such features. In December 2007, Germany's interior ministers said that they considered the goals of Church of Scientology to be in conflict with the principles of the nation's constitution and would seek to ban the organization. The plans were quickly criticised as ill-advised. The plans to ban Scientology were finally dropped in November 2008, after German officials found insufficient evidence of illegal activity.
The legal status of the Church of Scientology in Germany is still awaiting resolution; some courts have ruled that it is a business, others have affirmed its religious nature. The German government has affirmed that it does not consider the Church of Scientology to be a religious community.
as a charitable organization, but it is free to promote Scientology beliefs. The Irish government has not invited the Church of Scientology to national discussions on secularization by the Religious Council of Ireland. The meetings were attended by Roman Catholic bishops, representatives of the Church of Ireland, Ireland's Chief Rabbi
, and Muslim leaders.
. Another Israeli Scientology group called "The Way to Happiness" (or "Association for Prosperity and Security in the Middle East") works through local Scientologist members to promote The Way to Happiness
. An Israeli CCHR chapter runs campaigns against perceived abuses in psychiatry. Other Scientology campaigns, such as "Youth for Human Rights International
" are active as well. There is also an ultra-Orthodox Jewish group that opposes Scientology and other cults or missionary organizations in Israel, Lev L'Achim
, whose anti-missionary department in 2001 provided a hotline and other services to warn citizens of Scientology's "many types of front organizations".
ruled in April 2007 that Russia's denial to register the Church of Scientology as a religious community was a violation of Article 11 of the European Convention on Human Rights (freedom of assembly and association) read in the light of Article 9 (freedom of thought, conscience and religion)". In July 2007, the St. Petersburg
City Court closed down that city's Scientology center for violating its charter.
The administrative tribunal of Madrid's High Court ruled that a 2005 justice ministry decision to scrap the church from the register was "against the law." Responding to a petition filed by the church, the ruling said that no documents had been presented in court to demonstrate it was anything other than a religious entity.
on the basis that it is a not-for-profit body.
, along with ten other highly placed Scientology executives were convicted in United States federal court regarding Operation Snow White
, and served time in an American federal prison. Operation Snow White involved infiltration, wiretapping and theft of documents in government offices, most notably those of the United States Internal Revenue Service
(IRS).
In 1993, however, the United States IRS recognized Scientology as a "non-profit charitable organization," and gave it the same legal protections and favorable tax treatment extended to other non-profit charitable organizations. A New York Times
article says that Scientologists paid private investigators to obtain compromising material on the IRS commissioner and blackmailed the IRS into submission.
In a 2001 legal case involving a married couple attempting to obtain the same deduction for charity to a Jewish school, it was stated by Judge Silverman:
To date (2008) such a suit is not known to have been filed. In further appeal in 2006, the US Tax Court again rejected couple's deduction, stating:
However, this matter is still ongoing. On February 8, 2008, three judges in the US 9th Circuit Court of Appeals "expressed deep skepticism" over the IRS's position that treatment of Scientology is "irrelevant to the deductions the Orthodox Jews, Michael and Marla Sklar, took for part of their children's day school tuition and for after-school classes in Jewish law".
Scientology organizations and missions
exist in many communities around the world. Scientologists call their larger centers orgs, short for "organizations." The major Scientology organization of a region is known as a central org. The legal address of the Church of Scientology International is in Los Angeles, California
, 6331 Hollywood Blvd, in the Hollywood Guaranty Building. The Church of Scientology also has several major headquarters, including:
, where he oversaw the worldwide development of Scientology from an office in London for most of the 1950s. In 1959, he bought Saint Hill Manor
near the Sussex
town of East Grinstead
, a Georgian manor house formerly owned by the Maharajah of Jaipur
. This became the worldwide headquarters of Scientology through the 1960s and 1970s. Hubbard declared Saint Hill to be the organization by which all other organizations would be measured, and he issued a general order (still followed today) for all organizations around the world to expand and reach "Saint Hill size". The Church of Scientology has announced that the next two levels of Scientology teaching
, OT 9 and OT 10, will be released and made available to church members when all the major orgs in the world have reached Saint Hill size.
. It is operated by the Floridian
corporation
Church of Scientology Flag Service Organization, Inc.
.
The organization was founded in the late 1970s when a Scientology-founded group called "Southern Land Development and Leasing Corp" purchased the Fort Harrison Hotel
for $2.3 million. Because the reported tenant was the "United Churches of Florida" the citizens and City Council of Clearwater did not realize that the building's owners were actually the Church of Scientology until after the building's purchase. Clearwater citizens' groups, headed by Mayor Gabriel Cazares, rallied strongly against Scientology establishing a base in the city (repeatedly referring to the organization as a cult), but Flag Base was established nonetheless.
In the years since its foundation, Flag Base has expanded as the Church of Scientology has gradually purchased large amounts of additional property in the downtown and waterfront Clearwater area. Scientology's relationship with the city government has repeatedly moved between friendly and hostile. At the same time, it opposed the local St. Petersburg Times
and protested actions of the Clearwater police department. Scientology's largest project in Clearwater has been the construction of a high-rise complex called the "Super Power Building
," an enormous structure whose highest point, when completed, will be a Scientology cross that will tower over the city.
, has the largest concentration of Scientologists and Scientology-related enterprises in the world. Scientology has established a highly visible presence in the Hollywood district of the city. The organization owns a large complex on Fountain Avenue which was formerly Cedars of Lebanon hospital. It contains Scientology's West Coast headquarters, "Pacific Area Command Base," often referred to as "PAC Base". Adjacent buildings include headquarters of many of Scientology's internal divisions, including the "American Saint Hill Organization", the "Advanced Organization of Los Angeles" and the "Church of Scientology of Los Angeles", founded February 18, 1954. All these organizations are integrated within the corporation Church of Scientology Western United States
. Also in this area are the offices of Bridge Publications
, Scientology's publishing arm for the United States and Canada.
The Church of Scientology successfully campaigned to have the city of Los Angeles rename one block of a street running through this complex "L. Ron Hubbard Way." The street has been paved in brick.
Also in Hollywood is Scientology's main Celebrity Centre
, which caters to arts professionals. On Hollywood Boulevard a multi-story building houses the executive offices of the Church of Scientology International
and an open-to-the-public exhibition devoted to the life of L. Ron Hubbard
. Also in the area are the headquarters of Author Services, Inc. (Hubbard's Literary agency), the Association for Better Living and Education
(ABLE), which administers social programs based on Hubbard's writings, (including Narconon
and Applied Scholastics
), the World Institute of Scientology Enterprises
(WISE), which promotes Hubbard's business management techniques and facilitates a network of Scientology-related businesses, and the Citizens Commission on Human Rights
, a Scientology-affiliated group that focuses on alleged abuses of psychiatry, and includes a "Psychiatry: An Industry of Death
" museum.
Today, the Church of Scientology of Los Angeles is one of the largest Scientology facilities of its kind in the world. Executives-in-training from every international Scientology organization now apprentice at the LA church before assuming their executive positions.
, the entity that oversees Scientology operations worldwide, is located in unincorporated
Riverside County, California
, near Gilman Hot Springs and north of Hemet
. The facility, known as Gold Base
or "Int", is owned by Golden Era Productions
and is the home of Scientology's media production studio, Golden Era Studios. Several Scientology executives, including David Miscavige, live and work at the base. Therefore Gold Base is Scientology's international administrative headquarters.
The Church of Scientology bought a former resort, which had been popular with Hollywood figures, in 1978; the resort became Gold Base. The facilities at Gold Base have been toured by journalists several times. They are surrounded by floodlights and video observation cameras, and the compound is protected by razor wire.
Gold Base also has recreational facilities, including basketball, volleyball, and soccer facilities, an exercise building, a waterslide, a small lake with two beaches, and a golf course.
, for the purpose of storing their archiving project: engraving Scientology
founder L. Ron Hubbard
's writings on stainless steel tablets and encasing them in titanium capsules underground. An aerial photograph showing the base's enormous Church of Spiritual Technology
symbols on the ground caused media interest and a local TV station broke the story in November 2005. According to a Washington Post report, the organization unsuccessfully attempted to coerce the station not to air the story.
Freewinds is the only place the current highest level of Scientology training (OT VIII
) is offered. It cruises the Caribbean Sea, under the auspices of the Flag Ship Service Organization. The Freewinds is also used for other courses and auditing for those willing to spend extra money to get services on the ship.
. and purchased the former site of the Saint Samuel Church of God in Harlem, New York, for $10,200,000. On March 30, 2011, the church began talks with Los Angeles television station KCET
to sell its studios, the former home of Monogram Pictures
, to the church; the sale was closed on April 25, 2011.
Churches of Scientology and Life Improvement Centers can be found worldwide, some examples are included below:
The Church of Scientology denies the legitimacy of any splinter groups and factions outside the official organization, and has tried to prevent independent Scientologists from using officially trademarked Scientology materials. Independent Scientologists, also known collectively as the "Free Zone
" are referred to as squirrels within the Church. They are also classified by the Church of Scientology as suppressive person
s ("SPs")—opponents or enemies of Scientology.
, as he embarked on a series of voyages around the Mediterranean Sea
in a small fleet of Scientology-crewed cruise ships. Hubbard—formerly a lieutenant
junior grade in the US Navy—bestowed the rank of "Commodore" of the vessels upon himself. The crew who accompanied him on these voyages became the foundation of the Sea Org.
"Orgs", such as "Los Angeles Org", are semi-autonomous organizations which staff themselves as they see fit. The Sea Org is a more dedicated, more elite group within Scientology which exclusively staffs the higher Orgs. The Advanced Organization of Los Angeles, for example, is staffed by Sea Org members. While every Org enforces rules and administers disciplinary procedures within its own portion of the larger organization which is the CoS, Sea Org members hold the highest jobs. The Sea Org is frequently characterized as the "elite" of Scientology, both in terms of power within the organization and dedication to the cause. Scientologists seeking to advance within the organization are encouraged to join the Sea Org, which involves devoting their full time to Scientology projects in exchange for meals, berthing and a nominal honorarium. Members sign a contract pledging their loyalty to Scientology for "the next billion years," committing their future lifetimes to the Sea Org. The Sea Org's motto is "Revenimus" (or "We Come Back").
Disciplinary procedures and policies within the Sea Org have been a focus of critics
who argue that Scientology is an abusive cult. During the original Sea Org's Mediterranean tour, Hubbard applied a variety of physical punishments, including the practice of "overboarding," or throwing offenders over the side of the ship. Former Sea Org members have stated that punishments in the late 1960s and early 1970s included confinement in hazardous conditions such as the ship's chain locker. The Rehabilitation Project Force
or RPF was established in 1974 to provide a "second chance" to Sea Org members whose offenses against Church rules were such that they would otherwise have been expelled from membership. RPF members are paired up and help one another for five hours each day with spiritual counseling to resolve the issues for which they were assigned to the program. The also spend 8 hours per day doing physical labor that will benefit the Church facility where they are located. On verification of their having completed the program they are then given a Sea Org job again.
" program as a way to participate in community outreach projects. Over the past several years, it has become a common practice for Volunteer Ministers to travel to the scenes of major disasters in order to provide assistance with relief efforts. According to critics, these relief efforts consist of passing out copies of a pamphlet authored by L. Ron Hubbard entitled The Way to Happiness
, and engaging in a method said to calm panicked or injured individuals known in Scientology as a "touch assist
."
was transferred to a newly formed entity called the Church of Spiritual Technology
(CST) and then licensed to the Religious Technology Center
(RTC) which, according to its own publicity, exists to safeguard and control the use of the Church of Scientology's copyrights and trademarks.
The RTC employs lawyers and has pursued individuals and groups who have legally attacked Scientology or who are deemed to be a legal threat to Scientology. This has included breakaway Scientologists who practice Scientology outside the central church and critics, as well as numerous government and media organizations. This has helped to maintain Scientology's reputation for litigiousness (see Scientology and the legal system
).
in 1969, is an activist group dedicated to classifying psychiatric
treatments as human rights violations and furthering the Scientology doctrinal opposition to mainstream psychiatric therapies
.
World Institute of Scientology Enterprises (WISE), which licenses the use of Hubbard's management doctrines, and circulates directories of WISE-affiliated businesses. WISE requires those who wish to become Hubbard management consults to complete training in Hubbard's administrative systems; this training can be undertaken at any Church of Scientology, or at one of the campuses of the Hubbard College of Administration, which offers an Associate of Applied Science Degree.
Favorable sites
Critical sites
Independent Scientology sites
Other
Scientology
Scientology is a body of beliefs and related practices created by science fiction and fantasy author L. Ron Hubbard , starting in 1952, as a successor to his earlier self-help system, Dianetics...
belief system
Scientology beliefs and practices
Scientology is defined as a set of beliefs written by founder L. Ron Hubbard. Scientology describes itself as the study and handling of the spirit in relationship to itself, others, and all of life...
. The Church of Scientology International
Church of Scientology International
The Church of Scientology International, Inc. is a Californian 501 non-profit corporation. Within the worldwide network of Scientology corporations and entities, CSI is officially referred to as the "mother church" of the Church of Scientology....
is the Church of Scientology's parent organization, and is responsible for the overall ecclesiastical management, dissemination and propagation of Scientology. Every Church of Scientology is separately incorporated and has its own local board of directors and executives responsible for its own activities and well-being, both corporate and ecclesiastical. The first Scientology church was incorporated in December 1953 in Camden, New Jersey
Camden, New Jersey
The city of Camden is the county seat of Camden County, New Jersey. It is located across the Delaware River from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city had a total population of 77,344...
, by American science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
author L. Ron Hubbard
L. Ron Hubbard
Lafayette Ronald Hubbard , better known as L. Ron Hubbard , was an American pulp fiction author and religious leader who founded the Church of Scientology...
. The church has been the subject of much controversy
Scientology controversy
Since the Church of Scientology's inception in 1954, numerous Scientologists have been involved in scandals, at times serving prison sentences for crimes, such as those committed in Operation Snow White...
. Its world headquarters are located in the Gold Base
Gold Base
The Gold Base is the international headquarters of the Church of Scientology on a parcel of land in unincorporated Riverside County, California, outside of San Jacinto, and north of Hemet....
, unincorporated
Unincorporated area
In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...
Riverside County, California
Riverside County, California
Riverside County is a county in the U.S. state of California. One of 58 California counties, it covers in the southern part of the state, and stretches from Orange County to the Colorado River, which forms the state border with Arizona. The county derives its name from the city of Riverside,...
.
History
The first Scientology church was incorporated in December 1953 in Camden, New JerseyCamden, New Jersey
The city of Camden is the county seat of Camden County, New Jersey. It is located across the Delaware River from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city had a total population of 77,344...
by L. Ron Hubbard
L. Ron Hubbard
Lafayette Ronald Hubbard , better known as L. Ron Hubbard , was an American pulp fiction author and religious leader who founded the Church of Scientology...
, his wife Mary Sue Hubbard
Mary Sue Hubbard
Mary Sue Hubbard was the third wife of L. Ron Hubbard, from 1952 to his death in 1986, and was a leading figure in Scientology for much of her life...
, and John Galusha, although the Hubbard Association of Scientologists International
Hubbard Association of Scientologists International
The Hubbard Association of Scientologists or HAS was the original corporation founded in 1954 by L. Ron Hubbard that managed all Scientology organizations. The HAS evolved from the Office of L. Ron Hubbard located in Phoenix, Arizona...
(HASI) had already been operating since 1952 and Hubbard had been selling Scientology books and other items. Soon after, he explained the religious nature of Scientology in a bulletin to all Scientologists, stressing its relation to the Dharma
Dharma
Dharma means Law or Natural Law and is a concept of central importance in Indian philosophy and religion. In the context of Hinduism, it refers to one's personal obligations, calling and duties, and a Hindu's dharma is affected by the person's age, caste, class, occupation, and gender...
. The first Church of Scientology opened in 1954 in Los Angeles.
Hubbard stated, "A civilization without insanity, without criminals and without war, where the able can prosper and honest beings can have rights, and where man is free to rise to greater heights, are the aims of Scientology."
Hubbard had official control of the organization until 1966 when this function was transferred to a group of executives. Though Hubbard maintained no formal relationship with Scientology's management, he remained firmly in control of the organization and its affiliated organizations.
In May 1987, following Hubbard's death, David Miscavige
David Miscavige
David Miscavige is the leader of the Church of Scientology and affiliated organizations. His title is Chairman of the Board of Religious Technology Center , a corporation that controls the trademarked names and symbols of Dianetics and Scientology. Miscavige was an assistant to Hubbard while a...
, one of Hubbard’s former personal assistants, assumed the position of Chairman of the Board of Religious Technology Center
Religious Technology Center
The Religious Technology Center is a Californian non-profit corporation. RTC was founded in 1982 by the Church of Scientology in order to control and oversee the use of all of the trademarks, symbols and texts of Scientology and Dianetics, including the copyrighted works of Scientology founder and...
(RTC), a non-profit corporation that administers the trademarked names and symbols of Dianetics and Scientology. Although RTC is a separate corporation from the Church of Scientology International
Church of Scientology International
The Church of Scientology International, Inc. is a Californian 501 non-profit corporation. Within the worldwide network of Scientology corporations and entities, CSI is officially referred to as the "mother church" of the Church of Scientology....
, whose president and chief spokesperson is Heber Jentzsch
Heber Jentzsch
Heber Carl Jentzsch has served as president of the Church of Scientology International since 1982.-Biography:Heber Jentzsch grew up in a Mormon family, and identified himself as a "believing Mormon". He is the son of polygamist Carl Jentzsch and Carl's third wife Pauline; Heber has 42 siblings...
, Miscavige is the effective leader of the movement.
Beliefs
The Church of Scientology promotes Scientology, a body of beliefs and related practices created by L. Ron Hubbard, starting in 1952 as a successor to his earlier self-helpSelf-help
Self-help, or self-improvement, is a self-guided improvement—economically, intellectually, or emotionally—often with a substantial psychological basis. There are many different self-help movements and each has its own focus, techniques, associated beliefs, proponents and in some cases, leaders...
system, Dianetics
Dianetics
Dianetics is a set of ideas and practices regarding the metaphysical relationship between the mind and body that was invented by the science fiction author L. Ron Hubbard and is practiced by followers of Scientology...
.
Scientology teaches that people are immortal spiritual beings who have forgotten their true nature. The story of Xenu is part of Scientologist teachings about extraterrestrial civilizations and alien interventions in Earthly events, collectively described as space opera by Hubbard. Its method of spiritual rehabilitation is a type of counseling known as "auditing
Auditing (Scientology)
Auditing was developed by L. Ron Hubbard, and is described by the Church of Scientology as "spiritual counseling which is the central practice of Dianetics and Scientology".-Description:...
", in which practitioners aim to re-experience consciously painful or traumatic events in their past, in order to free themselves of their limiting effects. Study materials and auditing courses are made available to members in return for specified donations. Scientology is legally recognized as a tax-exempt religion in the United States and other countries, and the Church of Scientology emphasizes this as proof that it is a bona fide religion.
Scientology describes itself as the study and handling of the spirit
Spirit
The English word spirit has many differing meanings and connotations, most of them relating to a non-corporeal substance contrasted with the material body.The spirit of a living thing usually refers to or explains its consciousness.The notions of a person's "spirit" and "soul" often also overlap,...
in relationship to itself, others, and all of life. One purpose of Scientology, as stated by the Church of Scientology, is to become certain of one's spiritual existence and one's relationship to God, or the "Supreme Being."
One of the major tenets of Scientology is that a human is an immortal alien spiritual being, termed a thetan
Thetan
In Scientology, the concept of thetan is similar to the concept of spirit or soul found in other belief systems. The term is derived from the Greek letter theta, which in Scientology represents "the source of life, or life itself." In Scientology it is believed that it is the Thetan, not the...
, that is presently trapped on planet Earth in a physical "meat body." Hubbard described these thetans in "The Space Opera
Space opera in Scientology doctrine
Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard used the science fiction term space opera to describe what he said were actual extraterrestrial civilizations and alien interventions in past lives...
" cosmogony. The thetan has had innumerable past lives and it is accepted in Scientology that lives preceding the thetan's arrival on Earth lived in extraterrestrial cultures. Descriptions of space opera incidents are seen as true events by Scientologists.
Scientology claims that its practices provide methods by which a person can achieve greater spiritual awareness. Within Scientology, progression from level to level is often called The Bridge to Total Freedom
The Bridge to Total Freedom
According to sources, a Scientologist moves up The Bridge to Total Freedom, or simply "The Bridge", to a state of Clear when they have freed themselves from their "reactive mind". Purportedly , this takes place beyond training sessions in Church of Scientology auditing, and is said to be a lifetime...
. Scientologists progress from "Preclear", to "Clear
Clear (Scientology)
Clear in Dianetics and Scientology is one of two levels a practitioner can achieve on the way to personal salvation. A state of Clear is reached when a person becomes free of the influence of engrams, unwanted emotions or painful traumas not readily available to the conscious mind...
", and ultimately "Operating Thetan
Operating Thetan
In Scientology, the state of Operating Thetan is a spiritual state above Clear. L. Ron Hubbard, the founder of Scientology, defined it as "knowing and willing cause over life, thought, matter, energy, space and time ". According to religious scholar J...
".
Scientologists are taught that a series of events, or incidents
Incident (Scientology)
L. Ron Hubbard used the term Incident in a specific context for auditing in Scientology and Dianetics: the description of space opera events in our Universe's distant past, involving alien interventions in our past lives...
, occurred before life on earth. Scientologists also believe that humans have hidden abilities which can be unlocked.
Controversy
Though it has attained some credibility as a religion, Scientology has also been described by many as both a cultCult
The word cult in current popular usage usually refers to a group whose beliefs or practices are considered abnormal or bizarre. The word originally denoted a system of ritual practices...
and a commercial enterprise. Some of the Church's actions also brought scrutiny from the press and law enforcement. For example, it has been noted to engage in harassment and abuse of civil courts to silence its critics, using fair game
Fair Game (Scientology)
The term Fair Game is used to describe policies and practices carried out by the Church of Scientology towards people and groups it perceives as its enemies. Founder L. Ron Hubbard established the policy in the 1960s, in response to criticism both from within and outside his organization...
policies and procedures against people it perceives as its enemies.
In 1979, several Scientology members were convicted for their involvement in the church's Operation Snow White
Operation Snow White
Operation Snow White was the Church of Scientology's name for a conspiracy during the 1970s to purge unfavorable records about Scientology and its founder L. Ron Hubbard...
, the largest theft of government documents in U.S. history. Scientologists were also convicted of fraud, manslaughter and tampering with witnesses in French cases, malicious libel against lawyer Casey Hill and espionage in Canada.
Classification as church or business
From 1952 until 1966, Scientology was administered by an organization called the Hubbard Association of Scientologists (HAS), established in Arizona on 10 September 1952. In 1954, the HAS became the HASI (HAS International). The Church of Scientology was incorporated in California on 18 February 1954, changing its name to "The Church of Scientology of California" (CSC) in 1956. In 1966, Hubbard transferred all HASI assets to CSC, thus gathering Scientology under one tax-exempt roof. In 1967, the IRS stripped all US-based Scientology entities of their tax exemption, declaring Scientology's activities were commercial and operated for the benefit of Hubbard. The church sued and lost repeatedly for 26 years trying to regain its tax-exempt status. The case was eventually settled in 1993, at which time the church paid $12.5 million to the IRS—greatly less than IRS had initially demanded—and the IRS recognized the church as a tax-exempt nonprofit organization. In addition, Scientology also dropped more than fifty lawsuits against the IRS when this settlement was reached. Scientology cites its tax exemption as proof the United States government accepts it as a religion. In January 2009, removal of the tax exemption was rated as number 9 in items for the incoming Barack ObamaBarack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
administration to investigate, as determined in an internet poll run by the presidential transition team soliciting public input for the incoming administration. The U.S. State Department has criticized Western European nations for discrimination against Scientologists in its published annual International Religious Freedom report, based on the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998
International Religious Freedom Act of 1998
The International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 was passed to promote religious freedom as a foreign policy of the United States, and to advocate on the behalf of the individuals viewed as persecuted in foreign countries on the account of religion...
.
In some countries Scientology is treated legally as a commercial enterprise, and not as a religion or charitable organization. In early 2003, in Germany, The Church of Scientology was granted a tax-exemption for the 10% license fees sent to the US. This exemption, however, is related to a German-American double-taxation agreement, and is unrelated to tax-exemption in the context of charities law. In several countries, public proselytizing undergoes the same restrictions as commercial advertising, which is interpreted as persecution by Scientology.
In Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
, Scientology does not use "Church" as part of its name.
Unlike many well-established religious organizations, Scientology maintains strict control over its names, symbols, religious works and other writings. The word Scientology (and many related terms, including L. Ron Hubbard) is a registered trademark
Trademark
A trademark, trade mark, or trade-mark is a distinctive sign or indicator used by an individual, business organization, or other legal entity to identify that the products or services to consumers with which the trademark appears originate from a unique source, and to distinguish its products or...
. Religious Technology Center, the owner of the trademarks and copyrights, takes a hard line on people and groups who attempt to use it in ways unaffiliated with the official Church (see Scientology and the legal system
Scientology and the legal system
The Church of Scientology has been involved in court disputes in several countries. In some cases, when the Church has initiated the dispute, question has been raised as to its motives. The Church says that its use of the legal system is necessary to protect its intellectual property and its right...
).
Illegal activities
Under the Guardian's Office (now renamed the Office of Special AffairsOffice of Special Affairs
The Office of Special Affairs or OSA is a department of the Church of Scientology. According to the Church, the OSA is responsible for directing legal affairs, public relations, pursuing investigations, publicizing the Church's "social betterment works," and "oversee[ing its] social reform programs"...
or OSA), Church members organized and committed the largest penetration of United States federal agencies ever perpetrated by an organization not affiliated with a foreign government (that is, one such as the KGB
KGB
The KGB was the commonly used acronym for the . It was the national security agency of the Soviet Union from 1954 until 1991, and was the premier internal security, intelligence, and secret police organization during that time.The State Security Agency of the Republic of Belarus currently uses the...
). This was known as Operation Snow White
Operation Snow White
Operation Snow White was the Church of Scientology's name for a conspiracy during the 1970s to purge unfavorable records about Scientology and its founder L. Ron Hubbard...
. In the trial which followed discovery of these activities the prosecution described their actions thus:
The Church has also in the past made use of aggressive tactics in addressing those it sees as trying to suppress them, known as Suppressive Person
Suppressive Person
Suppressive Person, often abbreviated SP, is a term used in Scientology to describe the "antisocial personalities" who, according to Scientology's founder L. Ron Hubbard, make up about 2.5% of the population...
s (SPs) first outlined by L. Ron Hubbard as part of a policy called fair game
Fair Game (Scientology)
The term Fair Game is used to describe policies and practices carried out by the Church of Scientology towards people and groups it perceives as its enemies. Founder L. Ron Hubbard established the policy in the 1960s, in response to criticism both from within and outside his organization...
. It was under this policy that Paulette Cooper
Paulette Cooper
Paulette Marcia Cooper is an American author who is best known for activism against the Church of Scientology and the harassment she suffered as a result. Cooper's books have sold close to a half a million copies.-Early life:...
was targeted for having authored The Scandal of Scientology
The Scandal of Scientology
The Scandal of Scientology is a critical exposé book about the Church of Scientology, written by Paulette Cooper and published by Tower Publications, in 1971....
, a 1970 exposé book about the Church and its founder. This action was known as Operation Freakout
Operation Freakout
Operation Freakout, also known as Operation PC Freakout, was a Church of Scientology covert plan intended to have the US author and journalist Paulette Cooper imprisoned or committed to a mental institution...
. Using blank paper known to have been handled by Cooper, Scientologists forged bomb threats in her name. When fingerprints on them matched hers, the Justice Department began prosecution, which could have sent Cooper to prison for a lengthy term. The Church's plan was discovered at the same time as its Operation Snow White actions were revealed. All charges against Cooper were dismissed, though she had spent more than $20,000 on legal fees for her defense.
Of these activities the current Church laments:
Yet it has continued to aggressively target people it deems suppressive. In 1998, regarding its announcement that it had hired a private investigator to look into the background of a Boston Herald
Boston Herald
The Boston Herald is a daily newspaper that serves Boston, Massachusetts, United States, and its surrounding area. It was started in 1846 and is one of the oldest daily newspapers in the United States...
writer who had written a series on the church, Robert W. Thornburg, dean of Marsh Chapel at Boston University
Boston University
Boston University is a private research university located in Boston, Massachusetts. With more than 4,000 faculty members and more than 31,000 students, Boston University is one of the largest private universities in the United States and one of Boston's largest employers...
, said, "No one I know goes so far as to hire outsiders to harass or try to get intimidating data on critics. Scientology is the only crowd that does that." It has apparently continued as recently as 2006 when BBC journalist John Sweeney
John Sweeney (journalist)
John Sweeney is an award-winning journalist and author, currently working as an investigative journalist for the BBC's Panorama series.- Investigative journalism :...
was making Scientology and Me
Scientology and Me
Scientology and Me was a television documentary broadcast 14 May 2007 as part of the BBC's Panorama series. Reporter John Sweeney visited the United States to investigate whether the Church of Scientology was becoming more mainstream...
, an investigative report about the Church and was the subject of harassment:
Members' health and safety
The death of some Scientologists has brought attention to the Church both due to the circumstances of their demise and their relationship with Scientology possibly being a factor. In 1995, Lisa McPherson was involved in a minor automobile accident while driving on a Clearwater, FloridaClearwater, Florida
Clearwater is a city located in Pinellas County, Florida, US, nearly due west of Tampa and northwest of St. Petersburg. In the west of Clearwater lies the Gulf of Mexico and in the east lies Tampa Bay. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 108,787. It is the county seat of...
street. Following the collision, she exited her vehicle, stripped naked and showed further signs of mental instability. Hospital staff agreed that she was unharmed, but recommended keeping her overnight for observation. Following intervention by fellow Scientologists, McPherson refused psychiatric
Psychiatry
Psychiatry is the medical specialty devoted to the study and treatment of mental disorders. These mental disorders include various affective, behavioural, cognitive and perceptual abnormalities...
observation or admission at the hospital and checked herself out after a short evaluation. She was taken to the Fort Harrison Hotel
Fort Harrison Hotel
The Fort Harrison Hotel serves as the flagship building of the Flag Land Base, the Church of Scientology's spiritual headquarters in Clearwater, Florida...
, a Scientology retreat, to receive a Church sanctioned treatment called Introspection Rundown
Introspection Rundown
The Introspection Rundown is a controversial Church of Scientology procedure that is intended to handle a psychotic episode or complete mental breakdown...
. It was her second time on the rundown, her first time having been in June. Her appearance after death was that of someone who had been denied water and food for quite some time, being both underweight and severely dehydrated. Additionally, her skin was covered with over a hundred insect bites, presumably from cockroaches. She was locked in a room for 17 days. When she later died, the state of Florida pursued criminal charges against the Church. The Church has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing, and now makes members sign a waiver before Introspection Rundown specifically stating that they (or anyone on their behalf) will not bring any legal action against the organization over injury or death. These charges attracted press coverage and sparked lawsuits. Eight years later Elli Perkins, another adherent to Scientology's beliefs regarding psychiatry
Psychiatry
Psychiatry is the medical specialty devoted to the study and treatment of mental disorders. These mental disorders include various affective, behavioural, cognitive and perceptual abnormalities...
, was stabbed to death by her mentally disturbed son. Though Elli Perkins's son had begun to show symptoms of schizophrenia
Schizophrenia
Schizophrenia is a mental disorder characterized by a disintegration of thought processes and of emotional responsiveness. It most commonly manifests itself as auditory hallucinations, paranoid or bizarre delusions, or disorganized speech and thinking, and it is accompanied by significant social...
as early as 2001, the Perkins family chose not to seek psychiatric help for him and opted instead for remedies sanctioned by Scientology. The death of Elli Perkins at the hands of a disturbed family member, one whose disease could have been treated by methods and medications banned by Scientology, again raised questions in the media about the Church's methods.
Missionary activities
Members of the public entering a Scientology center or mission are offered a "free personality test" called the Oxford Capacity AnalysisOxford Capacity Analysis
The Oxford Capacity Analysis , also known as the American Personality Analysis, is a list of questions which is advertised as being a personality test and that is administered for free by the Church of Scientology. The OCA test is offered by the Church of Scientology online, at its local churches,...
by Scientology literature. The test, despite its name and the claims of Scientology literature, has no connection to Oxford University or any other research body. Scientific research into three test results came to the conclusion that "we are forced to a position of skepticism about the test's status as a reliable psychometric device" and called its scientific value "negligible".
Further proselytization practices - commonly called "dissemination" of Scientology - include information booths, flyers and advertisement for free seminars, Sunday Services in regular newspapers and magazines, personal contacts and sales of books.
Legal waivers
Recent legal actions involving Scientology's relationship with its members (see Scientology controversyScientology controversy
Since the Church of Scientology's inception in 1954, numerous Scientologists have been involved in scandals, at times serving prison sentences for crimes, such as those committed in Operation Snow White...
) have caused the organization to publish extensive legal documents that cover the rights granted to followers. It has become standard practice within the organization for members to sign lengthy legal contracts and waivers before engaging in Scientology services, a practice that contrasts greatly with almost every mainstream religious organization. In 2003, a series of media reports examined the legal contracts required by Scientology, which state, among other things, that followers deny any psychiatric care their doctors may prescribe to them.
In addition, the Church has been implicated in kidnapping members who have recently left the church. In 2007, Martine Boublil was kidnapped and held for several weeks against her will in Sardinia by four Scientologists. She was found on 22 January 2008, clothed only in a shirt. The room she was imprisoned in contained refuse and an insect infested mattress.
On Friday 28 March 2008, Kaja Bordevich Ballo, daughter of Olav Gunnar Ballo
Olav Gunnar Ballo
Olav Gunnar Ballo is a Norwegian politician for the Socialist Left Party . He was elected to the Norwegian Parliament from Finnmark in 1997. He studied medicine at University of Würzburg, and has been a doctor. He represented SV in Alta municipality council from 1991-1997.Ballo lost his daughter...
, Norwegian parliament member and vice president of the Norwegian Odelsting, took a Church of Scientology personality test
Oxford Capacity Analysis
The Oxford Capacity Analysis , also known as the American Personality Analysis, is a list of questions which is advertised as being a personality test and that is administered for free by the Church of Scientology. The OCA test is offered by the Church of Scientology online, at its local churches,...
while studying in Nice
Nice
Nice is the fifth most populous city in France, after Paris, Marseille, Lyon and Toulouse, with a population of 348,721 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Nice extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of more than 955,000 on an area of...
. Her friends and co-inhabitants claim she was in good spirits and showed no signs of a mental breakdown, but the report from the Church of Scientology said she was "depressed, irresponsible, hyper-critical and lacking in harmony". A few hours later she committed suicide by jumping from her balcony at her dorm room leaving a note telling her family she was sorry for not "being good for anything". The incident has brought forward heavy criticism against the Church of Scientology from friends, family and prominent Norwegian politicians. Inga Marte Thorkildsen
Inga Marte Thorkildsen
Inga Marte Thorkildsen is a Norwegian politician for the Socialist Left Party . Growing up in Stokke, she was elected to the Norwegian Parliament from Vestfold in 2001.- Parliamentary Committee duties :...
, parliament member, went as far as to say "Everything points to the scientology cult having played a direct role in making Kaja choose to take her own life".
Membership statistics
It is difficult to obtain reliable membership statistics. The International Association of Scientologists (IAS), the official Church membership system since 1984, has never released figures. Church spokespersons either give numbers for their countries or a worldwide figure. Some national censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
es have recently included questions about religious affiliations, though the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
states that it is not the source for information on religion.
In 2007, the German national magazine Der Spiegel
Der Spiegel
Der Spiegel is a German weekly news magazine published in Hamburg. It is one of Europe's largest publications of its kind, with a weekly circulation of more than one million.-Overview:...
reported about 8 million members worldwide, about 6000 of them in Germany, with only 150-200 members in Berlin. In 1993, a spokesperson of Scientology Frankfurt had mentioned slightly more than 30,000 members nationwide.
The organization has said that it has anywhere from eight million to fifteen million members worldwide. Derek Davis stated in 2004 that the Church organization has around 15 million members worldwide. Religious scholar J. Gordon Melton
J. Gordon Melton
John Gordon Melton is an American religious scholar who was the founding director of the Institute for the Study of American Religion and is currently a research specialist in religion and New Religious Movements with the Department of Religious Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara...
has said that the church's estimates of its membership numbers are exaggerated: "You're talking about anyone who ever bought a Scientology book or took a basic course. Ninety-nine percent of them don't ever darken the door of the church again." Melton has stated that If the claimed figure of 4 million American Scientologists were correct, "they would be like the Lutherans and would show up on a national survey".
The "Scientologists Online" website presents "over 16,000 Scientologists On-Line".
Statistics from other sources:
- In 2001, the American Religious Identification Survey (ARIS) reported that there were 55,000 adults in the United States who consider themselves Scientologists. A survey of American religious affiliations estimated there to be 25,000 Americans identifying as Scientologists.
- The 2001 United Kingdom census contained a voluntary question on religion, to which approximately 48,000,000 chose to respond. Of those living in England and Wales who responded, a total of 1,781 said they were Scientologists.
- In 2001, Statistics CanadaStatistics CanadaStatistics Canada is the Canadian federal government agency commissioned with producing statistics to help better understand Canada, its population, resources, economy, society, and culture. Its headquarters is in Ottawa....
, the national census agency, reported a total of 1,525 Scientologists nationwide, up from 1,220 in 1991. - In 2005, the German Office for the Protection of the Constitution estimated a total of 5,000 – 6,000 Scientologists in that country, and mentioned a count of 12,000 according to Scientology Germany.
- In the 2006 New Zealand census, 357 people identified themselves as Scientologists, although a Church spokesperson estimated there were between 5,000 and 6,000 Scientologists in the country. Earlier census figures were 207 in the 1991 census, 219 in 1996, and 282 in 2001.
- In 2006, Australia's national census recorded 2,507 Scientologists nationwide, up from 1,488 in 1996, and 2,032 in 2001.
Finances
The Church of Scientology and its large network of corporations, non-profits and other legal entities are estimated to make around 500 million US dollars in annual revenue.Scientologists can attend classes, exercises or counseling sessions for a set range of "fixed donations"; however, membership without courses or auditing is possible. According to a sociological report entitled "Scientology: To Be Perfectly Clear", progression between levels above "clear" status cost $15,760.03 in 1980 (without including additional special treatments). Scientologists can choose to be audited by a fellow Scientologist rather than by a staff member.
Critics say it is improper to fix a donation for religious service; therefore the activity is non-religious. Scientology points out many classes, exercises and counseling may also be traded for "in kind" or performed cooperatively by students for no cost, and members of its most devoted orders can make use of services without any donations bar that of their time. A central tenet of Scientology is its Doctrine of Exchange
Doctrine of Exchange
The Doctrine of Exchange is a central tenet of Scientology, which dictates that for spiritual well-being, "anytime a person receives something, he must paysomething back" and balance "inflow" with "outflow"...
, which dictates that each time a person receives something, he or she must give something back. By doing so, a Scientologist maintains "inflow" and "outflow", avoiding spiritual decline.
Government opinions of Scientology
While a number of governments now give the Church of Scientology protections and tax relief as an officially recognized religion, other sources describe the Church as a pseudoreligionPseudoreligion
Pseudoreligion, or pseudotheology, is a generally pejorative term applied to a non-mainstream belief system or philosophy which is functionally similar to a religious movement, typically having a founder, principal text, liturgy and faith-based beliefs....
or a cult
Cult
The word cult in current popular usage usually refers to a group whose beliefs or practices are considered abnormal or bizarre. The word originally denoted a system of ritual practices...
. Sociologist Stephen Kent published at a Lutheran convention in Germany that he likes to call it a transnational corporation
Multinational corporation
A multi national corporation or enterprise , is a corporation or an enterprise that manages production or delivers services in more than one country. It can also be referred to as an international corporation...
.
Early official reports in countries such as the United Kingdom (1971), South Africa (1972), Australia (1965) and New Zealand (1969) have yielded unfavorable observations and conclusions.
Australia
There is currently no legal restriction in Australia on the practice of Scientology. In 1983 the High Court of Australia dealt with the question whether the Church of Scientology is a religious institution and as such not subject to payroll tax. The Court unanimously confirmed the Church of Scientology to be a religious institution.On 18 November 2009 the Church came under fire from an Independent senator in the Commonwealth Parliament, Nick Xenophon
Nick Xenophon
Nicholas "Nick" Xenophon is a South Australian barrister, anti-gambling campaigner and politician. He attended Prince Alfred College, and studied law at the University of Adelaide, attaining his Bachelor of Laws in 1981. Xenophon established and became principal of his own law firm, Xenophon & Co....
. Under parliamentary privilege
Parliamentary privilege
Parliamentary privilege is a legal immunity enjoyed by members of certain legislatures, in which legislators are granted protection against civil or criminal liability for actions done or statements made related to one's duties as a legislator. It is common in countries whose constitutions are...
in the Senate
Australian Senate
The Senate is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of Australia, the lower house being the House of Representatives. Senators are popularly elected under a system of proportional representation. Senators are elected for a term that is usually six years; after a double dissolution, however,...
, Xenophon declared that the Church of Scientology is a criminal organisation.
Belgium
In September 2007, a Belgian prosecutor announced that they had finished an investigation of Scientology and said they would probably bring charges. The church said the prosecutor's public announcement falsely suggested guilt even before a court could hear any of the charges. An administrative court has yet to decide whether to press charges against the Scientologists.France
In France, a parliamentary report classified Scientology as a dangerous cult. On November 22, 1996, the leader of the LyonLyon
Lyon , is a city in east-central France in the Rhône-Alpes region, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located at from Paris, from Marseille, from Geneva, from Turin, and from Barcelona. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais....
s Church of Scientology, Jean-Jacques Mazier, was convicted of fraud and involuntary homicide and sentenced to eighteen months in prison for his role in the death of a member who committed suicide after going deeply into debt to pay for Scientology auditing
Auditing (Scientology)
Auditing was developed by L. Ron Hubbard, and is described by the Church of Scientology as "spiritual counseling which is the central practice of Dianetics and Scientology".-Description:...
sessions. Fourteen others were convicted of fraud as well. In 2009, members of the church were sued for fraud and practicing pharmacology without a license, and the Church was convicted of fraud in October 2009, being fined €600,000, with additional fines and suspended prison sentences for four officers.
In an interview on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly known as CBC and officially as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian crown corporation that serves as the national public radio and television broadcaster...
current affairs
Current affairs (news format)
Current Affairs is a genre of broadcast journalism where the emphasis is on detailed analysis and discussion of news stories that have recently occurred or are ongoing at the time of broadcast....
radio program
Radio programming
Radio programming is the Broadcast programming of a Radio format or content that is organized for Commercial broadcasting and Public broadcasting radio stations....
The Current
The Current (radio program)
The Current is a Canadian current affairs radio program, hosted by investigative reporter Anna Maria Tremonti on CBC Radio One. It airs weekdays starting at 8:37 a.m. local time and runs until 10 a.m. for most of the year, although during the summer the program airs until 9:30 a.m...
with Hana Gartner
Hana Gartner
Hana Gartner is a Canadian television investigative journalist, best known as the host/interviewer of several programs for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation....
, former high-ranking Scientology official Mark Rathbun
Mark Rathbun
Mark "Marty" C. Rathbun was Inspector General of the Religious Technology Center , the organization that controls the copyrights and trademarks of the materials relating to Dianetics and Scientology...
commented that the decision to convict the Church of Scientology of fraud in France would not have a significant impact on the organization. "On the France thing I don't think that's going to have any lasting impact, simply because they got a nine hundred thousand dollar fine I think - which is like chump change to them. They've got literally nearly a billion dollars set aside in a war chest," said Rathbun.
Germany
In Germany, official views of Scientology are particularly skeptical. In Germany it is seen as a totalitarian anti-democratic organization and is under observation by national security organizations due, among other reasons, to suspicion of violating the human rights of its members granted by the German Constitution, including Hubbard's pessimistic views on democracyDemocracy
Democracy is generally defined as a form of government in which all adult citizens have an equal say in the decisions that affect their lives. Ideally, this includes equal participation in the proposal, development and passage of legislation into law...
vis-à-vis psychiatry and other such features. In December 2007, Germany's interior ministers said that they considered the goals of Church of Scientology to be in conflict with the principles of the nation's constitution and would seek to ban the organization. The plans were quickly criticised as ill-advised. The plans to ban Scientology were finally dropped in November 2008, after German officials found insufficient evidence of illegal activity.
The legal status of the Church of Scientology in Germany is still awaiting resolution; some courts have ruled that it is a business, others have affirmed its religious nature. The German government has affirmed that it does not consider the Church of Scientology to be a religious community.
Ireland
As in most European countries, the Church of Scientology is not officially recognized in IrelandRepublic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
as a charitable organization, but it is free to promote Scientology beliefs. The Irish government has not invited the Church of Scientology to national discussions on secularization by the Religious Council of Ireland. The meetings were attended by Roman Catholic bishops, representatives of the Church of Ireland, Ireland's Chief Rabbi
Chief Rabbi
Chief Rabbi is a title given in several countries to the recognized religious leader of that country's Jewish community, or to a rabbinic leader appointed by the local secular authorities...
, and Muslim leaders.
Israel
In Israel, according to Israeli professor of psychology Benjamin Beit-Hallahmi, "in various organizational forms, Scientology has been active among Israelis for more than thirty years, but those in charge not only never claimed the religion label, but resisted any such suggestion or implication. It has always presented itself as a secular, self-improvement, tax-paying business." Those "organizational forms" include a Scientology Organization in Tel AvivTel Aviv
Tel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...
. Another Israeli Scientology group called "The Way to Happiness" (or "Association for Prosperity and Security in the Middle East") works through local Scientologist members to promote The Way to Happiness
The Way to Happiness
The Way to Happiness is a 1980 booklet written by Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard listing 21 moral precepts, and distributed by The Way to Happiness Foundation International, a Scientology-related non-profit organization founded in 1984....
. An Israeli CCHR chapter runs campaigns against perceived abuses in psychiatry. Other Scientology campaigns, such as "Youth for Human Rights International
Youth for Human Rights International
Youth for Human Rights International is a non-profit organization based at 1954 Hillhurst Ave. # 416 in Los Angeles, California. Founded and largely staffed and financed by Scientologists, its stated mission is "To teach youth around the globe about human rights, thus helping them to become...
" are active as well. There is also an ultra-Orthodox Jewish group that opposes Scientology and other cults or missionary organizations in Israel, Lev L'Achim
Lev L'Achim
Lev L'Achim or P'eylim Lev L'Achim is an Orthodox Jewish organization operating in Israel. It follows Orthodox Judaism, and works to move students from secular Israeli schools to schools based on the Torah and religious teachings. It sends out senior yeshiva and kollel students to recruit Israeli...
, whose anti-missionary department in 2001 provided a hotline and other services to warn citizens of Scientology's "many types of front organizations".
Russia
The European Court of Human RightsEuropean Court of Human Rights
The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg is a supra-national court established by the European Convention on Human Rights and hears complaints that a contracting state has violated the human rights enshrined in the Convention and its protocols. Complaints can be brought by individuals or...
ruled in April 2007 that Russia's denial to register the Church of Scientology as a religious community was a violation of Article 11 of the European Convention on Human Rights (freedom of assembly and association) read in the light of Article 9 (freedom of thought, conscience and religion)". In July 2007, the St. Petersburg
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
City Court closed down that city's Scientology center for violating its charter.
Spain
On 31 October 2007, the National Court in Madrid issued a decision recognizing that the National Church of Scientology of Spain should be entered in the Registry of Religious Entities.The administrative tribunal of Madrid's High Court ruled that a 2005 justice ministry decision to scrap the church from the register was "against the law." Responding to a petition filed by the church, the ruling said that no documents had been presented in court to demonstrate it was anything other than a religious entity.
United Kingdom
The UK government does not classify the Church of Scientology as a religious institution. In 2000, the Church of Scientology was exempted from UK value added taxValue added tax
A value added tax or value-added tax is a form of consumption tax. From the perspective of the buyer, it is a tax on the purchase price. From that of the seller, it is a tax only on the "value added" to a product, material or service, from an accounting point of view, by this stage of its...
on the basis that it is a not-for-profit body.
United States
In 1979 Hubbard's wife, Mary Sue HubbardMary Sue Hubbard
Mary Sue Hubbard was the third wife of L. Ron Hubbard, from 1952 to his death in 1986, and was a leading figure in Scientology for much of her life...
, along with ten other highly placed Scientology executives were convicted in United States federal court regarding Operation Snow White
Operation Snow White
Operation Snow White was the Church of Scientology's name for a conspiracy during the 1970s to purge unfavorable records about Scientology and its founder L. Ron Hubbard...
, and served time in an American federal prison. Operation Snow White involved infiltration, wiretapping and theft of documents in government offices, most notably those of the United States Internal Revenue Service
Internal Revenue Service
The Internal Revenue Service is the revenue service of the United States federal government. The agency is a bureau of the Department of the Treasury, and is under the immediate direction of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue...
(IRS).
In 1993, however, the United States IRS recognized Scientology as a "non-profit charitable organization," and gave it the same legal protections and favorable tax treatment extended to other non-profit charitable organizations. A New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
article says that Scientologists paid private investigators to obtain compromising material on the IRS commissioner and blackmailed the IRS into submission.
In a 2001 legal case involving a married couple attempting to obtain the same deduction for charity to a Jewish school, it was stated by Judge Silverman:
To date (2008) such a suit is not known to have been filed. In further appeal in 2006, the US Tax Court again rejected couple's deduction, stating:
However, this matter is still ongoing. On February 8, 2008, three judges in the US 9th Circuit Court of Appeals "expressed deep skepticism" over the IRS's position that treatment of Scientology is "irrelevant to the deductions the Orthodox Jews, Michael and Marla Sklar, took for part of their children's day school tuition and for after-school classes in Jewish law".
Churches, missions, and major Scientology centers
Scientology Missions International
Scientology Missions International is a Californian 501 non-profit corporation, which is located in Los Angeles, California. SMI is part of the Church of Scientology network....
exist in many communities around the world. Scientologists call their larger centers orgs, short for "organizations." The major Scientology organization of a region is known as a central org. The legal address of the Church of Scientology International is in Los Angeles, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, 6331 Hollywood Blvd, in the Hollywood Guaranty Building. The Church of Scientology also has several major headquarters, including:
Saint Hill, Sussex, England
L. Ron Hubbard moved to England shortly after founding ScientologyScientology
Scientology is a body of beliefs and related practices created by science fiction and fantasy author L. Ron Hubbard , starting in 1952, as a successor to his earlier self-help system, Dianetics...
, where he oversaw the worldwide development of Scientology from an office in London for most of the 1950s. In 1959, he bought Saint Hill Manor
Saint Hill Manor
Saint Hill Manor is a country house at Saint Hill Green, Mid Sussex, near East Grinstead, West Sussex, England that serves as the location of the head office for the Church of Scientology in the United Kingdom.-Early history:...
near the Sussex
Sussex
Sussex , from the Old English Sūþsēaxe , is an historic county in South East England corresponding roughly in area to the ancient Kingdom of Sussex. It is bounded on the north by Surrey, east by Kent, south by the English Channel, and west by Hampshire, and is divided for local government into West...
town of East Grinstead
East Grinstead
East Grinstead is a town and civil parish in the northeastern corner of Mid Sussex, West Sussex in England near the East Sussex, Surrey, and Kent borders. It lies south of London, north northeast of Brighton, and east northeast of the county town of Chichester...
, a Georgian manor house formerly owned by the Maharajah of Jaipur
Jaipur
Jaipur , also popularly known as the Pink City, is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Rajasthan. Founded on 18 November 1727 by Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II, the ruler of Amber, the city today has a population of more than 3.1 million....
. This became the worldwide headquarters of Scientology through the 1960s and 1970s. Hubbard declared Saint Hill to be the organization by which all other organizations would be measured, and he issued a general order (still followed today) for all organizations around the world to expand and reach "Saint Hill size". The Church of Scientology has announced that the next two levels of Scientology teaching
Scientology beliefs and practices
Scientology is defined as a set of beliefs written by founder L. Ron Hubbard. Scientology describes itself as the study and handling of the spirit in relationship to itself, others, and all of life...
, OT 9 and OT 10, will be released and made available to church members when all the major orgs in the world have reached Saint Hill size.
Flag Land Base, Clearwater, Florida
The "worldwide spiritual headquarters" of the Church of Scientology is known as "Flag Land Base," located in Clearwater, FloridaClearwater, Florida
Clearwater is a city located in Pinellas County, Florida, US, nearly due west of Tampa and northwest of St. Petersburg. In the west of Clearwater lies the Gulf of Mexico and in the east lies Tampa Bay. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 108,787. It is the county seat of...
. It is operated by the Floridian
Floridian
Floridian may refer to:* Floridian, the demonym for a person from the U.S. state of Florida* Floridian , an Amtrak route that ran from Chicago to Miami and St. Petersburg, Florida...
corporation
Corporation
A corporation is created under the laws of a state as a separate legal entity that has privileges and liabilities that are distinct from those of its members. There are many different forms of corporations, most of which are used to conduct business. Early corporations were established by charter...
Church of Scientology Flag Service Organization, Inc.
Church of Scientology Flag Service Organization, Inc.
The Church of Scientology Flag Service Organization is an American 501 non-profit corporation. Within the worldwide network of Scientology corporations and entities, the FSO is officially referred to as the "spiritual headquarters" of the Church of Scientology...
.
The organization was founded in the late 1970s when a Scientology-founded group called "Southern Land Development and Leasing Corp" purchased the Fort Harrison Hotel
Fort Harrison Hotel
The Fort Harrison Hotel serves as the flagship building of the Flag Land Base, the Church of Scientology's spiritual headquarters in Clearwater, Florida...
for $2.3 million. Because the reported tenant was the "United Churches of Florida" the citizens and City Council of Clearwater did not realize that the building's owners were actually the Church of Scientology until after the building's purchase. Clearwater citizens' groups, headed by Mayor Gabriel Cazares, rallied strongly against Scientology establishing a base in the city (repeatedly referring to the organization as a cult), but Flag Base was established nonetheless.
In the years since its foundation, Flag Base has expanded as the Church of Scientology has gradually purchased large amounts of additional property in the downtown and waterfront Clearwater area. Scientology's relationship with the city government has repeatedly moved between friendly and hostile. At the same time, it opposed the local St. Petersburg Times
St. Petersburg Times
The St. Petersburg Times is a United States newspaper. It is one of two major publications serving the Tampa Bay Area, the other being The Tampa Tribune, which the Times tops in both circulation and readership. Based in St...
and protested actions of the Clearwater police department. Scientology's largest project in Clearwater has been the construction of a high-rise complex called the "Super Power Building
Super Power Building
The Super Power Building is an edifice in Clearwater, Florida, the Church of Scientology's largest property in the city. Due to a work stoppage of several years, it was left only partially built, resulting in criticism of the structure as an "eyesore" by ranking city officials...
," an enormous structure whose highest point, when completed, will be a Scientology cross that will tower over the city.
PAC Base, Hollywood, California
Los Angeles, CaliforniaLos Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
, has the largest concentration of Scientologists and Scientology-related enterprises in the world. Scientology has established a highly visible presence in the Hollywood district of the city. The organization owns a large complex on Fountain Avenue which was formerly Cedars of Lebanon hospital. It contains Scientology's West Coast headquarters, "Pacific Area Command Base," often referred to as "PAC Base". Adjacent buildings include headquarters of many of Scientology's internal divisions, including the "American Saint Hill Organization", the "Advanced Organization of Los Angeles" and the "Church of Scientology of Los Angeles", founded February 18, 1954. All these organizations are integrated within the corporation Church of Scientology Western United States
Church of Scientology Western United States
The Church of Scientology Western United States is a Californian 501 non-profit corporation, located in Los Angeles. CoSWUS is integrated within the ecclesiastical hierarchy of the Church of Scientology...
. Also in this area are the offices of Bridge Publications
Bridge Publications (Scientology)
Bridge Publications, Inc. is a Californian 501 non-profit corporation. It is based in Los Angeles, California, and is the Church of Scientology's North American publishing corporation. It publishes the Scientology and nonfiction works of L. Ron Hubbard...
, Scientology's publishing arm for the United States and Canada.
The Church of Scientology successfully campaigned to have the city of Los Angeles rename one block of a street running through this complex "L. Ron Hubbard Way." The street has been paved in brick.
Also in Hollywood is Scientology's main Celebrity Centre
Celebrity Centre
Celebrity Centres are Church of Scientology facilities that are open to the public but serve mostly artists and celebrities and other "professionals, leaders and promising new-comers in the fields of the arts, sports, management and government", as "those are the people who are sculpting the...
, which caters to arts professionals. On Hollywood Boulevard a multi-story building houses the executive offices of the Church of Scientology International
Church of Scientology International
The Church of Scientology International, Inc. is a Californian 501 non-profit corporation. Within the worldwide network of Scientology corporations and entities, CSI is officially referred to as the "mother church" of the Church of Scientology....
and an open-to-the-public exhibition devoted to the life of L. Ron Hubbard
L. Ron Hubbard
Lafayette Ronald Hubbard , better known as L. Ron Hubbard , was an American pulp fiction author and religious leader who founded the Church of Scientology...
. Also in the area are the headquarters of Author Services, Inc. (Hubbard's Literary agency), the Association for Better Living and Education
Association for Better Living and Education
The Association for Better Living and Education is a non-profit organization headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It states that it is "dedicated to creating a better future for children and communities." It promotes secular uses of L. Ron Hubbard's works, and has been classified as a...
(ABLE), which administers social programs based on Hubbard's writings, (including Narconon
Narconon
Narconon is a residential program aimed at substance abusers, headquartered in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California. It operates through several dozen treatment centers worldwide, chiefly in the United States and Western Europe. Each Narconon center is independently owned and operated under a license...
and Applied Scholastics
Applied Scholastics
Applied Scholastics is a non-profit corporation founded in 1972 to promote the use of study techniques created by L. Ron Hubbard, a science fiction author and the founder of the Church of Scientology...
), the World Institute of Scientology Enterprises
World Institute of Scientology Enterprises
World Institute of Scientology Enterprises is an organization affiliated with the Church of Scientology that educates and assists businesses in the use of management methods and techniques developed by Scientology founder, L. Ron Hubbard, such methods and techniques being, like all of Hubbard's...
(WISE), which promotes Hubbard's business management techniques and facilitates a network of Scientology-related businesses, and the Citizens Commission on Human Rights
Citizens Commission on Human Rights
The Citizens Commission on Human Rights is an advocacy group established in 1969 by the Church of Scientology and psychiatrist Thomas Szasz. The group promotes several video campaigns which support views against psychiatry...
, a Scientology-affiliated group that focuses on alleged abuses of psychiatry, and includes a "Psychiatry: An Industry of Death
Psychiatry: An Industry of Death
Psychiatry: An Industry of Death is a museum in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA, as well as several touring exhibitions. It is owned and operated by the Citizens Commission on Human Rights , an anti-psychiatry organization founded by the Church of Scientology and psychiatrist Thomas Szasz...
" museum.
Today, the Church of Scientology of Los Angeles is one of the largest Scientology facilities of its kind in the world. Executives-in-training from every international Scientology organization now apprentice at the LA church before assuming their executive positions.
Gold Base, Riverside County, California
The headquarters of the Religious Technology CenterReligious Technology Center
The Religious Technology Center is a Californian non-profit corporation. RTC was founded in 1982 by the Church of Scientology in order to control and oversee the use of all of the trademarks, symbols and texts of Scientology and Dianetics, including the copyrighted works of Scientology founder and...
, the entity that oversees Scientology operations worldwide, is located in unincorporated
Unincorporated area
In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...
Riverside County, California
Riverside County, California
Riverside County is a county in the U.S. state of California. One of 58 California counties, it covers in the southern part of the state, and stretches from Orange County to the Colorado River, which forms the state border with Arizona. The county derives its name from the city of Riverside,...
, near Gilman Hot Springs and north of Hemet
Hemet, California
Hemet is a city in the San Jacinto Valley in Riverside County, California, United States. It covers a total area of , about half of the valley, which it shares with the neighboring city of San Jacinto. The population was 78,657 at the 2010 census....
. The facility, known as Gold Base
Gold Base
The Gold Base is the international headquarters of the Church of Scientology on a parcel of land in unincorporated Riverside County, California, outside of San Jacinto, and north of Hemet....
or "Int", is owned by Golden Era Productions
Golden Era Productions
Golden Era Productions is an organization operated by the Church of Scientology that produces promotional material for the Church's membership, as well as many of the restored lectures, E-meters, training films and other materials related to the works of church founder L...
and is the home of Scientology's media production studio, Golden Era Studios. Several Scientology executives, including David Miscavige, live and work at the base. Therefore Gold Base is Scientology's international administrative headquarters.
The Church of Scientology bought a former resort, which had been popular with Hollywood figures, in 1978; the resort became Gold Base. The facilities at Gold Base have been toured by journalists several times. They are surrounded by floodlights and video observation cameras, and the compound is protected by razor wire.
Gold Base also has recreational facilities, including basketball, volleyball, and soccer facilities, an exercise building, a waterslide, a small lake with two beaches, and a golf course.
Trementina Base
The Church of Scientology maintains a large base on the outskirts of Trementina, New MexicoTrementina, New Mexico
Trementina is an unincorporated community in San Miguel County, New Mexico, United States. Its name is Spanish for turpentine, so named for the pine oil once harvested there....
, for the purpose of storing their archiving project: engraving Scientology
Scientology
Scientology is a body of beliefs and related practices created by science fiction and fantasy author L. Ron Hubbard , starting in 1952, as a successor to his earlier self-help system, Dianetics...
founder L. Ron Hubbard
L. Ron Hubbard
Lafayette Ronald Hubbard , better known as L. Ron Hubbard , was an American pulp fiction author and religious leader who founded the Church of Scientology...
's writings on stainless steel tablets and encasing them in titanium capsules underground. An aerial photograph showing the base's enormous Church of Spiritual Technology
Church of Spiritual Technology
The Church of Spiritual Technology, also known as CST, is a Californian 501 non-profit corporation, incorporated in 1982, which owns all the copyrights of the estate of L. Ron Hubbard. The CST is doing business as L. Ron Hubbard Library...
symbols on the ground caused media interest and a local TV station broke the story in November 2005. According to a Washington Post report, the organization unsuccessfully attempted to coerce the station not to air the story.
Flag ship, Freewinds
The cruise shipCruise ship
A cruise ship or cruise liner is a passenger ship used for pleasure voyages, where the voyage itself and the ship's amenities are part of the experience, as well as the different destinations along the way...
Freewinds is the only place the current highest level of Scientology training (OT VIII
OT VIII
OT VIII is the highest current course and level in Scientology. Collectively, the OTs are referred to as Operating Thetan course materials. OT VIII is known as "The Truth Revealed"....
) is offered. It cruises the Caribbean Sea, under the auspices of the Flag Ship Service Organization. The Freewinds is also used for other courses and auditing for those willing to spend extra money to get services on the ship.
Other locations
The Church of Scientology is continuing to purchase properties: in 2007 a church opened in "The Winter Strawberry Capital of the World", Plant City, FloridaPlant City, Florida
Plant City is a city in Hillsborough County, Florida, in the United States, approximately midway between Brandon and Lakeland along Interstate 4. The population was 34,721 at the 2010 census....
. and purchased the former site of the Saint Samuel Church of God in Harlem, New York, for $10,200,000. On March 30, 2011, the church began talks with Los Angeles television station KCET
KCET
KCET, channel 28, is an independent, non-commercial public television station licensed to Los Angeles, California, USA. KCET's studio is located on West Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood, and its transmitter is atop Mount Wilson. Al Jerome is the current CEO and President, serving since 1996.KCET was...
to sell its studios, the former home of Monogram Pictures
Monogram Pictures
Monogram Pictures Corporation is a Hollywood studio that produced and released films, most on low budgets, between 1931 and 1953, when the firm completed a transition to the name Allied Artists Pictures Corporation. Monogram is considered a leader among the smaller studios sometimes referred to...
, to the church; the sale was closed on April 25, 2011.
Churches of Scientology and Life Improvement Centers can be found worldwide, some examples are included below:
Affiliated organizations
There are many independently chartered organizations and groups which are staffed by Scientologists, and pay license fees for the use of Scientology technology and trademarks under the control of Scientology management. In some cases, these organizations do not publicize their affiliation with Scientology.The Church of Scientology denies the legitimacy of any splinter groups and factions outside the official organization, and has tried to prevent independent Scientologists from using officially trademarked Scientology materials. Independent Scientologists, also known collectively as the "Free Zone
Free Zone (Scientology)
The Free Zone comprises a variety of groups and individuals who practice Scientology beliefs and techniques independently of the Church of Scientology . Such practitioners range from those who closely adhere to the original teachings of Scientology's founder L...
" are referred to as squirrels within the Church. They are also classified by the Church of Scientology as suppressive person
Suppressive Person
Suppressive Person, often abbreviated SP, is a term used in Scientology to describe the "antisocial personalities" who, according to Scientology's founder L. Ron Hubbard, make up about 2.5% of the population...
s ("SPs")—opponents or enemies of Scientology.
Sea Org
The Sea Organization (often shortened to "Sea Org") was founded in 1967 by L. Ron HubbardL. Ron Hubbard
Lafayette Ronald Hubbard , better known as L. Ron Hubbard , was an American pulp fiction author and religious leader who founded the Church of Scientology...
, as he embarked on a series of voyages around the Mediterranean Sea
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
in a small fleet of Scientology-crewed cruise ships. Hubbard—formerly a lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
junior grade in the US Navy—bestowed the rank of "Commodore" of the vessels upon himself. The crew who accompanied him on these voyages became the foundation of the Sea Org.
"Orgs", such as "Los Angeles Org", are semi-autonomous organizations which staff themselves as they see fit. The Sea Org is a more dedicated, more elite group within Scientology which exclusively staffs the higher Orgs. The Advanced Organization of Los Angeles, for example, is staffed by Sea Org members. While every Org enforces rules and administers disciplinary procedures within its own portion of the larger organization which is the CoS, Sea Org members hold the highest jobs. The Sea Org is frequently characterized as the "elite" of Scientology, both in terms of power within the organization and dedication to the cause. Scientologists seeking to advance within the organization are encouraged to join the Sea Org, which involves devoting their full time to Scientology projects in exchange for meals, berthing and a nominal honorarium. Members sign a contract pledging their loyalty to Scientology for "the next billion years," committing their future lifetimes to the Sea Org. The Sea Org's motto is "Revenimus" (or "We Come Back").
Disciplinary procedures and policies within the Sea Org have been a focus of critics
Scientology controversy
Since the Church of Scientology's inception in 1954, numerous Scientologists have been involved in scandals, at times serving prison sentences for crimes, such as those committed in Operation Snow White...
who argue that Scientology is an abusive cult. During the original Sea Org's Mediterranean tour, Hubbard applied a variety of physical punishments, including the practice of "overboarding," or throwing offenders over the side of the ship. Former Sea Org members have stated that punishments in the late 1960s and early 1970s included confinement in hazardous conditions such as the ship's chain locker. The Rehabilitation Project Force
Rehabilitation Project Force
The Rehabilitation Project Force, or RPF, is a controversial program set up by the Church of Scientology Sea Organization, intended to rehabilitate members of the Sea Organization who have not lived up to the Church expectations or have violated certain policies...
or RPF was established in 1974 to provide a "second chance" to Sea Org members whose offenses against Church rules were such that they would otherwise have been expelled from membership. RPF members are paired up and help one another for five hours each day with spiritual counseling to resolve the issues for which they were assigned to the program. The also spend 8 hours per day doing physical labor that will benefit the Church facility where they are located. On verification of their having completed the program they are then given a Sea Org job again.
Volunteer Ministers
The Church of Scientology began its "Volunteer MinistersVolunteer Ministers
The Volunteer Minister program of the Church of Scientology dispatches groups of Scientologists using techniques developed by Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard...
" program as a way to participate in community outreach projects. Over the past several years, it has become a common practice for Volunteer Ministers to travel to the scenes of major disasters in order to provide assistance with relief efforts. According to critics, these relief efforts consist of passing out copies of a pamphlet authored by L. Ron Hubbard entitled The Way to Happiness
The Way to Happiness
The Way to Happiness is a 1980 booklet written by Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard listing 21 moral precepts, and distributed by The Way to Happiness Foundation International, a Scientology-related non-profit organization founded in 1984....
, and engaging in a method said to calm panicked or injured individuals known in Scientology as a "touch assist
Touch assist
In Scientology, the Touch Assist is a procedure supposed to help heal illnesses or injuries. It is one of many such Assists.-Theory:Church of Scientology founder L...
."
Religious Technology Center (RTC)
Around 1982 all of the Hubbard's intellectual propertyIntellectual property
Intellectual property is a term referring to a number of distinct types of creations of the mind for which a set of exclusive rights are recognized—and the corresponding fields of law...
was transferred to a newly formed entity called the Church of Spiritual Technology
Church of Spiritual Technology
The Church of Spiritual Technology, also known as CST, is a Californian 501 non-profit corporation, incorporated in 1982, which owns all the copyrights of the estate of L. Ron Hubbard. The CST is doing business as L. Ron Hubbard Library...
(CST) and then licensed to the Religious Technology Center
Religious Technology Center
The Religious Technology Center is a Californian non-profit corporation. RTC was founded in 1982 by the Church of Scientology in order to control and oversee the use of all of the trademarks, symbols and texts of Scientology and Dianetics, including the copyrighted works of Scientology founder and...
(RTC) which, according to its own publicity, exists to safeguard and control the use of the Church of Scientology's copyrights and trademarks.
The RTC employs lawyers and has pursued individuals and groups who have legally attacked Scientology or who are deemed to be a legal threat to Scientology. This has included breakaway Scientologists who practice Scientology outside the central church and critics, as well as numerous government and media organizations. This has helped to maintain Scientology's reputation for litigiousness (see Scientology and the legal system
Scientology and the legal system
The Church of Scientology has been involved in court disputes in several countries. In some cases, when the Church has initiated the dispute, question has been raised as to its motives. The Church says that its use of the legal system is necessary to protect its intellectual property and its right...
).
ABLE
Founded in 1989, the Association for Better Living and Education (ABLE) is an umbrella organization that administers six of Scientology's social programs:- Applied ScholasticsApplied ScholasticsApplied Scholastics is a non-profit corporation founded in 1972 to promote the use of study techniques created by L. Ron Hubbard, a science fiction author and the founder of the Church of Scientology...
, educational programs based on Hubbard's "Study Tech." - CriminonCriminonCriminon is a program for rehabilitating prisoners using L. Ron Hubbard's teachings. Criminon International, a non-profit, public-benefit corporation managing the Criminon program, was spawned from Narconon International in 2000, and is part of Association for Better Living and Education's public...
prisoner rehabilitation programs. - International Foundation for Human Rights and ToleranceInternational Foundation for Human Rights and ToleranceThe International Foundation for Human Rights and Tolerance is a human rights group affiliated with Scientology, the stated aim of which is to "provide easy-to-understand human rights education to adults and children so that they are able to grasp what fundamental human rights are as aligned with...
, which has a particular interest in religious freedom. - NarcononNarcononNarconon is a residential program aimed at substance abusers, headquartered in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California. It operates through several dozen treatment centers worldwide, chiefly in the United States and Western Europe. Each Narconon center is independently owned and operated under a license...
drug rehabilitation centers. - The Way to HappinessThe Way to HappinessThe Way to Happiness is a 1980 booklet written by Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard listing 21 moral precepts, and distributed by The Way to Happiness Foundation International, a Scientology-related non-profit organization founded in 1984....
Foundation, dedicated to disseminating Hubbard's non-religious moral code. - Youth for Human Rights InternationalYouth for Human Rights InternationalYouth for Human Rights International is a non-profit organization based at 1954 Hillhurst Ave. # 416 in Los Angeles, California. Founded and largely staffed and financed by Scientologists, its stated mission is "To teach youth around the globe about human rights, thus helping them to become...
, the youth branch of the above.
CCHR
The Citizens' Commission on Human Rights (CCHR), co-founded with Thomas SzaszThomas Szasz
Thomas Stephen Szasz is a psychiatrist and academic. Since 1990 he has been Professor Emeritus of Psychiatry at the State University of New York Health Science Center in Syracuse, New York. He is a well-known social critic of the moral and scientific foundations of psychiatry, and of the social...
in 1969, is an activist group dedicated to classifying psychiatric
Psychiatry
Psychiatry is the medical specialty devoted to the study and treatment of mental disorders. These mental disorders include various affective, behavioural, cognitive and perceptual abnormalities...
treatments as human rights violations and furthering the Scientology doctrinal opposition to mainstream psychiatric therapies
Scientology and psychiatry
Scientology and psychiatry have come into conflict since the foundation of Scientology in 1952. Scientology is publicly, and often vehemently, opposed to both psychiatry and psychology. Scientologists view psychiatry as a barbaric and corrupt profession and encourage alternative care based on...
.
WISE
Many other Scientologist-run businesses and organizations belong to the umbrella organizationUmbrella organization
An umbrella organization is an association of institutions, who work together formally to coordinate activities or pool resources. In business, political, or other environments, one group, the umbrella organization, provides resources and often an identity to the smaller organizations...
World Institute of Scientology Enterprises (WISE), which licenses the use of Hubbard's management doctrines, and circulates directories of WISE-affiliated businesses. WISE requires those who wish to become Hubbard management consults to complete training in Hubbard's administrative systems; this training can be undertaken at any Church of Scientology, or at one of the campuses of the Hubbard College of Administration, which offers an Associate of Applied Science Degree.
- One of the best-known WISE-affiliated businesses is Sterling Management SystemsSterling Management SystemsSterling Management Systems offers practice management seminars and training to Accounting, Medical and Dental and other private practice professionals. Founded in 1983 in the back office of a dental practice in Vacaville, Ca., it is currently located in a office in Glendale, CA. It has been named...
, which offers Hubbard's management "technology" to professionals such as dentists and chiropractors. - Another well-known WISE-affiliated business is e-Republic, a publishing company based in Folsom, California. e-Republic publications include Government Technology and Converge magazines. The Center for Digital Government is a division of e. Republic that was founded in 1999.
- Internet ISP EarthLinkEarthLinkEarthLink , is an Internet service provider headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. It claims 1.94 million subscribers.- Business :EarthLink provides a variety of Internet connection types, including dial-up, DSL, satellite, and cable. Both dial-up and high speed Internet access are available...
was founded by Scientologist Sky DaytonSky DaytonSky Dylan Dayton is an American entrepreneur.Dayton is the founder of EarthLink, co-founder of eCompanies, founder and chairman of Boingo.-Early life:...
as a Scientology enterprise. The company now distances itself from the views of its founder, who has moved on to become CEO of Helio (wireless carrier), formerly known as SK-EarthLink.
Celebrities
In order to facilitate the continued expansion of Scientology, the Church has made efforts to win allies in the form of powerful or respected people.See also
- alt.religion.scientologyAlt.religion.scientologyThe newsgroup alt.religion.scientology is a Usenet newsgroup started in 1991 to discuss the controversial beliefs of Scientology, as well as the Church of Scientology, which claims exclusive intellectual property rights thereto and is viewed by many as a dangerous cult...
- List of groups referred to as cults in government documents
- List of religious organizations
- List of Scientologists
- List of Scientology organizations
- Original Founding Church of Scientology
- Project ChanologyProject ChanologyProject Chanology is a protest movement against the practices of the Church of Scientology by members of Anonymous, a leaderless Internet-based group that defines itself as ubiquitous...
- Scientology and the legal systemScientology and the legal systemThe Church of Scientology has been involved in court disputes in several countries. In some cases, when the Church has initiated the dispute, question has been raised as to its motives. The Church says that its use of the legal system is necessary to protect its intellectual property and its right...
- Scientology and the Internet
- Scientology beliefs and practicesScientology beliefs and practicesScientology is defined as a set of beliefs written by founder L. Ron Hubbard. Scientology describes itself as the study and handling of the spirit in relationship to itself, others, and all of life...
- Scientology controversies
- Scientology in popular culture
- Timeline of ScientologyTimeline of ScientologyThis is a timeline of Scientology, particularly its foundation and development by author L. Ron Hubbard.-1938:* L. Ron Hubbard authors a manuscript called "Excalibur" which contains ideas that were later incorporated into Scientology.-1949:...
- Foundation for a Drug-Free WorldFoundation for a Drug-Free WorldFoundation for a Drug-Free World is an anti-drug organization with links to and funded by the Church of Scientology.- External links :**...
- Exscientologykids.comExscientologykids.comExscientologykids.com is a website launched in 2008 by Jenna Miscavige Hill, Astra Woodcraft and Kendra Wiseman. It is dedicated to publishing affidavits of former child members of the Church of Scientology. The website's slogan reads: "We were born. We grew up...
External links
Church of ScientologyFavorable sites
Critical sites
- An Introduction to Scientology from a critical perspective
- Operation Clambake, an archive of critical articles on Hubbard and Scientology
- Xenu TV (video footage library of various topics related to Scientology)
- http://scientologistsfreezone.com/Critical comparison between the church and the independent Scientology FreezoneFree Zone (Scientology)The Free Zone comprises a variety of groups and individuals who practice Scientology beliefs and techniques independently of the Church of Scientology . Such practitioners range from those who closely adhere to the original teachings of Scientology's founder L...
.] - Comparison of past and current church statistics and philosophy and technology used and promoted
Independent Scientology sites
Other
- Satellite Image of the Gold Base
- Shea, Danny. "Wikipedia Bans Church of Scientology from Site". The Huffington PostThe Huffington PostThe Huffington Post is an American news website and content-aggregating blog founded by Arianna Huffington, Kenneth Lerer, and Jonah Peretti, featuring liberal minded columnists and various news sources. The site offers coverage of politics, theology, media, business, entertainment, living, style,...
. May 29, 2009 - Wright, Lawrence. "What happens when you try to leave the Church of Scientology?" The GuardianThe GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
. April 23, 2011