Rehabilitation Project Force
Encyclopedia
The Rehabilitation Project Force, or RPF, is a controversial program set up by the Church of Scientology
Sea Org
anization, intended to rehabilitate members of the Sea Organization (not everyday parishioners) who have not lived up to the Church expectations or have violated certain policies. As part of this program, and in addition to the application of Scientology procedures, members do manual labor tasks around Sea Org bases. There have been some reports of overwork and mistreatment at RPF facilities, and the program can take years to complete.
's private fleet in the late 1960s. The mud box is a small perforated screening box fitted to the suction pipe in the bilge
of a ship, and is designed to catch larger solid waste before it can choke the pipeline and potentially damage the pump. The Mud Box Brigade was assigned to clean out the mud box as well as fuel lines, water hues, bilges and so on. As this involved cleaning foul-smelling waste by hand, it was understandably not a popular task.
Hubbard defined the role as being essentially a punishment duty for unsatisfactory workers: "More candidates will be appointed regularly and promptly every time I find a freeloader who is loafing on post and drifting with the wind." "This group is the most downstat [unproductive] and one gets assigned to it by being a freeloader, invisible on post, loafing and really goofing up on one's job." J. Gordon Melton
, however, suggested that "Hubbard understood it in terms of making retribution to the people who had been harmed by the nonperformance or incorrect performance of one's assigned tasks."
In 1969 Hubbard replaced the Mud Box Brigade with the Rehabilitation Unit, again intended for those removed or disciplined "as ineffective or trouble." Following an evaluation, the individual was to receive a set of "specific recommendations which if followed will rehabilitate the individual as a highly effective and worthwhile Sea Org member." Hubbard instructed that "The unit is [to be] worked hard during the day on a rigorous schedule on jobs assigned by the Review Chief handling corrective areas and jobs needing remedy and repair. The Unit itself is thus made into an effective ship's review team. It works on a one job, one time, one place formula completing each job before moving into the next. Each individual thus earns the right to the remedial services he or she will receive."
Finally, the Rehabilitation Unit was replaced in January 1974 with the Rehabilitation Project Force or RPF. According to Hubbard, "the RPF has been created by the Commodore [Hubbard] so that redemption can occur. That is basically its only purpose." He identified four categories of people who were to be assigned to the RPF: "rockslammers" (people deemed to have hidden evil intentions, as detected by the E-meter
); people who were unproductive and scored poorly on the Oxford Capacity Analysis
personality test; "repeated stat crashers", people who were held responsible for declines in Scientology organizations' productivity; and "overt product makers", people who produced poor-quality work. As before, the unit was to work on "one job, one place, one time." A five-hour study period was to be implemented each day to improve the individuals' knowledge of Scientology. According to David G. Bromley
and Douglas E. Cowan
, the RPF involves a daily regimen of five hours of auditing or studying, eight hours of work, often physical labor, such as building renovation, and at least seven hours of sleep.
The RPF was originally intended to last no more than a couple of months, where the assignee would learn Scientology auditing
, if he or she was not already an auditor by the "read it, drill it, do it" method. RPF members would then co-audit each other to better themselves and make each other more ethical and productive.
system of the Soviet Union
. Leaving the Sea Org, even from the RPF, results in what Scientology calls "freeloader debt" or a "freeloader's bill": retroactive billing for any auditing received or any Scientology training received while in the Sea Org, which can run into tens of thousands of dollars. This "freeloader debt" is however not legally binding and no one actually needs to pay anything. However, many former Scientologists have reported that they felt trapped by the "freeloader debt" policy.
In his book, The Complex, John Duignan provides an account of the RPF as living in a rat-infested basement, engaging in degrading jobs years at a stretch, and not being allowed to visit one's spouse or children.
Douglas E. Cowan and David G. Bromley state that various scholars and observers have come to radically different conclusions about the RPF and whether it is "voluntary or coercive, therapeutic or punitive".
, near the reservation of the Soboba Band of Luiseño Indians, which is southeast of Gold Base
. This site was sold by the church in 2002 to the Soboba Band who turned it into a resort.
Church of Scientology
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...
Sea Org
Sea Org
The Sea Organization or Sea Org is an association of Scientologists established in 1968 by L. Ron Hubbard, the science fiction writer and founder of Scientology. Its members are found in the central management organizations of the Church of Scientology as well as in individual churches...
anization, intended to rehabilitate members of the Sea Organization (not everyday parishioners) who have not lived up to the Church expectations or have violated certain policies. As part of this program, and in addition to the application of Scientology procedures, members do manual labor tasks around Sea Org bases. There have been some reports of overwork and mistreatment at RPF facilities, and the program can take years to complete.
Development
The Rehabilitation Project Force developed out of a predecessor group, the Mud Box Brigade, aboard 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...
's private fleet in the late 1960s. The mud box is a small perforated screening box fitted to the suction pipe in the bilge
Bilge
The bilge is the lowest compartment on a ship where the two sides meet at the keel. The word was coined in 1513.-Bilge water:The word is sometimes also used to describe the water that collects in this compartment. Water that does not drain off the side of the deck drains down through the ship into...
of a ship, and is designed to catch larger solid waste before it can choke the pipeline and potentially damage the pump. The Mud Box Brigade was assigned to clean out the mud box as well as fuel lines, water hues, bilges and so on. As this involved cleaning foul-smelling waste by hand, it was understandably not a popular task.
Hubbard defined the role as being essentially a punishment duty for unsatisfactory workers: "More candidates will be appointed regularly and promptly every time I find a freeloader who is loafing on post and drifting with the wind." "This group is the most downstat [unproductive] and one gets assigned to it by being a freeloader, invisible on post, loafing and really goofing up on one's job." 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...
, however, suggested that "Hubbard understood it in terms of making retribution to the people who had been harmed by the nonperformance or incorrect performance of one's assigned tasks."
In 1969 Hubbard replaced the Mud Box Brigade with the Rehabilitation Unit, again intended for those removed or disciplined "as ineffective or trouble." Following an evaluation, the individual was to receive a set of "specific recommendations which if followed will rehabilitate the individual as a highly effective and worthwhile Sea Org member." Hubbard instructed that "The unit is [to be] worked hard during the day on a rigorous schedule on jobs assigned by the Review Chief handling corrective areas and jobs needing remedy and repair. The Unit itself is thus made into an effective ship's review team. It works on a one job, one time, one place formula completing each job before moving into the next. Each individual thus earns the right to the remedial services he or she will receive."
Finally, the Rehabilitation Unit was replaced in January 1974 with the Rehabilitation Project Force or RPF. According to Hubbard, "the RPF has been created by the Commodore [Hubbard] so that redemption can occur. That is basically its only purpose." He identified four categories of people who were to be assigned to the RPF: "rockslammers" (people deemed to have hidden evil intentions, as detected by the E-meter
E-meter
An E-meter is an electronic device used during Dianetics and Scientology auditing. The device is a variation of a Wheatstone bridge, which measures electrical resistance and skin conductance. It is formally known as the Hubbard Electrometer, for the Church's founder, L. Ron Hubbard...
); people who were unproductive and scored poorly on the Oxford Capacity Analysis
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,...
personality test; "repeated stat crashers", people who were held responsible for declines in Scientology organizations' productivity; and "overt product makers", people who produced poor-quality work. As before, the unit was to work on "one job, one place, one time." A five-hour study period was to be implemented each day to improve the individuals' knowledge of Scientology. According to David G. Bromley
David G. Bromley
David G. Bromley is a professor of sociology at Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA and the University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA. He has written extensively about "cults", new religious movements, apostasy, and the anti-cult movement.- Education and career :Bromley received his...
and Douglas E. Cowan
Douglas E. Cowan
Douglas E. Cowan is a Canadian academic in religious studies and the sociology of religion and currently holds a teaching position at Renison College, University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada...
, the RPF involves a daily regimen of five hours of auditing or studying, eight hours of work, often physical labor, such as building renovation, and at least seven hours of sleep.
The RPF was originally intended to last no more than a couple of months, where the assignee would learn 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:...
, if he or she was not already an auditor by the "read it, drill it, do it" method. RPF members would then co-audit each other to better themselves and make each other more ethical and productive.
Controversy
Critics of Scientology, including former Scientologists, have compared the RPF with the gulagGulag
The Gulag was the government agency that administered the main Soviet forced labor camp systems. While the camps housed a wide range of convicts, from petty criminals to political prisoners, large numbers were convicted by simplified procedures, such as NKVD troikas and other instruments of...
system of the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
. Leaving the Sea Org, even from the RPF, results in what Scientology calls "freeloader debt" or a "freeloader's bill": retroactive billing for any auditing received or any Scientology training received while in the Sea Org, which can run into tens of thousands of dollars. This "freeloader debt" is however not legally binding and no one actually needs to pay anything. However, many former Scientologists have reported that they felt trapped by the "freeloader debt" policy.
In his book, The Complex, John Duignan provides an account of the RPF as living in a rat-infested basement, engaging in degrading jobs years at a stretch, and not being allowed to visit one's spouse or children.
Douglas E. Cowan and David G. Bromley state that various scholars and observers have come to radically different conclusions about the RPF and whether it is "voluntary or coercive, therapeutic or punitive".
Castile Canyon School
One location, known as the Castile Canyon School or "Happy Valley", has been identified as a former RPF facility. It was located east of San Jacinto, CaliforniaSan Jacinto, California
San Jacinto is a city in Riverside County, California, U.S.A. It was named after Saint Hyacinth and is located at the north end of the San Jacinto Valley, with Hemet to its south. The mountains associated with the valley are the San Jacinto Mountains. The population was 44,199 at the 2010...
, near the reservation of the Soboba Band of Luiseño Indians, which is southeast of 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....
. This site was sold by the church in 2002 to the Soboba Band who turned it into a resort.
External links
- "The Church of Scientology’s Rehabilitation Project Force" by the Center for Studies on New ReligionsCESNURCESNUR , is an organization based in Turin, Italy. It was established in 1988 by a group of religious scholars from universities in Europe and the Americas, working in the field of new religious movements. Its director is the Italian sociologist and attorney Massimo Introvigne...
- "Brainwashing in Scientology's Rehabilitation Project Force (RPF)", a paper by Dr. Stephen A. KentStephen A. KentStephen A. Kent, is a Professor in the Department of Sociology at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. He researches new and alternative religions, and has published research on several such groups including the Children of God , the Church of Scientology, and newer faiths...
- Astra Woodcraft Interview, Part Three, "Leaving the Sea Org", 2001-01-20, XenuTV
- "Missing in Happy Valley - Investigation in to Scientology's RPF Camps"
- "Missing in Happy Valley?"
- "EX-INT BASE STAFF INTERROGATORY"
- "Scientology cult unlawful imprisonment RPF order 3434RB," archived on Wikileaks
- Wikileaks: Official Church of Scientology RPF guidebook