Jump to content

Church of Scientology

Page semi-protected
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Redirected from Distribution Center Inc.)
This article is about the institution behind Scientology. For the ideology itself, see Scientology.

Church of Scientology
FormationDecember 1953
FounderL. Ron Hubbard
HeadquartersGold Base
Location
Chairman of the Board RTC
David Miscavige
Websitescientology.org
Part of a series on
Scientology
PAC Base, Los Angeles
  • General
Controversies
More

The Church of Scientology is a group of interconnected corporate entities and other organizations devoted to the practice, administration and dissemination of Scientology, which is variously defined as a cult, a business, or a new religious movement.[7] The movement has been the subject of a number of controversies, and the Church of Scientology has been described by government inquiries, international parliamentary bodies, scholars, law lords, and numerous superior court judgements as both a dangerous cult and a manipulative profit-making business.[13]

In 1979, several executives of the organization were convicted and imprisoned for multiple offenses by a U.S. Federal Court.[14][15]: 168  The Church of Scientology itself was convicted of fraud by a French court in 2009, a decision upheld by the supreme Court of Cassation in 2013.[16] The German government classifies Scientology as an unconstitutional sect.[17][18] In France, it has been classified as a dangerous cult.[19] In some countries, it has attained legal recognition as a religion.[20]

The Church of Scientology International (CSI) is officially the "Mother Church", and is responsible for guiding the other Scientology centers.[15]: 172  Its international headquarters are located at the Gold Base in Riverside County, California.[21]: 275  The Church of Spiritual Technology (CST) is the organization that owns all the copyrights of the estate of L. Ron Hubbard.[6]

All Scientology management organizations are controlled exclusively by members of the Sea Org, which is a paramilitary organization for the "elite, innermost dedicated core of Scientologists".[6][22] David Miscavige is described by the Scientology organization as the highest-ranking Sea Org officer, and is referred to by the organization as its captain.

History

Main article: History of Dianetics and Scientology
L. Ron Hubbard, founder of the Church of Scientology

In 1950, L. Ron Hubbard established organizations to manage activities related to his invention of Dianetics; the organizations went bankrupt and Hubbard moved to Arizona where he started Scientology. In 1952, Hubbard established the Hubbard Association of Scientologists (HAS), a secular organization, and in 1953 the first Church of Scientology organization was incorporated in Camden, New Jersey.[15]: 158 [23]: 138  The HAS was dissolved and the Hubbard Association of Scientologists International (HASI), a religious fellowship, was established to be the managing umbrella organization over all other organizations.[15]: 158  In late 1954, Hubbard made the official announcement that Scientology was a religion.[15]: 218  In 1954, the first Church of Scientology was incorporated in California, which in 1956 was renamed to the Church of Scientology of California.[15]: 159  That organization was to become the 'mother church' over hundreds of smaller churches and missions of Scientology until 1981 when that status was passed to the Church of Scientology International.[23]: 270 

Hubbard had official control of the organizations until 1966 when he publicly resigned, though he continued to give orders to executives, secretly running the organizations. Although Hubbard maintained no formal position within Scientology's management structure, he remained firmly in control of the organization and its affiliated organizations, often using code names and code words to obscure his involvement.[24] When some of the top ranking staff, including Hubbard's wife, were indicted for infiltrating the US government in their actions of Operation Snow White, Hubbard went into deep hiding though continued to manage control over the organizations but this time through intermediaries—predominantly Pat Broeker and David Miscavige.[23]: 257ff 

After the convictions in United States v. Hubbard, there was a flurry of activity creating new corporations in the early 1980s to avoid further government scrutiny and to limit and compartmentalize liabilities. The Guardian's Office was replaced with the Office of Special Affairs; Religious Technology Center (RTC) was created, and numerous other corporations sprang up during this period, which acquired the name "corporate sort out" (CSO).[21]: 129  The idea was to "create a legally defensible structure that would give Hubbard and the Commodore's Messenger Organization full legal control over Scientology while at the same time insulating both Hubbard and the CMO from any legal liability for running the organizations of Scientology by lying about the level of control they really had."[21]: 129–130 

In 1986, after the death of L. Ron Hubbard, Pat and Annie Broeker presented documents from Hubbard showing they had been promoted to "Loyal Officers" and were named as Hubbard's successors in managing the Sea Org. However, a year later David Miscavige had wrested power from the Broekers and became the leader of the Scientology organization.[25][23]: 362 [26]: 190–3 

Hierarchy of organizations

The Church of Scientology network operates as a multinational conglomerate of companies with personnel, executives, organizational charts, chains of command, policies and orders:[27][28][15]

Today, what we call "Scientology" is in reality a remarkably complex network of ostensibly independent but clearly interconnected corporate entities. ... with a centralized bureaucracy and hierarchical structure. ... [Religious Technology Center] is the most powerful executive organization within the Scientology empire, and its current chairman, David Miscavige, is widely recognized as the effective head of the church.

— Hugh Urban [15]: 131-2 

The main types of organizations within the Scientology network are:

Service organizations

See also: List of Scientology organizations § Service organizations
A mission, a Dianetics center, a life improvement center, a Class V org, an Ideal org, an advanced org

Church of Scientology organizations that are public-facing are called "service orgs".[29]: 476  The two main types of services offered to the public are auditing and auditor training. Auditing is the 'counseling', and training teaches how to audit. The levels of auditing and training are charted and described on The Bridge to Total Freedom.[30] All service organizations are separate corporate entities, are licensed as franchises, and pay a percentage of their gross revenues to International Management.[31]: 98  Hubbard's image and writing are ubiquitous in service orgs, and each maintains a corporate-style office set aside for Hubbard's reincarnation, with a plaque on the desk bearing his name, and a pad of paper with a pen for him to continue writing.[32][26]: 200 

Missions of Scientology
Business-wise, missions operate like franchises. They are independently owned by a "mission holder" and licensed to operate by the Church of Scientology. These offer beginning services to newcomers to Scientology, then push their clients to higher level service orgs.[29]: 334  Missions are managed by Scientology Missions International.
Scientology Life Improvement Centers and Dianetics Centers
These centers are operated by a local Church of Scientology and are small "store front" locations with the purpose of selling books and offering very basic services to get people interested in Scientology.

Central org, Class V org
This organization is what most people think of as "a Church of Scientology". It offers a full range of auditing and auditor training services up to the level of Clear on The Bridge to Total Freedom. They were called Class V orgs because the auditor training level up to Clear was called the "Class V auditor course".[33][30]
Ideal org
An Ideal Org is a special class of Class V org where a new large building has been acquired, renovated, and outfitted to David Miscavige's "ideal org" standards.[34]

Saint Hill org and Advanced org
A Saint Hill org is a type of service org which trains up through the Class VI course—the Saint Hill Special Briefing Course. Named after Saint Hill Manor. An Advanced org offers the advanced levels above Clear, including the OT levels I through V. Several organizations operate the function of a Saint Hill org coupled with an Advanced org in a single corporation, such as: East Grinstead, United Kingdom; Copenhagen, Denmark; Johannesburg, South Africa; and Sydney, Australia. Los Angeles, California has a separate Saint Hill org and an Advanced org.[35]: 49–50 
Flag Service Org (FSO)
Also known as "Flag". Located in the Clearwater, Florida campus, audits specialty rundowns such as the Super Power Rundown and the L's rundowns. It is also the chief training organization for Class V org staff to train for their posts (these students are called "outer org trainees"). FSO also operates an Advanced org which offers the OT levels VI and VII, and trains Sea Org staff for the confidential upper levels to audit and supervise others on OT levels V-VIII.[35]: 52ff 

Flag Ship Service Org (FSSO)
The name of the service org that operates aboard the Freewinds ship in the Caribbean. It offers the OT level VIII.[35]: 55ff 

Management organizations

See also: List of Scientology organizations § Management organizations

All Scientology management organizations are controlled exclusively by members of the Sea Org—which is not a corporation—consisting of the "elite, innermost dedicated core of Scientologists" run as a paramilitary organization:[6][22] David Miscavige is described by the Scientology organization as the highest-ranking Sea Org officer, and is referred to by the organization as its captain.

The Church of Scientology International (CSI) is officially the "Mother Church", and is responsible for guiding the other Scientology centers.[23]: 270 [15]: 172 

The Church of Spiritual Technology (CST) is the organization that owns all the copyrights of the estate of L. Ron Hubbard.[6]

There are numerous other management organizations, including the Commodore's Messenger Organization, Watchdog Committee, Continental Liaison Offices, and the organizations that manage the dissemination and outreach activities.[36]: 9, 10, 26 

In the 1950s and 1960s, management was operated from the Hubbard Association of Scientologists International (HASI), and from 1966 until the 1980s it was the Church of Scientology of California (CSC).[15]: 131 

Sea Org

Main article: Sea Org
This paragraph is an excerpt from Sea Org.[edit]
The Sea Organization or Sea Org is the senior-most status of staff within the Church of Scientology network of corporations, but is not itself incorporated. In the 1960s and 1970s, the Sea Org was started as L. Ron Hubbard's private navy, and adopted naval uniforms and ranks.[37]: 263 [15]: 124  Today, all Scientology management organizations are exclusively staffed with Sea Org members.[22] The Sea Org maintains strict codes for its members, beginning with a billion-year pledge of service to Scientology upon initiation.[15]: 125  David Miscavige, the leader of Scientology, is the highest-ranking Sea Org officer with the rank of captain. The rank of commodore is permanently reserved for the late L. Ron Hubbard, founder of Scientology.[21]: 139  Some ex-members and scholars have described the Sea Org as a totalitarian organization marked by intensive surveillance and lack of freedom.[15]: 125 

Critics of Scientology have spoken out against the disciplinary procedures and policies of the Sea Org, which have been a source of controversy since its inception and variously described as abusive and illegal. 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.[38]

In 1974, Hubbard established the Rehabilitation Project Force (or RPF), a forced labour and re-education program against reputedly delinquent members of the Sea Org,[39] which involves long days of hard labor, restricted food, and substandard living conditions.[40] Ex-members have reported physical abuse and that members are prevented from leaving with threats and coercion.[40][41] Teenagers as young as twelve years old have been assigned to the RPF, and there have been reports of children laboring for considerably longer than eight hours a day, and physical and sexual abuse of minors.[42][43][44] Jenna Miscavige Hill, niece of David Miscavige and author of Beyond Belief: My Secret Life Inside Scientology and My Harrowing Escape, stated that as a child she often worked 14 hours a day and only got to see her parents once a week, if that.[45]

Religious Technology Center (RTC)

See also: Religious Technology Center and Church of Spiritual Technology

The highest authority in the Church of Scientology network is Religious Technology Center (RTC). The RTC claims to only be the "holder of Scientology and Dianetics trademarks", but is in fact the main Scientology executive organization.[6] RTC chairman David Miscavige is widely seen as the effective head of Scientology.[6]

Religious Technology Center is the organization at the top of the Scientology hierarchy.[46]: 303  RTC was established in 1982, and controls the Dianetics and Scientology trademarks.[15]: 23  In 1987, David Miscavige took over control of RTC and is the head of RTC; officially Chairman of the Board, or COB.[46]: 122  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 organization, and critics, as well as numerous government and media organizations.[23]: 284 [15]: 182–185 

Scientology Missions International

Main article: Scientology Missions International

Scientology Missions International is the management organization over the mission network. Missions are small Scientology organizations which recruit new people and deliver basic services and auditing. These were the feeder organizations which sent people into the main Scientology orgs. Previously called franchises and running semi-autonomously under the wing of the Guardian's Office, they were considered "Scientology's life blood" until David Miscavige and his International Finance Police gutted the network in the early 1980s. Missions were operated by a mission holder who paid 10% license fees to the Church of Scientology but kept the bulk of their income to themselves.

The new policy was that missions paid a higher percentage to the new Scientology Missions International (SMI), established 1981, and anyone who objected was declared suppressive and their bank accounts seized. Hundreds of mission holders lost or closed their missions and in 1983 there were just forty missions left in the US. Until the 1990s, few people opened new missions and the push was directed towards celebrities to open missions: Kirstie Alley opened a mission in Wichita, Kansas in 1995, Isaac Hayes and Lisa Marie Presley opened one in Memphis in 1997, and Jenna Elfman opened one in San Francisco in 2001. According to the Church of Scientology, by 2002 there were 197 missions in the US, and by 2008 there were internationally 3,200 missions across 129 countries.[47][48][49][21]: 137–139, 159 [46]: 95–97, 157, 300 

(Note: A Sea Org missionaire is a person with a job completely unrelated to the mission network.[29]: 335 )

Publishing and media organizations

See also: List of Scientology organizations § Publishing houses and media

Golden Era Productions

Main article: Gold Base

Golden Era Productions is a 500+ acre property in California also known as Gold Base, occupied by the Church of Scientology since 1979. It is where they make Scientology films, reproduce audio recordings of Hubbard's lectures, and assemble E-meters.[46]: 80–81 

Scientology Media Productions and Scientology Network

Main articles: Scientology Network and KCET Studios

In 2011, the Church of Scientology purchased KCET-TV's studio facilities.[50] After five years of renovations and upgrades, the 4.5-acre property was reopened in 2016 as "Scientology Media Productions".[51] The facilities included "three soundstages, postproduction tools, control rooms, music studios, mixing rooms, art departments, scene shops, radio booths, screening rooms, a magazine production space, a live-events hub" and 136,000 square feet of space.[52] In 2018, they launched the Scientology Network.[53]

Bridge Publications and New Era Publications

Print and distribution center, California

Bridge Publications, Inc. (incorporated 1981 in California) is the publisher for Scientology books and magazines in the United States, and New Era Publications International, Aps is the publisher in Europe.[54]: 211 

Past publications organizations include Distribution Center Inc. (Maryland 1955), Publications Organization United States (California 1971), and Scientology Publications Limited (UK 1991).[55][56][57]

As of 2023, the Bridge Publications print and distribution center, located at 5600 E Olympic Blvd, Commerce, California, occupies 185,000 square feet and prints the organization's magazines and other Scientology materials. The center's press has the capacity to print 55,000 pages per hour. The warehousing and shipping department is fully automated, with the capability of handling half a million items per week.[58][56]

There are several imprints from across the entire Scientology network which are printed at the main print center, including Effective Education Publishing, Freedom Publishing, and Galaxy Press.

Author Services Inc. and Galaxy Press

Author Services building
Main articles: Author Services Inc. and Galaxy Press

Author Services Inc. (ASI) represents the literary, theatrical and musical works of L. Ron Hubbard.[59] It is wholly owned by Church of Spiritual Technology.[60] Author Services runs the contests Writers of the Future and Illustrators of the Future. Galaxy Press is an imprint of Author Services, spun off from Bridge Publications in 2002. Author Services and Galaxy Press are located at 7051 Hollywood Blvd, Hollywood, CA 90028.[61]

Dissemination organizations

See also: List of Scientology organizations § Secular and social management entities

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 and operate as front groups.[62][63]

Association for Better Living and Education (ABLE)

Main article: Association for Better Living and Education

Founded in 1989, the Association for Better Living and Education (ABLE) is an umbrella organization that administers six of Scientology's social programs:

Citizens Commission on Human Rights (CCHR)

Main article: Citizens Commission on Human Rights

The Citizens Commission on Human Rights is an anti-psychiatry lobby organization whose stated mission is to "eradicate abuses committed under the guise of mental health."[64] It operates the Psychiatry: An Industry of Death exhibit which is open to the public in CCHR's building on Sunset Boulevard.[26]: 293  It has been described by critics as a Scientology front group.[65][66][67]

Volunteer Ministers

Main article: Volunteer Ministers

The Church of Scientology began its "Volunteer Ministers" program as a way to participate in community outreach projects. Volunteer Ministers travel to the scenes of major disasters to provide assistance with relief efforts. According to critics, these relief efforts consist of passing out copies of a pamphlet authored by 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". Accounts of the Volunteer Ministers' effectiveness have been mixed, and touch assists are not supported by scientific evidence.[68][69][70]

World Institute of Scientology Enterprises (WISE)

Main article: World Institute of Scientology Enterprises

Many other Scientologist-run businesses and organizations belong to the umbrella organization 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 Systems, 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.[71] 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 EarthLink was founded by Scientologists Sky Dayton and Reed Slatkin as a Scientology enterprise. The company now distances itself from the views of its founder, who moved on to become CEO of Helio (wireless carrier), formerly known as SK-EarthLink.

Front groups

This paragraph is an excerpt from Scientology front groups.[edit]
Scientology front groups are those groups named or operated in such a way as to disguise their association with the Church of Scientology (COS). COS uses front groups to promote its interests in politics, to make itself appear legitimate, and to recruit. The Times published, "[The church attracts] the unwary through a wide array of front groups in such businesses as publishing, consulting, health care and even remedial education." Many of the groups are founded on pseudoscience, named disingenuously, and underplay their links to Scientology.[72][73]

Bases and campuses

See also: Scientology properties
Locations of major Scientology centers in the United States and the United Kingdom: 1. Saint Hill Manor 2. Flag Land Base 3. PAC Base 4. Gold Base 5. Trementina Base 6. Flag ship, Freewinds

The church owns a staggering array of properties, from a college on 55 acres in England to a luxury cruise ship. The church often buys historic buildings and refurbishes them in grand fashion. —St. Petersburg Times, 2009 [74]

Saint Hill, England

Main article: Saint Hill Manor
Some of the Saint Hill campus

Hubbard moved to England shortly after founding Scientology, where he oversaw its worldwide development from an office in London for most of the 1950s. In 1959, he bought Saint Hill Manor, a Georgian manor house near the Sussex town of East Grinstead. During Hubbard's years at Saint Hill, he traveled extensively, providing lectures and training in Australia, South Africa in the United States, and developing materials that would eventually become Scientology's "core systematic theology and praxis".[75] While in Saint Hill, Hubbard worked with a staff of nineteen and urged others to join. On September 14, 1959, he wrote: "Here, on half a hundred acres of lovely grounds in a mansion where we have not yet found all the bedrooms, we are handling the problems of administration and service for the world of Scientology. We are not very many here and as the sun never sets on Scientology we are very busy thetans."[75]

The most important achievement of the Saint Hill period was Hubbard's execution of the Saint Hill Special Briefing Course (SHBC). It was delivered by Hubbard from March 1951 to December 1966 and, within the Church of Scientology, is considered the best training course for budding "auditors" in the organization. Scientology groups called "Saint Hill Organizations" located in Los Angeles, Clearwater (Florida), Copenhagen and Sydney still teach this course.[75]

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 IX and X, will be released and made available to the organization's members when all the major organizations in the world have reached Saint Hill size.[76]

Flag Land Base, Clearwater, Florida

Main articles: Fort Harrison Hotel and Church of Scientology Flag Service Organization
Some of the Flag Land Base buildings: The Super Power Building (top, background) and Fort Harrison Hotel (top, foreground), Clearwater Bank building (bottom)

The "worldwide spiritual headquarters" of the Church of Scientology is known as Flag Land Base, located in Clearwater, Florida. It is operated by Church of Scientology Flag Service Organization, Inc., a Florida corporation.

The organization was founded in 1975 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.[77]

In the years since its foundation, the Flag Land 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 largest project in Clearwater has been the construction of a high-rise complex called the "Super Power Building", or Flag Building, which "is the centerpiece of a 160-million construction campaign."[78]

The Church of Scientology's CST chairman of the board, David Miscavige, led the opening and dedication of the 377,000-square-foot Flag Building on November 17, 2013. The multi-million cathedral is the new spiritual headquarters of Scientology. The fifth and sixth floor contain the "Super Power Program", which includes specially designed machines that Scientologists believe allow users to develop new abilities and experience enlightenment. The building also includes a dining facility, course rooms, offices and small rooms for "auditing" purposes.[79][80][81]

PAC Base and Hollywood, California

Los Angeles Org, Celebrity Centre, Hollywood Guaranty Building, Information Center, "Big Blue"

Los Angeles, California, has the largest concentration of Scientologists and Scientology-related organizations in the world, with the Church of Scientology's most visible presence being in the Hollywood district of the city.[82] The organization owns a former hospital on Fountain Avenue which houses Scientology's West Coast headquarters,[83] the Pacific Area Command Base – often referred to as "PAC Base" or "Big Blue", after its blue paint job. Adjacent buildings include headquarters of several internal Scientology divisions,[83] including the American Saint Hill Organization, the Advanced Organization of Los Angeles, and the Church of Scientology of Los Angeles. All these organizations are integrated within the corporation Church of Scientology Western United States. The Church of Scientology successfully campaigned to have the city of Los Angeles rename one block of a street running through their complex "L. Ron Hubbard Way". The street has been paved in brick.[84]

Scientology's Celebrity Center International is located on Franklin Avenue, while the Association for Better Living and Education, Author Services, the Test Center, and the official headquarters of the Church of Scientology International (in the Hollywood Guaranty Building) are all located on Hollywood Boulevard.[85] The ground floor of the Guaranty Building also features the L. Ron Hubbard Life Exhibition, a museum detailing his life that is open to the general public. The Celebrity Centre was acquired by the organization as the Chateau Elysee in 1973, built to accommodate members in the arts, sports and government.[37]

Gold Base, Riverside County, California

Main article: Gold Base
Gold Base aerial view from west

The headquarters of Religious Technology Center, the entity that oversees Scientology operations worldwide, is located in unincorporated Riverside County, California, near the city of San Jacinto. 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.[86] Therefore, Gold Base is Scientology's international administrative headquarters.[87][88][89][90]

The Church of Scientology bought the former Gilman Hot Springs resort, which had been popular with Hollywood figures, in 1978; the resort became Gold Base.[90] The facilities are surrounded by floodlights and video observation cameras,[86][91][92][93] and the compound is protected by razor wire.[94]

Trementina Base, New Mexico

Trementina Base
Main article: Trementina Base

The Church of Scientology maintains a large base on the outskirts of Trementina, New Mexico, for the purpose of storing their archiving project: engraving 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 report in The Washington Post, the organization unsuccessfully attempted to coerce the station not to air the story.[95]

Membership statistics

It is difficult to obtain reliable membership statistics. In the US, the 2008 American Religious Identification Survey found that there were 25,000 Scientologists in the US. Some of these were not considered to be members of the organization.[96][97][98][99] A 2008 Trinity College survey similarly concluded there were 25,000 Scientologists.[100] The International Association of Scientologists (IAS), the official Church of Scientology membership system since 1984, has never released figures.[26]: ix  The organization's spokespersons either give numbers for their countries or a worldwide figure.[101]

The organization has said that it has eight to fifteen million members worldwide, but this figure is known to be an aggrandizing fabrication.[102][103][104][105][106][107][108][109] Religious scholar J. Gordon Melton has said that the organization'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".[110]

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.[111] A 2008 survey of American religious affiliations by the US Census Bureau estimated there to be 25,000 Americans identifying as Scientologists.[112][113]
  • 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.[114]
  • In 2011, Statistics Canada, the national census agency, reported a total of 1,745 Scientologists nationwide,[115] up from 1,525 in 2001[114] and 1,220 in 1991.[116]
  • 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.[117]
  • In the 2006 New Zealand census, 357 people identified themselves as Scientologists, although a spokesperson for the organization said there were between 5,000 and 6,000 Scientologists in the country.[118] Earlier census figures were 207 in the 1991 census, 219 in 1996, and 282 in 2001.[114]
  • In 2006, Australia's national census recorded 2,507 Scientologists nationwide, up from 1,488 in 1996, and 2,032 in 2001.[114][119] The 2011 census however found a decrease of 13.7 percent from the 2006 census.[120]
  • In 2011, SonntagsZeitung reported that support for Scientology in Switzerland had experienced a steady decline from 3,000 registered members in 1990 to 1,000 members and the organization was said to be facing extinction in the country. A Church of Scientology spokesperson rejected the figures claiming that the organization had 5,000 "passive and active members in Switzerland".[121]
  • In 2011, the "Scientology Association of Finland" had approximately 120 members.[122]

Finances

See also: Scientology Finance, Tax status of Scientology in the United States, and List of Scientology organizations § Financial trusts

In 2008, the Church of Scientology and its large network of corporations, nonprofits and other legal entities were estimated to bring in around 500 million US dollars in annual revenue.[123] 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 (equivalent to $58,279 in 2023).[124] Scientologists can choose to be audited by a fellow Scientologist rather than by a staff member.[125]

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.[126]

Ideal Orgs

Starting in 2003 Miscavige began pressuring local Churches of Scientology to purchase larger facilities to use as Scientology centers which would be renovated to become "Ideal Orgs".[127] The theory was "If you build it they will come."[21]: 348  This push has included the acquisition of many historic buildings, a plan which professor of religious studies Hugh Urban believes has been pursued to imbue the Church with historical significance and distract from its controversies.[37] For renovations of these buildings, the Church of Scientology has relied heavily on manual labor from Sea Org members in the organization's Rehabilitation Project Force.[37] As of 2018, the Church of Scientology claims it had purchased 70 buildings and opened 60 Ideal Orgs around the globe.[128][129]

With its membership numbers dwindling, Scientology's ideal org campaign has been called "a real estate scam", a "money-making scam", and "Scientology's principle cash cow".[128][21]: 347  Scientologists were heavily pressured during lengthy fundraising sessions to donate all their money and even open new credit lines to help fund the several million dollar building purchases. This resulted in less money to spend on normal services like training and auditing, so the new orgs became desolate. Staff pay, which is dependent upon weekly org income, was often reduced to a few dollars a week.[127][128] A 2010 survey of former Scientologists by former Church of Scientology executive Mike Rinder found that the most cited reason for leaving the Church was the unrelenting pressure to donate to programs such as the Ideal Org program.[21]: 349 

Some of the buildings purchased for Ideal Orgs remained vacant and unrenovated for years. For example, in the UK, delayed Ideal Orgs included Birmingham (purchased in 2007 and finally opened in 2017),[130][131] Gateshead (purchased 2007),[132] Manchester (purchased 2006),[132][133] and Plymouth (purchased 2009).[134] The delays prompted calls from locals for a compulsory purchase of the historically significant buildings, which had remained largely vacant and undeveloped since their purchase.[135]

Celebrities

Main article: Scientology and celebrities

In order to facilitate the continued expansion of Scientology, the organization has made efforts to win allies in the form of powerful or respected people.[136] Scientology has had a written program governing celebrity recruitment since at least 1955, when L. Ron Hubbard created "Project Celebrity", offering rewards to Scientologists who recruited targeted celebrities, and another church document pointed to the importance of "using Scientology celebrities to mold the opinions of their publics."[15]: 139–141  According to Robert Vaughn Young, "one of my jobs was to get celebrities active, to convince them to hustle and promote Scientology."[137] The Church of Scientology operates Celebrity Centres for the use of artists, politicians, leaders of industry, sports figures, and other prominent individuals.[138]

Government opinions of Scientology

Main article: Scientology status by country

While some governments now give the Church of Scientology protections and tax relief,[139][140] other sources describe the organization as a pseudoreligion or a cult.[141] 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.[142][143][3][144] Sociologist Stephen Kent published at a Lutheran convention in Germany that he likes to call it a transnational corporation.[145]

Controversy

Main article: Scientology controversies

Though it has attained some credibility as a religion in many countries, Scientology has also been described as both a cult and a commercial enterprise.[1] Some of the organization'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, by identifying as fair game people it perceives as its enemies.[146][147]

In 1979, several Scientology members were convicted for their involvement in the organization's Operation Snow White, the largest theft of government documents in U.S. history.[148][149] Scientologists were also convicted of fraud, manslaughter and tampering with witnesses in French cases,[150][151] malicious libel against lawyer Casey Hill and espionage in Canada.[152][153]

In his book World Religions in America, religious scholar Jacob Neusner states that Scientology's "high level of visibility" may be perceived as "threatening to established social institutions".[154] The film Going Clear, based on the book by the same name,[26] also documents controversies surrounding the organization and its treatment of former members.[155][156]

Criticism has also come from within the Church. Marty Rathbun, the former inspector general of the Religious Technology, has spoken out against church activities. He has called for a "Scientology Reformation" to eliminate corruption and bring back the original teachings of L. Ron Hubbard.[157]

Classification

From 1952 until 1966, Scientology was administered by an organization called the Hubbard Association of Scientologists (HAS), established in Arizona on September 10, 1952. In 1954, the HAS became the HASI (HAS International). The Church of Scientology was incorporated in California on February 18, 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 the organization's activities were commercial and operated for the benefit of Hubbard. Controversy followed the organization in those years, but its growth continued in the 1960s. New facilities were formed in Paris (1959), Denmark (1968), Sweden (1969), and Germany (1970). In the 1970s the religion spread through Europe: in Austria (1971), Holland (1972), Italy (1978), and Switzerland (1978). Centers of Scientology were in 52 countries by the time the 80s came in and grew to 74 by 1992.[158]

The organization 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 organization paid $12.5 million to the IRS—greatly less than IRS had initially demanded—and the IRS recognized the organization as a tax-exempt nonprofit organization.[159] 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.[160] In January 2009, removal of the tax exemption was rated as number 9 in items for the incoming Barack Obama administration to investigate, as determined in an internet poll run by the presidential transition team soliciting public input for the incoming administration.[161] 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.[162][163][164]

In some countries, such as Israel, Scientology is treated legally as a commercial enterprise, and not as a religion or charitable organization.[141]: 12  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. 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 Church of Scientology (see Scientology and the legal system).

Illegal activities

Main articles: Operation Snow White, Operation Freakout, Scientology controversies, and Fair game (Scientology)

L. Ron Hubbard appointed Mary Sue Hubbard to take control of certain aspects of legal protection for the organization in 1968, and the Office of The Guardian was created with its head office situated at Saint Hill Manor. Under The Guardian's Office (later renamed the Office of Special Affairs or OSA), organization members and contracted staff later organized and committed one of the largest penetrations of United States federal agencies ever perpetrated by an organization not affiliated with a foreign government (that is, one such as the KGB). This operation was named Operation Snow White by Hubbard.[149] In the trial which followed the discovery of these activities the prosecution described their actions as such:

The crime committed by these defendants is of a breadth and scope previously unheard of. No building, office, desk, or file was safe from their snooping and prying. No individual or organization was free from their despicable conspiratorial minds. The tools of their trade were miniature transmitters, lock picks, secret codes, forged credentials and any other device they found necessary to carry out their conspiratorial schemes.[149]

The organization has also in the past made use of aggressive tactics in addressing those it sees as trying to suppress them, known as Suppressive Persons (SPs) first outlined by 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 organization 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.[149] When fingerprints on them matched hers, the Justice Department began prosecution, which could have sent Cooper to prison for a lengthy term. The organization'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.[149]

On January 22, 2013, attorneys for the organization, as well as some of its members, reacted toward the CNN News Group for its airing of a story covering the release of a book published by a former member, entitled 'Going Clear', published earlier the same year. CNN News Group then chose to publish the reactionary correspondence, with confidential information redacted, on its web site.

According to a 1990 Los Angeles Times article, in the 1980s the Los Angeles branch largely switched from using the organization's members in harassment campaigns to using private investigators, including former and current Los Angeles police officers. The reason seemed to be that this gave the organization a layer of protection.[165]

The Scientology organization 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 organization, 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."[166] It has apparently continued as recently as 2010. In 2007, when BBC journalist John Sweeney was making Scientology and Me, an investigative report about the organization, he was subjected to harassment:

In LA, the moment our hire car left the airport we realised we were being followed by two cars. In our hotel a weird stranger spent every breakfast listening to us.[167]

Sweeney subsequently made a follow-up documentary, The Secrets of Scientology, in 2010 during which he was followed and filmed on multiple occasions and one of his interviewees was followed back to his home.[168]

Members' health and safety

See also: Lisa McPherson and Elli Perkins

The deaths of some Scientologists have brought attention to the organization, both due to the circumstances of their demises and their relationship with Scientology being a factor.[169] In 1995, Lisa McPherson was involved in a minor automobile accident while driving on a Clearwater street. Following the collision, she exited her vehicle, stripped naked and showed further signs of mental instability, as noted by a nearby ambulance crew that subsequently transported her to a nearby hospital. Hospital staff decided that she had not been injured in the accident, 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 against medical advice after a short evaluation.

She was taken to the Fort Harrison Hotel, a Scientology retreat, to receive a treatment sanctioned by the organization called Introspection Rundown. She had previously received the Introspection Rundown in June of that year. She was locked in a room for 17 days, where she died. 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 one hundred insect bites, presumably from cockroaches. The state of Florida pursued criminal charges against the Church of Scientology. The organization 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.[170]

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 alternative 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 organization's methods.[171]

In addition, the organization has been implicated in kidnapping members who have recently left the organization. In 2007, Martine Boublil was kidnapped and held for several weeks against her will in Sardinia by four Scientologists. She was found on January 22, 2008, clothed only in a shirt. The room she was imprisoned in contained refuse and an insect infested mattress.[172][173]

On Friday March 28, 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 organization 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 of the organization from friends, family and prominent Norwegian politicians.[174] 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".[174]

Dissemination and recruiting practices

A Scientologist administers a stress test using an e-meter.

Members of the public entering a Scientology center or mission are offered a "free personality test" called the Oxford Capacity Analysis 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".[175]

Further recruitment practices — called dissemination in Scientology – include information booths, flyers and advertisement for free seminars and Sunday Services in regular newspapers and magazines, personal contacts, sales of books, and acting classes.[176][177][178][21]: ix, 71 

Working with lawyer Bill Drescher, we drafted and implemented one-sided agreements that everyone who partakes in scientology services is required to sign—forfeiting the right to sue and any rights to access the records of scientology services, and even giving scientology authorization to hold the signee against their will should they have a psychotic episode so they can participate in the Introspection Rundown.

— Mike Rinder [46]: 176 

Due to previous litigation against the Church of Scientology, and particularly the civil and criminal cases surrounding the death of Lisa McPherson, COS drafted several contracts, releases and waivers which all individuals must sign in order to start any service with COS, no matter how small or introductory. They must be signed again before any major service, and new contracts signed for each Scientology corporate entity the individual visits. One particular waiver—called the "Lisa Clause" by critics of Scientology—states that a member will not seek any psychiatric treatment, and gives permission for the Church of Scientology to detain any member suspected of a psychotic break or other serious mental breakdown. Such detention is to provide the Introspection Rundown, a procedure where an individual is kept isolated from everyone, with no communication. This controversial procedure was considered to be the cause of McPherson's death and, in order to prevent future lawsuits, the Church of Scientology compiled these one-sided contracts.The contracts also prohibit the individual from obtaining any copies of records related to them while granting COS the exclusive right to retain the documents. Individuals waive the right to sue COS in a court of law, and instead they must use Scientology's version of an arbitration (which L. Ron Hubbard never wrote about).[179][46]: 176 [21]: 248 

Licensing

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 organization. They are also classified by the Church of Scientology as suppressive persons ("SPs")—opponents or enemies of Scientology. Hubbard himself stated in Ron's Journal '67 "That there were only seven or eight Suppressive Persons on the planet".

In 2010, an exception to the rule was made specifically for the Nation of Islam, which is the only officially sanctioned external Dianetics organization and the first official non-Scientology Dianetics org since 1953. Minister Louis Farrakhan publicly announced his embracement of Dianetics, and has been actively promoting Dianetics, while stating he has not become a Scientologist. He has courted a relationship with the Church of Scientology, and materials and certifications are still required to be purchased from the organization, and are not independently produced.[180][181][182]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c Behar, Richard (May 6, 1991). "The Thriving Cult of Greed and Power". Time. Archived from the original on June 18, 2019. Retrieved June 17, 2019.
  2. ^ Kent, Stephen A. (2001). "Brainwashing Programs in The Family/Children of God and Scientology". In Zablocki, Benjamin; Robbins, Thomas (eds.). Misunderstanding Cults: Searching for Objectivity in a Controversial Field. University of Toronto Press. pp. 349–358. ISBN 978-0-8020-8188-9.
  3. ^ a b c Anderson, Kevin Victor (1965). Report of the Board of Enquiry into Scientology (Report). State of Victoria, Australia. p. 179. Archived (PDF) from the original on August 29, 2018. Retrieved June 30, 2019. In reality it is a dangerous medical cult. Alternative link Archived February 4, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ a b Edge, Peter W. (2006). Religion and law: an introduction. Ashgate Publishing. ISBN 978-0-7546-3048-7.
  5. ^ a b Hunt, John; de Puig, Luis; Espersen, Ole (February 5, 1992). European Council, Recommendation 1178: Sects and New Religious Movements (Report). Council of Europe. Archived from the original on May 3, 2024. Retrieved June 30, 2019. It is a cool, cynical, manipulating business and nothing else.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g Urban, Hugh B. (2015). New Age, Neopagan, and New Religious Movements: Alternative Spirituality in Contemporary America. Univ of California Press. p. 144. ISBN 978-0520281172.
  7. ^ [1][2][3][4][5][6]
  8. ^ "Scientology (Written answer)". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). United Kingdom: House of Commons. July 25, 1968. col. 189–191W. Archived July 1, 2019, at the Wayback Machine
  9. ^ Cottrell, Richard (1999). Recommendation 1412: Concernant les activités illégales des sectes (Report). Conseil d'Europe.
  10. ^ "Church of Scientology". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). United Kingdom: House of Lords. December 17, 1996. col. 1392–1394. Archived July 1, 2019, at the Wayback Machine
  11. ^ Hubbard and another v. Vosper and another, 1 All ER 1023 (Court of Appeal November 19, 1971), archived from the original.
  12. ^ RE B & G (Minors: Custody), F.L.R. 493 (Court of Appeal September 19, 1984), archived from the original.
  13. ^ [1][3][4][5][8][9][10][11][12]
  14. ^ United States v. Heldt, 668 F.2d 1238 (United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit October 2, 1981), archived from the original.
  15. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Urban, Hugh B. (2011). The Church of Scientology: A History of a New Religion. Princeton University Press. ISBN 9780691146089.
  16. ^ "Scientology's fraud conviction upheld in France". The Daily Telegraph. London. AFP. October 17, 2013. Archived from the original on May 30, 2014. Retrieved July 3, 2020.
  17. ^ "Hubbard's Church 'Unconstitutional': Germany Prepares to Ban Scientology – SPIEGEL ONLINE". Der Spiegel. December 7, 2007. Archived from the original on December 25, 2018. Retrieved March 13, 2017.
  18. ^ "National Assembly of France report No. 2468". assemblee-nationale.fr. Archived from the original on December 25, 2018. Retrieved March 13, 2017.
  19. ^
  20. ^ Weird, Sure. A Cult, No. Archived November 7, 2017, at the Wayback Machine Washington Post By Mark Oppenheimer, August 5, 2007
  21. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Reitman, Janet (2011). Inside Scientology: The Story of America's Most Secretive Religion. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. ISBN 9780618883028. OL 24881847M.
  22. ^ a b c Davis, Derek; Hankins, Barry (2003). New Religious Movements and Religious Liberty in America. Baylor University Press. pp. 48–49. ISBN 0918954924.
  23. ^ a b c d e f Atack, Jon (1990). A Piece of Blue Sky: Scientology, Dianetics and L. Ron Hubbard Exposed. Lyle Stuart Books. ISBN 081840499X. OL 9429654M.
  24. ^ Marshall, John (January 24, 1980). "Hubbard still gave orders, records show". The Globe and Mail. Canada. ProQuest 386965976. Archived from the original on May 3, 2024. Retrieved March 27, 2024 – via ProQuest.
  25. ^
  26. ^ a b c d e Wright, Lawrence (2013). Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood and the Prison of Belief. Alfred A. Knopf. ISBN 9780307700667. OL 25424776M.
  27. ^ Kent, Stephen A. (1999). "Scientology — Is this a Religion?". Marburg Journal of Religion. 4 (1). University of Marburg: 1–56. doi:10.17192/mjr.1999.4.3754. Archived from the original on September 2, 2021. Retrieved September 5, 2023.
  28. ^ Wallis, Roy (1977). The Road to Total Freedom: A Sociological Analysis of Scientology. Columbia University Press. p. 128. ISBN 0231042000. OL 4596322M. Hubbard was well aware of the value of corporate structures as weapons in the control of both his movement and its environment. A complex corporate structure maximizes the difficulty of surveillance, or investigation of the movement's affairs.
  29. ^ a b c Hubbard, L. Ron (1976). Modern Management Technology Defined: Hubbard dictionary of administration and management. Church of Scientology. ISBN 0884040402. OL 8192738M.
  30. ^ a b "The Bridge to Total Freedom : Scientology Classification Gradation and Awareness Chart of Levels and Certificates" (Chart). Church of Scientology. Archived from the original on April 2, 2019.
  31. ^ Bromley, David G. (2009). "Making Sense of Scientology: Prophetic, Contractual Religion". In Lewis, James R. (ed.). Scientology. Oxford University Press. pp. 83–102. doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195331493.003.0005. ISBN 9780199852321. OL 16943235M.
  32. ^ Boyd, Joe (January 4, 1997). "A Mind-bending experience". The Guardian.
  33. ^ Hubbard, L. Ron (November 18, 1969), LRH ED 34 Int : The Role of the Central Org
  34. ^ An Insider (December 23, 2021). "INSIDER: How Scientology's 'Ideal Org' scam works, and how members are victimized by it". The Underground Bunker. Archived from the original on September 23, 2023. Retrieved April 15, 2024.
  35. ^ a b c
  36. ^
  37. ^ a b c d Miller, Daniel. "Scientology's Hollywood Real Estate Empire". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on November 12, 2013. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
  38. ^ Wakefield, Margery. Understanding Scientology, Chapter 9. Reproduced Archived September 30, 2019, at the Wayback Machine at David S. Touretzky's Carnegie Mellon site.
  39. ^ Kent, Stephen (September 2003). "Scientology and the European Human Rights Debate: A Reply to Leisa Goodman, J. Gordon Melton, and the European Rehabilitation Project Force Study". Marburg Journal of Religion. 8 (1). University of Marburg. doi:10.17192/mjr.2003.8.3725. Archived from the original on June 29, 2006. Retrieved May 21, 2006.
  40. ^ a b Hellesøy, Kjersti (2014). "Scientology: The Making of a Religion". In Lewis, James R.; Petersen, Jesper Aa. (eds.). Controversial New Religions (2nd ed.). New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 257–269. doi:10.1093/acprof:osobl/9780199315314.003.0015. ISBN 978-0-19-931531-4.
  41. ^ Lippard, Jim (Spring 2013). "Scientology Exposed". Skeptic. 18 (2): 48. Archived from the original on May 3, 2024. Retrieved January 4, 2023.
  42. ^ Kent, Stephen A. (March 4, 2021). "Studying Scientology as an Anti-Democratic Institution: Suggestions and Cautions to Future Researchers". Implicit Religion. 23 (2): 167–174. doi:10.1558/imre.19161. S2CID 233598724. Archived from the original on January 4, 2023. Retrieved January 4, 2023.
  43. ^ Ortega, Tony (February 14, 2012). "Scientology's Shocking Treatment of Children Held in a Suburban Labor Camp". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on January 16, 2021. Retrieved January 4, 2023.
  44. ^ McManus, Tracey (September 19, 2019). "Scientology policy enabled years of child sexual abuse, lawsuit says". Tampa Bay Times. Archived from the original on August 12, 2020. Retrieved January 4, 2023.
  45. ^ Former Scientologist Claims Children Forced Into Labor Camp Archived August 4, 2018, at the Wayback Machine, Inquisitr, Tara Dodrill, March 18, 2013.
  46. ^ a b c d e f Rinder, Mike (2022). A Billion Years: My Escape From a Life in the Highest Ranks of Scientology. Simon & Schuster. ISBN 9781982185763.
  47. ^ "Presley, Hayes Back Scientology". AP News. October 5, 1997. Archived from the original on June 27, 2022.
  48. ^ "Celebrity Interview : Jenna Elfman". Celebrity. No. 363. Church of Scientology Celebrity Centre International. 2020. pp. 8–11.
  49. ^ Rigal-Cellard, Bernadette (2009). "Scientology Missions International (SMI): An Immutable Model of Technological Missionary Activity". In Lewis, James R. (ed.). Scientology. Oxford University Press. pp. 325–334. doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195331493.003.0017. ISBN 9780199887118. Archived from the original on September 25, 2023. Retrieved July 9, 2023.
  50. ^ Miller, Daniel (April 25, 2011). "L.A.'s KCET-TV Sells Landmark Hollywood Studios to Church of Scientology". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on March 8, 2023. Retrieved March 13, 2023.
  51. ^ Aron, Hillel (August 24, 2016). "What Is the Church of Scientology Doing With This Los Angeles Movie Studio?". LA Weekly. Archived from the original on August 26, 2018. Retrieved March 13, 2023.
  52. ^ Chuba, Kirsten (April 29, 2021). ""The Means of Getting Someone in the Door": An Inside Look at Scientology's Lavish Production Facilities and Actor Recruitment Strategy". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on March 8, 2023. Retrieved March 13, 2023.
  53. ^ Burton, Tara Isabella (March 22, 2018). "The Church of Scientology Has Launched a TV Channel. It's Weirdly Familiar". Vox. Archived from the original on March 8, 2021. Retrieved November 14, 2020.
  54. ^ Swainson, Michelle (2016). "The Price of Freedom: Scientology and Neoliberalism". In Lewis, James R.; Hellesøy, Kjersti (eds.). Handbook of Scientology. BRILL. ISBN 9789004330542.
  55. ^ Foster, John (December 1971). "Enquiry into the Practice and Effects of Scientology". Her Majesty's Stationery Office, London. 70(v). Scientology Publications Limited was incorporated as long ago as 30th January 1954. Mr. Hubbard holds 51 out of 57 £1 shares issued. Both he and his wife were appointed directors on 24th November 1955. He - but not she - resigned on 30th December 1966. No annual returns have been filed since 31st December 1967. UK National Archive piece reference MH 153/606 Archived May 3, 2024, at the Wayback Machine
  56. ^ a b "About Bridge Publications, Inc". Bridge Publications, Inc. Archived from the original on March 13, 2023. Retrieved March 13, 2023.
  57. ^ "The Founding Church of Scientology of Washington, D.C., et al v. United States, 409 F.2d 1146 (D.C. Cir. 1969) - Transcript of Record". June 24, 1968 – via archive.org. The Distribution Center is the organization that sells books, booklets including back issues of Ability, etc., and the E-meter device. The Distribution Center is the only organization from which the books, booklets, etc. and the Emeter can be bought. (JA 35) The Distribution Center is a separate corporation ... owned by the Founding Church of Scientology. (JA 99) Orders are sent to Box 242, Silver Spring, Maryland. (JA 163) The premises of the Distribution Center, Inc., 1812 19th Street, N. W., Washington, D. C. (JA 3)
  58. ^ "Press release: Church of Scientology Flips the Switch on 185,000-Square-Foot Dissemination and Distribution Center". PR Newswire. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved January 1, 2016.
  59. ^ "Author Services". Archived from the original on March 13, 2023. Retrieved March 13, 2023.
  60. ^ "IRS-Scientology Closing Agreement". October 1, 1993. Archived from the original on April 26, 2006.
  61. ^ "Galaxy Press". Author Services, Inc. Archived from the original on March 13, 2023. Retrieved March 13, 2023.
  62. ^ "Unwitting highschoolers lured to forum by Scientologists". The Sydney Morning Herald. March 27, 2007. Archived from the original on July 1, 2007. Retrieved July 17, 2007.
  63. ^ McEwen, Alan (March 18, 2004). "Scientology-link group is banned". Edinburgh Evening News. Archived from the original on October 13, 2007. Retrieved July 17, 2007.
  64. ^ "About CCHR". CCHR International. Citizens Commission on Human Rights International. May 5, 2009. Archived from the original on June 28, 2013. Retrieved July 5, 2013.
  65. ^ "Industry of Death exhibition on psychiatry walks a fine line". Canada.com. August 8, 2007. Archived from the original on June 15, 2011. Retrieved September 23, 2012. "A major purpose of Scientology is to destroy psychiatry and replace it with its own pseudo-counselling techniques. And CCHR is one of Scientology's front-group weapons attempting to achieve that goal," says Stephen Kent, a University of Alberta sociologist specializing in new religions and cults. Scientology holds that psychiatrists are "cosmic demons", he says.
  66. ^ Kirsten Stewart (July 2, 2005). "Scientology's political presence on the rise". The Salt Lake Tribune. Archived from the original on July 14, 2014. Retrieved September 23, 2012. The church [of Scientology] kept a low profile, paying professional lobbyists to press its cause or relying on CCHR, which skeptics call a front group designed to recruit Scientologists and replace psychiatry with Dianetics.
  67. ^ "[ Fence Post ]". Chicago Daily Herald (Letters to the Editor). January 4, 2001. Dangerous program / In a letter to Fence Post (Dec. 12), Susan Stozewski of the Chicago Church of Scientology attempts to promote a drug rehab program called Narconon. I wish to warn readers that Narconon is a front group for the Church of Scientology. I found from personal experience that Narconon is a sham and is, in fact, a slick device to lure unsuspecting people into Scientology. An acquaintance of mine recently discovered that she had serious liver damage from Narconon's bogus "purification" program and she now cannot get health insurance coverage. Another Scientology front group to beware of is the CCHR or Citizens Commission on Human Rights. The CCHR is using tax-exempt funds in a covert campaign to discredit psychiatric-psychology treatment. The CCHR has an extensive network of agents that are distributing distortions about psychiatric treatment and medications such as Prozac and Ritalin. This is a very dangerous thing and people should be aware that it is going on. / Jim Beebe / Northbrook
  68. ^ Sly, Randy (September 2, 2010). "Updated: Scientologists in Haiti: Volunteers or Vultures?". Catholic.org. Archived from the original on December 22, 2015. Retrieved December 16, 2015.
  69. ^ Winn, Patrick (May 15, 2015). "Scientologists are in Nepal trying to 'heal' trauma victims". Global Post. Archived from the original on December 22, 2015. Retrieved December 16, 2015.
  70. ^ Winn, Patrick (April 11, 2011). "Scientology's global disaster squad". MinnPost. Archived from the original on December 22, 2015. Retrieved December 16, 2015.
  71. ^ "Scientology Inc." Archived May 15, 2005, at the Wayback Machine at Newsreview.com
  72. ^ Behar, Richard (May 6, 1991). "Scientology: The Thriving Cult of Greed and Power". Time. Archived from the original on May 25, 2014.
  73. ^ Stark, Rodney; Bainbridge, William Sims (1987). A Theory of Religion. Peter Lang. p. 214. ISBN 0820403563. OL 2375931M. We know many cult movements that maintain client services as front organizations facilitating recruitment to the sponsoring movement. Examples include Scientology...
  74. ^ "Scientology: Origins, celebrities and holdings § Scientology's properties". St. Petersburg Times. June 21, 2009. Archived from the original on December 25, 2009.
  75. ^ a b c Westbrook, Donald A. (2015). "Saint Hill and the Development of Systematic Theology in the Church of Scientology (1959–1967)". Alternative Spirituality and Religion Review. 6 (1): 111–155. doi:10.5840/asrr2015577. ISSN 1946-0538.
  76. ^ Lewis, James R. (2009). Scientology. Oxford University Press. p. 425. ISBN 9780199715954. Archived from the original on March 27, 2021. Retrieved August 18, 2016.
  77. ^ Stafford, Charles (1979). "Scientology: An in-depth profile of a new force in Clearwater" (PDF). St Petersburg Times. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 9, 2007. "The 1980 Pulitzer Prize Winner in National Reporting". The Pulitzer Prizes. Archived from the original on February 17, 2023. Retrieved February 17, 2023.
  78. ^ Farley, Robert (July 18, 2004). "Scientology's town Series: Scientology's town: A two-part special report". St. Petersburg Times (South Pinellas ed.).
  79. ^ "Church of Scientology Dedicates $145 Million 'Super Power' Building". ABC News. Archived from the original on November 18, 2013. Retrieved November 19, 2013.
  80. ^ "Tom Cruise Attends Unveiling of Scientology 'Super Power' Building". The Hollywood Reporter. November 18, 2013. Archived from the original on November 22, 2013. Retrieved November 19, 2013.
  81. ^ "Celebrities on hand to open Scientology 'cathedral'". Archived from the original on November 22, 2013. Retrieved November 19, 2013.
  82. ^ "Trump won this little chunk of Los Angeles, where half of voters are linked to Scientology". Los Angeles Times. January 24, 2017. Archived from the original on September 11, 2021. Retrieved September 11, 2021.
  83. ^ a b "Take a tour of Scientology's massive Los Angeles real estate empire". Business Insider. July 26, 2021. Archived from the original on September 11, 2021. Retrieved September 11, 2021.
  84. ^ Grad, Shelby (March 31, 2015). "How Scientology got L.A. to name street after L. Ron Hubbard". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on May 10, 2016. Retrieved May 13, 2016.
  85. ^ Daniel Miller (July 21, 2011). "Historic Hollywood Holdings". Hollywood Reporter.
  86. ^ a b Hoffman, Claire; Christensen, Kim (December 18, 2005). "Tom Cruise and Scientology". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on December 18, 2007. Retrieved January 24, 2008.
  87. ^ "Rural Studio is Scientology Headquarters". San Jose Mercury News. August 13, 1991. p. 6B California News. Archived from the original on May 14, 2011. Retrieved October 21, 2009.
  88. ^ Kelly, David (January 10, 2009). "Scientology foes blast new law". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on February 14, 2009. Retrieved October 21, 2009.
  89. ^ Glick, Julia. "County ordinance raises questions about Scientology". Archived October 14, 2010, at the Wayback Machine The Press-Enterprise. January 6, 2009. Retrieved October 21, 2009.
  90. ^ a b McGavin, Gregor. "Scientologists' presence in Inland area dates back to 1960s". Archived September 26, 2010, at the Wayback Machine The Press-Enterprise. January 15, 2008. Retrieved October 9, 2009.
  91. ^ Reitman, Janet (February 8, 2011) [February 23, 2006]. "Inside Scientology". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on May 2, 2018.
  92. ^ Tobin, Thomas C (October 25, 1998). "A place called 'Gold'". St. Petersburg Times. Archived from the original on November 12, 1999.
  93. ^ Perry, Rebecca; Kelsen, Don (December 17, 2005). "Scientology's inland empire" (PDF). Los Angeles Times. Retrieved August 25, 2007.
  94. ^ Holland, Gale (June 20, 2001). "Unfair Game". LA Weekly. Archived from the original on February 10, 2007. Retrieved February 24, 2008.
  95. ^ Leiby, Richard (November 27, 2005). "A Place in the Desert for New Mexico's Most Exclusive Circles". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on August 13, 2017. Retrieved November 22, 2011.
  96. ^ Bernstein, Fred (November 9, 2010). "In Pasadena, a Model for Scientology's Growth Plan". The New York Times. Archived from the original on May 14, 2013. Retrieved July 13, 2011.
  97. ^ "Scientologists: How Many Of Them Are There, Anyway?". The Village Voice. July 4, 2011. Archived from the original on August 19, 2020. Retrieved December 14, 2021.
  98. ^ Goodstein, Laurie (March 6, 2010). "Defectors Say Church of Scientology Hides Abuse". The New York Times. Archived from the original on July 5, 2021. Retrieved December 14, 2021.
  99. ^ Urban, Hugh B. (2017). "The Third Wall of Fire". Nova Religio: The Journal of Alternative and Emergent Religions. 20 (4): 13–36. doi:10.1525/nr.2017.20.4.13.
  100. ^ Oppenheimer, Mark (October 18, 2011). "In the Clear: On Scientology". The Nation. Archived from the original on October 18, 2018. Retrieved December 14, 2021 – via www.thenation.com.
  101. ^ Ortega, Tony (June 30, 2008). "Scientology's Crushing Defeat". The Village Voice. Village Voice Media. Archived from the original on July 9, 2008. Retrieved September 17, 2008. Scientology president Heber Jentszch admitted several years ago that the six million number does not represent current membership but the total amount of people who have ever, since the founding in 1954, taken even a single Scientology course.
  102. ^ Bromley, David; Cowan, Douglas. Cults and new religions: a brief history. Archived from the original on August 1, 2013. Retrieved July 29, 2013.
  103. ^ Flinn, Frank K. (July 5, 2005). "Scientology". Live discussion. Washington Post. Archived from the original on April 9, 2014. Retrieved February 4, 2008.
  104. ^ Jarvik, Elaine (September 18, 2004). "Scientology: Church now claims more than 8 million members". Deseret News. Archived from the original on June 16, 2008. Retrieved August 1, 2007. Melton, who has been criticized by some for being too easy on Scientology, and has been criticized by the church [sic] for being too harsh, says that the church's [sic] estimates of its membership numbers – 4 million in the United States, 8 to 9 million worldwide – 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 [sic] again." If the church [sic] indeed had four million members in the United States, he says, "they would be like the Lutherans and would show up on a national survey" such as the Harris poll.
  105. ^ "Statement of Scientology Media Relations Director Linda Simmons Hight". scientologytoday.org. May 11, 2002. Archived from the original on December 29, 2006. Retrieved March 4, 2007.
  106. ^ Statement of Celebrity Centre Vice President Greg LaClaire, August 7, 2004 "Church of Scientology Celebrity Centre International Hosts 35th Anniversary Gala". Archived from the original on August 31, 2007. Retrieved March 4, 2007.
  107. ^ Spokesperson Beth Akiyama in: Scientology comes to town Archived May 5, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, July 24, 2005
  108. ^ L. Ron Hubbard (1970). Final Blackout. Leisure Books. ISBN 978-0-8439-0003-3. HE IS ALSO renowned as the founder of Scientology and the creator of "Dianetics," with an estimated 15 million adherents around the world.
  109. ^ Jarvik, Elaine (September 18, 2004). "Scientology: Church now claims more than 8 million members". Deseret Morning News. Archived from the original on June 16, 2008. Retrieved February 21, 2007.
  110. ^ Jarvik, Elaine (September 18, 2004). "Scientology: Church now claims more than 8 million members". Deseret News. Archived from the original on December 12, 2007. Retrieved August 1, 2007. If the church indeed had 4 million members in the United States, he says, "they would be like the Lutherans and would show up on a national survey" such as the Harris poll.
  111. ^ "Self-Described Religious Identification Among American Adults". InfoPlease. Archived from the original on March 9, 2017. Retrieved July 15, 2018.
  112. ^ Wright, Lawrence (February 2011). "The Apostate". The New Yorker. Archived from the original on July 3, 2014. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
  113. ^ "Self-Described Religious Identification of Adult Population". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on September 23, 2015. Retrieved December 7, 2017.
  114. ^ a b c d Lewis, James R. (September 2004). "New Religion Adherents: An Overview of Anglophone Census and Survey Data" (PDF). Marburg Journal of Religion. 9 (1). Archived (PDF) from the original on July 17, 2007. Retrieved February 15, 2007.
  115. ^ Government of Canada, Statistics (May 8, 2013). "2011 National Household Survey: Data tables – Religion (108), Immigrant Status and Period of Immigration (11), Age Groups (10) and Sex (3) for the Population in Private Households of Canada, Provinces, Territories, Census Metropolitan Areas and Census Agglomerations, 2011 National Household Survey". 12.statcan.gc.ca. Archived from the original on December 31, 2017. Retrieved July 15, 2018.
  116. ^ Boyle, Kevin; Sheen, Juliet (1997), Freedom of Religion and Belief, London, UK/New York, NY: Routledge, ISBN 978-0-415-15978-4, p. 102
  117. ^ Verfassungsschutzbericht 2005 Archived October 26, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, p. 292
  118. ^ United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (September 19, 2008). "2008 Report on International Religious Freedom – New Zealand". United Nations High Commission for Refugees. Archived from the original on July 28, 2011. Retrieved November 22, 2011.
  119. ^ Religion's rise in the stars Archived August 4, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, Herald Sun, July 9, 2007
  120. ^ "Census shows scientology numbers going backwards". ABC News. June 29, 2012. Archived from the original on June 30, 2012. Retrieved June 30, 2012.
  121. ^ "Scientology losing Swiss support: experts – The Local". Thelocal.ch. July 4, 2011. Archived from the original on July 1, 2012. Retrieved August 15, 2012.
  122. ^ "Suomen Scientologia-yhdistys ry". Uskonnot Suomessa. Archived from the original on August 6, 2020. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
  123. ^ Smith, L. Christopher (December 2008). "Scientology's Money Trail: Celebrities! Tax shelters! Bart Simpson! A glimpse into the finances of the secretive church". Condé Nast Portfolio. 2008 Condé Nast Inc. Archived from the original on December 21, 2008. Retrieved November 19, 2008.
  124. ^ Bainbridge, William Sims; Rodney Stark (1980). "Scientology: To Be Perfectly Clear". Sociological Analysis: A Journal in the Sociology of Religion. 41 (2): 128–136. doi:10.2307/3709904. JSTOR 3709904.
  125. ^ Goodyear, Dana (August 1, 2011). ""Château Scientology", The New Yorker, 14 January 2008". The New Yorker. Archived from the original on January 19, 2012. Retrieved November 22, 2011.
  126. ^ "Hernandez v. Commissioner, U.S. Supreme Court". Caselaw.lp.findlaw.com. Archived from the original on November 14, 2006. Retrieved November 22, 2011.
  127. ^ a b Goodstein, Laurie (March 6, 2010). "Scientology defectors speak out". The New York Times. Archived from the original on October 31, 2013. Retrieved October 24, 2018 – via The Seattle Times.
  128. ^ a b c Peters, Joey (March 28, 2018). "Inside the dwindling Minneapolis-St. Paul Scientology movement". City Pages. Archived from the original on October 25, 2018. Retrieved October 24, 2018.
  129. ^ "Church of Scientology opens doors of downtown Detroit center". Archived from the original on April 11, 2019. Retrieved October 24, 2018.
  130. ^ Croucher, Shane (May 20, 2016). "The Church of Scientology owns the Pitmaston mansion in Birmingham". International Business Times UK. Archived from the original on October 25, 2018. Retrieved October 24, 2018.
  131. ^ "Church of Scientology opens new UK base". BBC News. October 21, 2017. Archived from the original on October 25, 2018. Retrieved October 24, 2018.
  132. ^ a b Cooper, Robert (August 19, 2014). "The church that never opened". BBC News. Archived from the original on October 25, 2018. Retrieved October 24, 2018.
  133. ^ Smithers, Dominic (January 18, 2017). "Why has this Church of Scientology building in Old Trafford been empty for 10 years?". Manchester Evening News. Archived from the original on October 25, 2018. Retrieved October 24, 2018.
  134. ^ Croucher, Shane (May 20, 2016). "The Church of Scientology owns the old Royal Fleet Club in Plymouth". International Business Times UK. Archived from the original on October 25, 2018. Retrieved October 24, 2018.
  135. ^ Croucher, Shane (May 20, 2016). "How the Church of Scientology left landmark English properties in danger of going to 'rack and ruin'". International Business Times UK. Archived from the original on October 25, 2018. Retrieved October 24, 2018.
  136. ^ Joel Sappell and Robert W. Welkos, Times Staff Writers, Courting the Power Brokers Archived October 27, 2013, at the Wayback Machine Los Angeles Times, June 27, 1990
  137. ^ Leiby, Richard N. (August 9, 1994). "One Theory On Michael-Lisa: It's All A Plot". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on May 19, 2011 – via The Seattle Times.
  138. ^ Hyde, Marina (April 18, 2008). "Lifting the lid on Scientology's celebrities". The Guardian. Archived from the original on September 11, 2021. Retrieved September 11, 2021.
  139. ^ Hexham, Irving (1978). "The Religious Status of Scientology: Is Scientology a Religion?". University of Calgary. Archived from the original on November 19, 2009. Retrieved June 13, 2006.
  140. ^ "Dispatch online – "New SA rights for Scientology"". Daily Dispatch. November 12, 2010. Archived from the original on November 4, 2010. Retrieved November 22, 2011.
  141. ^ a b Beit-Hallahmi, Benjamin (September 2003). "Scientology: Religion or racket?". Marburg Journal of Religion. 8 (1). doi:10.17192/mjr.2003.8.3724. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 8, 2006. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
  142. ^ John Foster (December 1971). Enquiry into the Practice and Effects of Scientology (Report). Her Majesty's Stationery Office, London. Archived from the original on February 5, 2007. Retrieved March 5, 2007 – via Carnegie Mellon University.
  143. ^ G. P. C. Kotzé (1972). Report of the Commission of Enquiry into Scientology for 1972 (Report). Republic of South Africa.
  144. ^ Guy Richardson Powles (1969). The Commission of Inquiry into the Hubbard Scientology Organization in New Zealand (Report). New Zealand. Archived from the original on February 5, 2007. Retrieved March 5, 2007 – via Carnegie Mellon University.
  145. ^ Kent, Stephen (July 1999). "Scientology – Is this a Religion?". Marburg Journal of Religion. 4 (1). Archived from the original on August 19, 2006. Retrieved August 26, 2006. Kent, while acknowledging that a number of his colleagues accept Scientology as a religion, argues that "Rather than struggling over whether or not to label Scientology as a religion, I find it far more helpful to view it as a multifaceted transnational corporation, only one element of which is religious." (Italics in original.)
  146. ^ Leiby, Richard (December 25, 1994). "Scientology Fiction: The Church's War Against Its Critics – and Truth". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on September 8, 2008. Retrieved June 21, 2006.
  147. ^ Goodin, Dan (June 3, 1999). "Scientology subpoenas Worldnet". CNET News.com. Archived from the original on January 28, 2007. Retrieved May 4, 2006.
  148. ^ Ortega, Tony (December 23, 1999). "Double Crossed". Phoenix New Times. Archived from the original on March 12, 2007.
  149. ^ a b c d e Welkos, Robert W.; Sappell, Joel (June 24, 1990). "Burglaries and Lies Paved a Path to Prison". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on August 28, 2008. Retrieved May 25, 2008.
  150. ^ Whitney, Craig R. (November 23, 1996). "French Scientologist Sentenced After Church Member's Suicide". The New York Times. Archived from the original on July 7, 2012. Retrieved November 22, 2011.
  151. ^ Erlanger, Steven (October 27, 2009). "French Branch of Scientology Convicted of Fraud". The New York Times. France. Archived from the original on November 24, 2011. Retrieved November 22, 2011.
  152. ^ "Supreme Court of Canada - Decisions - Hill v. Church of Scientology of Toronto". Archived from the original on May 14, 2009. Retrieved January 25, 2011.
  153. ^ [Claridge, Thomas (September 12, 1992). "Church of Scientology fined $250,000 for espionage". The Globe and Mail.]
  154. ^ Neusner, Jacob (2003). World Religions in America. Westminster John Knox Press. pp. 221–236. ISBN 0-664-22475-X.
  155. ^ Beaumont-Thomas, Ben (February 3, 2015). "Church of Scientology targets film critics over Going Clear documentary". The Guardian. Archived from the original on February 3, 2015. Retrieved February 3, 2015.
  156. ^ Collins, Sean T. (March 19, 2015). "'Clear' and Present Danger: Alex Gibney on His Bold Scientology Doc". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on March 21, 2015. Retrieved March 21, 2015.
  157. ^ Urban, Hugh (August 31, 2021). "The Church of Scientology: New Religions and Tax Exemption". New Age, Neopagan, and New Religious Movements: Alternative Spirituality in Contemporary America.
  158. ^ Lewis, James R. (2009). Scientology. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780199715954.
  159. ^ "The Wall Street Journal. December 30, 1997 Reproduced Archived June 28, 2003, at the Wayback Machine at Dave Touretzky's Carnegie Mellon site
  160. ^ "Official Recognition of Scientology as a Religion Archived June 15, 2007, at the Wayback Machine". "the United States Internal Revenue Service in granting full religious recognition and tax exemption to all Churches of Scientology located in the United States"
  161. ^ Dan McSwain: The Obama-Biden Transition Team (January 20, 2009). "The Citizen's Briefing Book". Change.gov. Archived from the original on January 20, 2009.
  162. ^ "2001 Annual Report on International Religious Freedom" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on July 31, 2019. Retrieved November 22, 2011.
  163. ^ "2002 Annual Report on International Religious Freedom". State.gov. March 12, 2007. Archived from the original on March 27, 2021. Retrieved November 22, 2011.
  164. ^ "2003 Annual Report on International Religious Freedom". State.gov. March 12, 2007. Archived from the original on March 27, 2021. Retrieved November 22, 2011.
  165. ^ On the Offensive Against an Array of Suspected Foes Archived October 27, 2013, at the Wayback Machine, Los Angeles Times, Joel Sappell, Robert W. Welkes, page A1, June 29, 1990. This story is also available on the Carnegie Mellon University library website as "Part 6: Attack the Attacker, On the Offensive . . . " Archived September 20, 2019, at the Wayback Machine
  166. ^ McLaughlin, Jim; Andrew Gully (February 19, 1998). "Church of Scientology probes Herald reporter". Boston Herald. Archived from the original on February 10, 2009. Retrieved February 8, 2009.
  167. ^ Sweeney, John (May 14, 2007). "Row over Scientology video". BBC News. Archived from the original on October 20, 2019. Retrieved November 14, 2007.
  168. ^ "Reporter John Sweeney followed on Scientology story". BBC Panorama. BBC. September 27, 2010. Archived from the original on November 26, 2012. Retrieved December 18, 2012.
  169. ^ Behar, Richard (May 6, 1991). "The Thriving Cult of Greed and Power". Time. Archived from the original on February 9, 2008. By all appearances, Noah Lottick of Kingston, Pa., had been a normal, happy 24-year-old who was looking for his place in the world ... his fingers were still clutching $171 in cash, virtually the only money he hadn't yet turned over to the Church of Scientology, the self-help 'philosophy' group he had discovered just seven months earlier.
  170. ^ Frantz, Douglas (November 14, 1998). "Florida Charges Scientology In Church Member's Death". The New York Times. Archived from the original on November 11, 2012. Retrieved November 6, 2012.
  171. ^ Stasi, Linda (October 27, 2006). "Scientology Schizo: His Mom's Religion Said, No Meds. That Edict May Have Cost Her Life". New York Post. Archived from the original on February 10, 2007. Retrieved March 23, 2007.
  172. ^ "French Scientologists Arrested in Italy". arhiva.dalje.com. Archived from the original on August 4, 2019. Retrieved August 4, 2019.
  173. ^ Juliet, Anne-Cécile. "L'étrange séquestration qui embarrasse la Scientologie" [The strange kidnapping that embarrasses Scientology] (in French). Bellaciao.org. Archived from the original on March 23, 2012. Retrieved September 6, 2011.
  174. ^ a b ""Ville vært i live i dag hvis hun ikke hadde gått til scientologene" – Innenriks – Dagbladet.no". FR: Dagbladet.no<!. April 15, 2008. Archived from the original on February 1, 2017. Retrieved December 2, 2009.
  175. ^ The Foster Report. Chapter 5, "The Practices of Scientology;" section (a), "Recruitment;" pages 75–76. "a systematic approach to answering the questions should yield systematic variations in the conclusions derived from an analysis of the test scores ... these two methods [for answering the questions of the test] would be expected to produce different, if not complementary, profiles ... These variations in answering the questions did not seem to affect the Oxford Capacity Analysis as the three methods produced remarkably similar profiles ... when each of two diametrically opposed methods of response produces the same extreme deviant scores as the other and as a third "random" response style, we are forced to a position of scepticism about the test's status as a reliable psychometric device."
  176. ^ Wright, Lawrence (March 31, 2015). "How Scientology's classic 4-step recruiting process convinced one 21-year-old to join". Business Insider. Archived from the original on June 30, 2023. Retrieved June 30, 2023.
  177. ^ Chuba, Kirsten (April 29, 2021). ""The Means of Getting Someone in the Door": An Inside Look at Scientology's Lavish Production Facilities and Actor Recruitment Strategy". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on March 8, 2023. Retrieved March 13, 2023.
  178. ^ Hubbard, L. Ron (September 15, 1959), HCOB 15 Sept 59, Dissemination Tips, Church of Scientology (Courtesy link Archived June 30, 2023, at the Wayback Machine)
  179. ^ Church of Scientology Flag Service Organization (2001). "Reproduced version of Introspection Rundown Release Contract". Archived from the original on March 27, 2021.
  180. ^ Mohammed, Asahed (February 28, 2013). "Nation of Islam Auditors graduation held for third Saviours' Day in a row". Final Call. Archived from the original on March 29, 2019. Retrieved April 22, 2013.
  181. ^ Gray, Eliza (October 5, 2012). "The Mothership of All Alliances". The New Republic. Archived from the original on October 12, 2012. Retrieved November 19, 2012.
  182. ^ Rossetter, Shelley; Tobin, Thomas C. (October 18, 2012). "Louis Farrakhan renews call for self-determination among Nation of Islam followers". Tampa Bay Times. Archived from the original on November 5, 2012. Retrieved November 19, 2012.

Further reading

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Church_of_Scientology&oldid=1254035926#Pubs_org"