Scientology SymbolSCIENTOLOGY

Symbol

The symbol of Scientology is composed of:

History

The founder of the Church of Scientology was Lafayette Ron Hubbard (1911-1986). During the 1930's he was a well known writer of adventure, mystery and other genres; but he was best known for his science fiction. He wrote an unpublished novel Excalibur in 1938 which contained the Dianetic principle of survive. Hubbard had conducted long term studies into methods of helping troubled people. The culmination of his research was his Dianetic therapy of the mind which he described in his best known book Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health (1950). The book has been in print continuously since that date. It has sold over 7 million copies and is still actively publicized on television and other media.

Dianetics came under attack by the American Psychological Association and the American Medical Association, who described it as a potentially dangerous form of therapy. As his research continued, he began to question precisely what an individual was composed of - simply a body with a brain, or something more. He concluded that a person is fundamentally a spirit. This led him into the field of religious thought.

In 1952, Hubbard created Scientology which expanded Dianetics to include with religious concepts such as spirit, reincarnation, a religious symbol, etc. The first Church of Scientology was formed in Los Angeles CA in 1954. The same year, he incorporated the Founding Church of Scientology on 1954-JUL-21 in Washington DC.

During the 1960's the Church of Scientology was prosecuted by the US Food and Drug Administration which unsuccessfully tried to ban his E-Meter device.

During the 1970s, the Church and many other emerging religions came under increasing attack from the Counter-cult Movement. Many false rumours circulated about illegal and/or unethical methods of controlling the membership. They continue today, although at a diminished rate. As a result of an FBI raid on US church offices, some senior people in the movement (including Hubbard's wife) were convicted of stealing government documents. In 1965, there was a legal battle in Australia which the Church won in 1983; this contributed greatly to the scope of religious freedom in that country. From 1968 to 1980, the British government restricted people who wished to enter the country to pursue a Scientology course.

L.R. Hubbard died in 1986. Unlike many emerging religions, the movement successfully survived the transition to new leadership. It is now headed by David Miscavige. Scientology continues its rapid growth in many areas around the world.

In recent years, the church has actively prosecuted persons and groups who have violated copyright law and made unauthorized publications of church documents. There is continuing friction in Germany where tax officials are attempting to abolish the Church's tax exempt status because they regard it as a business and are concerned with some of its teachings. A Scientology center was closed in France because of tax problems.

The Church of Scientology has evolved into an "applied religious philosophy" whose role is to promote mental health. It is increasingly being referred to simply as Scientology. About 8 million people have participated in Scientology services. There are currently about 50,000 active members in the movement.

Beliefs:

Practices:

Scientology Books and Magazines

Attacks on and by Scientology

Many emergent religions suffer repeated attacks by counter-cult groups. Scientology is no exception. Their main opposition seems to have come from FACTnet (Fight Against Coercive Tactics network) and CAN (Cult Awareness Network). The Church has fought back with countless lawsuits aimed at preserving their freedom to practice their religion, and preserving their copyrights and trade secrets.

A war of sorts is raging on the Internet between the church, anti-Scientology individuals and counter-cult groups. One example involves the Fishman Documents which contain secret Church rituals. They have been published on a private home page. Scientology representatives asked the Internet Service Provider to delete the documents from their customer's page; the provider refused. When the smoke cleared, duplicate documents had appeared at 100 other WWW sites.

So much controversy has been generated by pro and anti Scientology individuals and groups that the truth is impossible to separate from the propaganda. Like many other new emerging faith groups, Scientology has been accused of ethics violations, brainwashing techniques, swindling people, etc. Their opponents have been accused of violating copyright laws, violating the civil rights of Church members by kidnapping, confining and brainwashing them, etc.

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Internet Resources

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