Scientology: A Short History

Here's another question that could fall under the heading of "What is Scientology?" and that is, "How did Scientology Start?" Here's a short history of Scientology:

Basically, L. Ron Hubbard was an engineer who had traveled the world and began studying the mind in 1923. In 1947 he wrote a manuscript laying out some of his discoveries and that manuscript was circulated around by friends, who copied it and passed it along. (This manuscript is now published and is called Dianetics, The Original Thesis.) As copies of the manuscript got passed around more and more broadly, L. Ron Hubbard received more and more letters asking him questions about his discoveries. He decided to write a comprehensive text on the subject to answer all those questions. This is where the book, Dianetics, the Modern Science of Mental Health sprang up from.

When Dianetics was published, people all across the world began to put the techniques that L. Ron Hubbard lays out into practice and after thousands of hours of Dianetics counseling was conducted, evidence had been gathered about the fundamentally spiritual nature of man. L. Ron Hubbard had discovered that man was a spiritual being, inhabiting a body and using a mind. These discoveries made him realize that he had entered the realm of religion.

In 1954, the first church of Scientology was formed in Los Angeles by a group of Scientologists. Within a few years churches had been formed across the country and around the world.

In the years between 1950 and 1986, L. Ron Hubbard finished his research on the spiritual nature of man. These writings are available in most libraries across the US. Further writings are available at Scientology churches.

Is Scientology a Religion?

I've been asked why Scientology is a religion recently, so I thought I'd explain it here.

Scientology is recognized as a religion all over the world, but why? Why is it called a religion? I think to answer that question, I'm going to have to look at what "religion" means.

The Encarta dictionary (my favorite) says:

"Religion
1. beliefs and worship: people's beliefs and opinions concerning the existence, nature, and worship of a deity or deities, and divine involvement in the universe and human life
2. system: an institutionalized or personal system of beliefs and practices relating to the divine
3. personal beliefs or values: a set of strongly-held beliefs, values, and attitudes that somebody lives by"

Scientology deals with man as a spirit and distinguishes itself from material and nonreligious philosophies that say that man is the product of the material. Scientology doesn't ask for blind faith, but helps the individual find past experiences and shed the trauma or guilt connected with those experiences. The Church of Scientology also provides basic services that any religion provides, such as Sunday Service, Sermons, Christenings, Weddings, etc.

So, there you go. I hope I cleared up any confusion as to why Scientology is called a religion.

Fun Links for the Week

Here are some great links to end your week with (or start your new week with... depends on how you look at it):

It seems that everyone is talking about the new Scientology Video Channel.
Here are some links with what bloggers have to say:

Philosopher L. Ron Hubbard posted about it
The Scientology Religon Blog posted about it
Celebrity Scientologists posted about it

Code Simplicity blogs about Creation in Programming

The Scientology Religion blog posts about where to get L. Ron Hubbard's books for free

Happy Birthday L. Ron Hubbard!

Today is L. Ron Hubbard's birthday! L. Ron Hubbard was the founder of Scientology, and though he passed away in 1986, Scientologists still like to acknowledge his birthday.
To celebrate his birthday, I'd love for my readers to become more educated about who he was and what he represented to Scientologists everywhere. Here are some great links to do just that:

The Official L. Ron Hubbard Website
All About L. Ron Hubbard
A Series of Publications about L. Ron Hubbard
L. Ron Hubbard's Discoveries in Relation to Dianetics
An Informative Publication about L. Ron Hubbard
L. Ron Hubbard and Education
L. Ron Hubbard, Founder of Dianetics and Scientology
Various Articles and Information about L. Ron Hubbard

Check 'em out. Hopefully you'll find out something you didn't know about L. Ron Hubbard. If you do, I'd love for you to come back here and comment about it.

Scientology Documentation of Anonymous' Criminal Actions

Some nutty group called "Anonymous" has been protesting Scientology. I don't really understand how any group of people can be as creepy as these guys, but hey, back in the day there were the KKK, and those people really freak me out too. (Strangely, the KKK also wore masks and threatened to kill people... connection anyone?)
Anyway, here's a video from youtube that documents what Anonymous have been up to, as apposed to the PR stuff they've said to news media.
Just as a little aside before I post the video- I KNOW that at least some of the activity in this video is true as my boyfriend works for a Scientology Mission and some of the actions in this video were directed toward the Mission he works for. It made my life really crappy for a few weeks and I wish they would stop being so hateful, open their minds and hearts - take a real look at Scientology and apply what Mr. L. Ron Hubbard says: "What's true for you is true." That's what I've always done, and I've decided to stick with Scientology all my life, even after studying other religions.
Now, without further ado, the video about this strange group, "Anonymous" (or just "Anon" to some):


And now for some lighter news... today is L. Ron Hubbard's birthday! I have a post for that coming up in a hot second.

03/17/08: Here's a post from Eclectic on A Fox News Report about Anonymous

Links About Scientology for This Week

Here are some great links about Scientology for this week:

Grahame posts about Fair Game and about A Scientologists' Life

The Scientology Religion Blog posts a great quote by L. Ron Hubbard

Celebrity Scientologists reports that Jeff Conaway kicks his drug habit with Scientology

Do the Right Thing answers the question - Why do some people attack Scientology?

A Blog About Dianetics posts about the history of Dianetics

What is Life as a Scientologist Like?

I think that I cannot define what Scientology is without an aside about what life is like as a Scientologist. This was also a question asked in a previous comment - which at the time I thought was kind of odd, but shrugged it off. After talking to some friends that I have who practice other religions, I discovered this is actually a common question.

So, though it's pretty boring, I'll tell you a little about my week and you can decide if it's much different than your week:

Weekdays:
I get up at around 7 AM, do a little writing (I'm working on a novel), some exercise, get showered and dressed.
Leave home at 8:30 and get to work at 8:45 AM. (I'm so glad that I live close to my office!)
Work from 8:45 AM - 5:45 PM. I have lunch in between that time. Usually I go home or to the park for lunch, sometimes I go out to eat with co-workers.
I eat dinner, then drive down to my church. At 7PM I do some study there as I'm working on a Scientology course. I end off at 10PM and go home and to bed.

Weekends:
Friday night: I went and saw 10,000 BC. Pretty cool movie. Now I'm blogging.
This weekend I have a very fun excursion with my best friend planned. I'm taking her out to brunch and then to a spa for her birthday. I LOVE spas, so I think it'll be a pretty fantastic Saturday.
Saturday night I'll probably hang out with my boyfriend.
Sunday I'll sleep in, I have a work meeting I need to attend, then I'm mostly free. I've been invited to have a dinner with my boyfriend's family on Sunday night, so I'm sure that's where I'll be then.

So, that's my week. Is it much different than any one who is actively involved in other religions? In my experience, it's not. There's a lady I used to work with that did Bible study every night. Another lady at my office used to be very active with her church and dedicated her entire weekend, along with a few days a week to youth activities. What's your opinion?

A Week in Links

Here are some excellent links regarding Scientology to start March out with:

Grahame adds to my article"So...What is Scientology?"

DoTheRightThing has a great article on criticism of Scientology

Max talks about finding beauty when writing code

Val talks about Scientology "beliefs"

So...What is Scientology?

I looked over my blog and discovered that I have never defined Scientology for you! What was I thinking?! So, here's the 5 million dollar question: What is Scientology?
Here goes:

Starting with the basics, what does the word Scientology itself mean?
The word Scientology means "The study of knowledge" or "Knowing about knowing". Further, Scientology means the study and handling of the spirit in relationship with itself, universes and life.

Scientology is all about providing the exact principles and practical technology for improving self-confidence, intelligence and ability. It's not something you have to have faith in or believe in to work, it's an applied religious philosophy - meaning if you apply the principles of Scientology, you will see the results in your life.

I'll be delving deeper into what Scientology is and is all about in the next few posts, so stay tuned and let me know if anything I say confuses you or if you have questions!