Scientology beliefs and practices

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Scientology
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General
Scientology Dianetics Timeline History L. Ron Hubbard Publications Glossary
Beliefs and practices
Thetan Auditing Bridge to Total Freedom OT Xenu Ethics and justice
Church of Scientology
Officials and staff Sea Org David Miscavige
Controversies
Litigation Status by country Suppressive person Disconnection Fair game RPF The Hole Office of Special Affairs Guardian's Office War on psychiatry
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The Church of Scientology maintains a wide variety of beliefs and practices. The core belief holds that a human is an immortal, spiritual being (thetan) that is resident in a physical body. The thetan has had innumerable past lives, some of which, preceding the thetan's arrival on Earth, were lived in extraterrestrial cultures. Based on case studies at advanced levels, it is predicted that any Scientologist undergoing auditing will eventually come across and recount a common series of past-life events.

Scientology describes itself as the study and handling of the spirit in relationship to itself, others, and all of life. Scientologists also believe that people have innate, yet suppressed, power and ability which can be regained if cleared of unwanted behavioural patterns and discomforts. Scientology is described as "a religion to help people use scientific approaches to self-actualize their full potential." Believers reach their full potential "when they understand themselves in their true relationship to the physical universe and the Supreme Being." There have been many scholarly studies of Scientology and the books are freely available in bookshops, churches and most libraries.

The Church of Scientology believes that "Man is basically good, that he is seeking to survive, (and) that his survival depends on himself and his attainment of brotherhood with the universe", as stated in the Creed of the Church of Scientology.

Roy Wallis describes Scientology as "a movement that straddles the boundaries between psychology and religion, a graded hierarchy of 'auditing' and training" with the intention of releasing the individual's full potential.

Scientology does not require that their members must exclusively believe in Scientology, distinguishing it from biblical religions. Scientologists may profess belief in other religions, such as Protestantism and Catholicism, and may participate in their activities and sacred rites. Jacob Neusner emphasizes this in the section on Scientology in his book World Religions in America. According to J. Gordon Melton, "Scientologists aim to utterly remake the world instead of taking refuge from it," as they participate in culture instead of being isolated. Scientology is inherently nondenominational and open to individuals, regardless of religious background; according to Mary A. Mann, it contains the elements necessary for a global religion and caters to people of all different ethnicities and educational upbringing.

Core beliefs and practices

Auditing

Main article: Auditing (Scientology)

The central practice of Scientology is an activity known as auditing which seeks to elevate an adherent to a state of Clear, one of freedom from the influences of the reactive mind. The practice is one wherein a counselor called an "auditor" addresses a series of questions to a preclear, observes and records the preclear's responses, and acknowledges them. An important element in all forms of auditing is to not suggest answers to the preclear or invalidate or degrade what the preclear says in response. It is of utmost importance that the auditor create a truly safe and distraction-free environment for the session.

The term clear is derived from a button on a calculator that deletes previous calculations. According to Scientology beliefs, Clears are "optimal individuals" and "they have been cleared of false information and memories of traumatic experiences that prevent them from adapting to the world around them in a natural and appropriate fashion." Scientologists believe that clears become more successful in their daily lives and that they are "healthier, experience less stress, and possess better communication skills than non-Scientologists."

"Auditing" is sometimes seen as controversial, because auditing sessions are permanently recorded and stored within what are called "preclear folders". Scientologists believe that the practice of auditing helps them overcome the debilitating effects of traumatic experiences, most of which have accumulated over a multitude of lifetimes. The folders are kept in accordance with the Priest/Penitent legal parameters which do not allow these folders to be seen or used for any other purpose or seen by any others who are not directly involved in supervising that person's auditing progress.

Auditors are required to become proficient with the use of their E-meters. The device measures the subject's galvanic skin response in a manner similar to a polygraph (lie detector), but with only one electrode per hand rather than multiple sensors. The E-meter is primarily used in auditing, which "aims to remove (engrams) to produce a state of 'clear.'" Auditors do not receive final certification until they have successfully completed an internship, and have demonstrated a proven ability in the skills they have been trained in. Auditors often practice their auditing with each other, as well as friends or family. Church members pair up often to get their training, doing the same course at the same time, so that they can audit each other up through the various Scientology levels.

According to scholar Harriet Whitehead, the Church of Scientology "has developed a fine-tooled hierarchically organized system of audit (training) sessions where the technology of these sessions, in fact, is the treatment leading to processes of renunciation and eventually reformulation in the individual," which is similar to psychoanalysis.

"Reactive mind" and traumatic memories

See also: Dianetics and Auditing (Scientology)

A Scientologist introduces the E-meter to a potential student.

Among the basic tenets of Scientology are the beliefs that human beings are immortal, that a person's life experience transcends a single lifetime, and that human beings possess infinite capabilities. Scientology presents two major divisions of the mind. The "reactive mind" is thought to absorb all pain and emotional trauma, while the "analytical mind" is a rational mechanism which is responsible for consciousness. The reactive mind stores mental images which are not readily available to the analytical (conscious) mind; these are referred to as "engrams". Engrams are painful and debilitating; as they accumulate, people move further away from their true identity. Avoiding this fate is Scientology's basic goal. Dianetic auditing is one way by which the Scientologist may progress toward the 'Clear' state, winning gradual freedom from the reactive mind's engrams, and acquiring certainty of their reality as a thetan. Hubbard's differentiation of the reactive mind and the analytical mind forms one of the basic tenets of Dianetics. The analytical mind is similar to the conscious mind, which processes daily information and events. The reactive mind produces the mind's "aberrations" such as "fear, inhibition, intense love and hate and various psychosomatic ills" which are recorded as "engrams".

Scientology believes that people have hidden abilities which have not yet been fully realized. It is believed that increased spiritual awareness and physical benefits are accomplished through counseling sessions referred to as "auditing". Through auditing, it is said that people can solve their problems and free themselves of engrams. This restores them to their natural condition as thetans and enables them to be "at cause" in their daily lives, responding rationally and creatively to life events rather than reacting to them under the direction of stored engrams. Accordingly, those who study Scientology materials and receive auditing sessions advance from a status of "Preclear" to "Clear" and "Operating Thetan". Scientology's utopian aim is to "clear the planet", a world in which everyone has cleared themselves of their engrams.

Auditing is a one-on-one session with a Scientology counselor or "auditor". It bears a superficial similarity to confession or pastoral counseling, but the auditor records and stores all information received and does not dispense forgiveness or advice the way a pastor or priest might do. Instead, the auditor's task is to help a person discover and understand engrams, and their limiting effects, for themselves. Most auditing requires an E-meter, a device that measures minute changes in electrical resistance through the body when a person holds electrodes (metal "cans"), and a small current is passed through them.

Scientology believes that watching for changes in the E-meter's display helps locate engrams. Once an area of concern has been identified, the auditor asks the individual specific questions about it, in order to help them eliminate the engram, and uses the E-meter to confirm that the engram's "charge" has been dissipated and the engram has in fact been cleared. As the individual progresses, the focus of auditing moves from simple engrams to engrams of increasing complexity. At the more advanced OT auditing levels, Scientologists perform solo auditing sessions, acting as their own auditors.

Emotional tone scale

Scientology uses an emotional classification system called the "tone scale". The tone scale stretches from tone 0.0, marking "death", to tone 40.0, meaning "Serenity of Beingness", and the expanded tone scale goes from −40.0 to 40.0. Hubbard maintained that knowing a person's place on the scale makes it easier to predict someone's actions and behaviors. During the auditing process, the auditor is trained to observe the client's emotional state at all times with respect to the tone scale.

The tone scale starts well below apathy. In other words, a person is feeling no emotion about a subject at all. On many subjects and problems people are actually well below apathy. There the tone scale starts, on utter, dead null far below death itself. Going up into improved tones one encounters the level of body death, apathy, grief, fear, anger, antagonism, boredom, enthusiasm and serenity, in that order. There are many stops between these tones. A person in grief, when his tone improves feels fear. A person in fear, when his tone improves feels anger.
— L. Ron Hubbard

According to Hubbard, one's tone affects a person's attitude, their ability to relate with others, and even their body odors. The higher on the scale, the more emotionally alive someone would be. Lower tones, Hubbard asserted, should be exiled from society.

ARC and KRC triangles

Scientology "S and double triangle" symbol, KRC triangle, and ARC triangle

Without reality or some agreement, affinity and communication are absent. Without communication, there can be no affinity or reality. It is only necessary to improve one corner of this very valuable triangle in order to improve the remaining two corners. The easiest corner to improve is Communication: improving one's ability to communicate raises at the same time his affinity for others and life, as well as expands the scope of his agreements.
—L. Ron Hubbard

The Scientology symbol is made up of two triangles with an "S" connecting them. The top triangle is called the KRC triangle, symbolizing the related concepts of knowledge, responsibility and control. The lower triangle is called the ARC triangle, symbolizing the related concepts of affinity, reality and communication, and all three together represent understanding. The large connecting "S" simply stands for "Scientology".

Scientology teaches that improving one of the three aspects of the either the KRC or ARC triangle will increase the other two. In the ARC triangle, communication is held to be the most important.

Among Scientologists, the letters ARC are used as an affectionate greeting in personal communication, for example at the end of a letter. Social problems are ascribed to breakdowns in ARC – in other words, a lack of agreement on reality, a failure to communicate effectively, or a failure to develop affinity. These can take the form of overts – harmful acts against another, either intentionally or by omission – which are usually followed by withholds – efforts to conceal the wrongdoing, which further increase the level of tension in the relationship.

The eight dynamics

Scientology emphasizes the importance of "survival", which it subdivides into eight classifications that are referred to as "the eight dynamics". The optimum solution to any problem is held to be the one that brings the greatest benefit to the greatest number of dynamics. The eight dynamics are:

The first dynamic is the urge toward survival of self.
The second dynamic is the urge toward survival through sex or procreation. There are two subdivisions, (a) the sexual act itself and (b) the family unit, including the rearing of children.
The third dynamic is the urge toward survival through groups, for example a school, a club, a team, a town, a nation.
The fourth dynamic is the urge toward survival through all mankind.
The fifth dynamic is the urge toward survival through life forms such as animals, birds, insects, fish and vegetation.
The sixth dynamic is the urge toward survival as the physical universe, which is called MEST (for matter, energy, space, time).
The seventh dynamic is the urge toward survival through spirits or as a spirit. Anything spiritual would come under the seventh dynamic.
The eighth dynamic is the urge toward survival through the Supreme Being or infinity.

Hubbard introduced the Scientology cross in the mid-1950s as a religious symbol for Scientology. The eight points of the cross symbolize the eight dynamics.

Thetans

Exteriorization

Exteriorization is a practice in which a thetan functions independently of the physical body, sometimes as a result of auditing process R2-45. According to Lawrence Wright, author of Going Clear, exteriorization "is the sense that one has actually left his physical being behind," and a commonly reported occurrence among Scientologists.

Afterlife

In Scientology, the human body is regarded as similar to that of other religions in that, at death, the spirit will leave the body. "Life and personality go on. The physical part of the organism ceases to function." Scientology believes in the "immortality of each individual's spirit," therefore making death not a significant worry. The spirit acquires another body necessary for growth and survival. To achieve an individual's true identity is the primary goal.}

According to Scientology doctrine, salvation is achieved through "clearing" engrams and implant, the source of human misery, through the auditing process. Salvation is limited to the current life and there is no "final salvation or damnation", author Richard Holloway writes. "Life is a not a one-shot deal. There is only the eternal return of life after life." According to Scientology beliefs, "the individual comes back. He has a responsibility for what goes on today since he will experience it tomorrow."

According to Scientology beliefs, Scientology itself is a blend of science and spirituality, with belief in an immortal spirit and in improving that spirit here on Earth using Scientology's methods. Scientologists do not typically dwell on Heaven or Hell or the afterlife, instead focusing on the spirit. Many Scientologists also belong to other churches.

In the Scientology book, A History of Man, Hubbard discusses that a human's past experiences make up that person's present identity. These include experiences as atoms, seaweed, plankton and clams, pointing to the belief in recurring lives.

God

The Church of Scientology states that it has no set dogma on God and allows individuals to come to their own understanding of God. In Scientology, "vastly more emphasis is given to the godlike nature of the person and to the workings of the human mind than to the nature of God." Hubbard did not clearly define God in Scientology. When pressed about their belief, Scientologists mention the "eighth dynamic" which they say is the "God dynamic".

Scientologists believe in an "Infinity" ("the All-ness of All"). They recite a formal prayer for total freedom at meetings, which include the verses "May the author of the universe enable all men to reach an understanding of their spiritual nature. May awareness and understanding of life expand, so that all may come to know the author of the universe. And may others also reach this understanding which brings Total Freedom... Freedom from war, and poverty, and want; freedom to be; freedom to do and freedom to have. Freedom to use and understand Man's potential – a potential that is God-given and Godlike." The prayer commences with "May God let it be so."

Scientologists affirm the existence of a deity without defining or describing its nature. L. Ron Hubbard explains in his book Science of Survival, "No culture in the history of the world, save the thoroughly depraved and expiring ones, has failed to affirm the existence of a Supreme Being. It is an empirical observation that men without a strong and lasting faith in a Supreme Being are less capable, less ethical and less valuable." Instead of defining God, members assert that reaching higher states of enlightenment will enable individuals to make their own conclusions about the Supreme Being.

Science

The church considers itself scientific, although this belief has no basis in institutional science. According to religious scholar Mikael Rothstein Scientologists believe that "all religious claims can be verified through experimentation". Scientologists believe that their religion was derived through scientific methods, that Hubbard found knowledge through studying and thinking, not through revelation. The "science" of Dianetics, however, was never accepted by the scientific community. Rothstein also writes that there is a possibility that Scientology partly owes its existence to the conflict with the conventional scientific community, which hindered Hubbard's original intention. Religious scholar Dorthe Refslund Christensen notes that Scientology differs from the scientific method in that Scientology has become increasingly self-referential, while true science normally compares competing theories and observed facts.

Hubbard originally claimed and insisted that Dianetics was based on the scientific method. He taught that "the scientific sensibilities over into the spiritual realities one encounters via auditing on the e-meter." Scientologists commonly prefer to describe Hubbard's teachings with words such as knowledge, technology and workability rather than belief or faith. Hubbard described Dianetics and Scientology as "technologies" based on his claim of their "scientific precision and workability." Hubbard attempted to "break down the barrier between scientific (objective, external) and religious (subjective, internal) forms of knowledge." Hubbard describes Scientology's epistemology as "radically subjective: Nothing in Scientology is true for you unless you have observed it and it is true according to your observation." This is a type of self-legitimation through science which is also found in other religions such as Christian Science, Religious Science, and Moorish Science Temple of America.

Sociologist William Sims Bainbridge cites Scientology's origins in the subcultures of science fiction and "harmony" with scientific cosmology. Science fiction, viewed to work for and against the purposes of science, has contributed to the birth of new religions, including Scientology. While it promotes science, it distorts it as well. Science fiction writer A.E. van Vogt based the early development of Dianetics and Scientology on a novel based on General Semantics, a self-improvement and therapy program created by Alfred Korzybski for the purpose of curing personal and social issues.

Members of the Church believe that Hubbard "discovered the existential truths that form their doctrine through research," thus leading to the idea that Scientology is science. Hubbard created what the church would call a "spiritual technology" to advance the goals of Scientology. According to the church, "Scientology works 100 percent of the time when it is properly applied to a person who sincerely desires to improve his life." The underlying claims are that Scientology is "exact" and "certain". Michael Shermer, writing for Scientific American in 2011, said that Scientology's methods lacked enough study to qualify as a science, but that the story of Xenu and Scientology's other creation myths were no less tenable than other religions.

B. Hubbard, J. Hatfield and J. Santucci compare Scientology's view of humanity to the Yogachara school of Buddhism, saying that both have been described as "the most scientific" among new and traditional religions respectively. B. Hubbard et al. cite the use of technical language and the claim that teachings were developed through observation and experimentation. They also emphasize that many investigators and researchers consider Scientology to be a pseudoscience because of its absolute and meta-empirical goals.

Scholar Kocku von Stuckrad stated that Scientology is an example of the phenomenon of both the "scientification of religion" and the "sacralization" of science. Donald A. Westbrook elaborates that there is apparently an "ongoing and dialectical relationship" between religion and science in Hubbard's teachings.

The Bridge to Total Freedom

Main article: The Bridge to Total Freedom

The Bridge to Total Freedom, also known as the "Classification, Gradation and Awareness Chart", is Scientology's primary road map to guide a person through the sequential steps to attain Scientology's concept of spiritual freedom. In Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health, Hubbard used the analogy of a bridge: "We are here at a bridge between one state of Man and a next. We are above the chasm which divides a lower from a higher plateau and this chasm marks an artificial evolutionary step in the progress of Man. In this handbook we have the basic axioms and a therapy which works. For God's sake, get busy and build a better bridge!" The current Classification, Gradation and Awareness Chart is printed with red ink on white paper and hangs as a poster in every Scientology organization. A newcomer to Scientology starts the Bridge at the bottom of the chart and rises through the levels, perhaps reaching the level of Clear, then continuing upward through the OT Levels to higher states of awareness and ability.

Rejection of psychology and psychiatry

Further information: Scientology and psychiatry, Citizens Commission on Human Rights, and Psychiatry: An Industry of Death

Scientology is publicly, and often vehemently, opposed to both psychiatry and psychology. Scientologists view psychiatry as a barbaric and corrupt profession and encourage alternative care based on spiritual healing.

The psychiatric establishment rejected Hubbard's theories in the early 1950s. Ever since, Scientology has argued that psychiatry suffers from the fundamental flaw of ignoring humanity's spiritual dimension, and that it fails to take into account Hubbard's insights about the nature of the mind. Scientology holds psychiatry responsible for a great many wrongs in the world, saying it has at various times offered itself as a tool of political suppression and "that psychiatry spawned the ideology which fired Hitler's mania, turned the Nazis into mass murderers, and created the Holocaust."

The anti-psychiatry organization Citizens Commission on Human Rights (CCHR) was founded by Hubbard in 1969. It operates Psychiatry: An Industry of Death, an anti-psychiatry museum.

Through CCHR, Scientology has made claims of psychiatric abuse. The anti-psychiatry organization has had political accomplishments: in 1986, it published a manifesto against psychiatry and psychotropic medication, which was included in a document by the United Nations which saw wide circulation; in 2006, a bill drafted by the group was passed by the Arizona senate "mandating an additional consent form be presented to subjects considering participation in psychiatric research." The form in question "differentiates real disease from mental illness." A similar CCHR bill was rejected by the Florida house, "mandating that a long, ominous-sounding statement about the dangers of psychoactive drugs be presented to parents prior to school referral for mental health evaluation." The movement has gained momentum across the US.

How Scientology defines ethics

Main article: Scientology ethics and justice

Scientology teaches that progress on The Bridge to Total Freedom requires and enables the attainment of high moral and ethical standards. According to Hubbard, the goal of ethics is to remove impediments to survival, and ethics is essentially a tool to "get technology in", meaning Scientology's use of the term technology. Stephen A. Kent describes Scientology ethics as "a peculiar brand of morality that uniquely benefitted In plain English, the purpose of Scientology ethics is to eliminate opponents, then eliminate people's interests in things other than Scientology. In this 'ethical' environment, Scientology would be able to impose its courses, philosophy, and 'justice system' – its so-called technology – onto society."

Applied teachings

See also: L. Ron Hubbard and Scientology bibliography

L. Ron Hubbard, the founder of the Church of Scientology, supposedly founded his ideas for the basis of the church during his time in the war. The New Yorker’s Lawrence Wright published a heavily fact-checked article regarding Hubbard’s history. Wright and his colleagues met with the current “spokesman for the Church of Scientology, Tommy Davis, along with Davis’ wife and four lawyers representing the church” (Gross & Mosley, 2011). In this meeting, Davis revealed through Hubbard’s medical records that he claimed to be “blind and a ‘hopeless cripple’ at the end of World War II” (Gross & Mosley, 2011). Hubbard also claimed to have healed these ailments through the practice of Dianetics, which he then published a book about in 1950, providing the building blocks for the Church of Scientology. However, there was no real evidence that Hubbard was even injured in the war. The evidence provided to Wright by Davis failed to match other evidence Wright’s fact-checkers had found through a request to the military archives. This evidence provided by Davis included a notice of separation from World War II and photographic evidence of medals Hubbard won.

The church makes it clear that Hubbard is considered the sole source of Dianetics and Scientology: "The Scientology religion is based exclusively upon L. Ron Hubbard's research, writings and recorded lectures – all of which constitute the Scriptures of the religion." His work, recorded in 500,000 pages of writings, 6,500 reels of tape and 42 films, is archived for posterity. The Religious Technology Center holds "the ultimate ecclesiastical authority and the pure application of L. Ron Hubbard's religious technologies."

Individuals applying Hubbard's techniques who are not officially connected to the Church of Scientology are considered part of the "Free Zone". Some of these individuals were litigated against for using and modifying the practices for their own use and that of others, thereby infringing the law on patent, trademarks, or trade secrets.

Toxins and "purification"

Main article: Purification Rundown

The Purification Rundown is a controversial detoxification program developed by Scientology's founder L. Ron Hubbard and used by the Church of Scientology as an introductory service. Scientologists consider it the only effective way to deal with the long-term effects of drug abuse or toxic exposure. The program combines exercise, dietary supplements and long stays in a sauna (up to five hours a day for five weeks). It is promoted variously as religious or secular, medical or purely spiritual, depending on context.

Narconon is a drug education and rehabilitation program founded on Hubbard's beliefs about toxins and purification. Narconon is offered in the United States, Canada and a number of European countries; its Purification Program uses a regimen composed of sauna, physical exercise, vitamins and diet management, combined with auditing and study.

"Handling" of psychosis

Main article: Introspection Rundown

The Introspection Rundown is a controversial Church of Scientology auditing process that is intended to handle a psychotic episode or complete mental breakdown. Introspection is defined for the purpose of this rundown as a condition where the person is "looking into one's own mind, feelings, reactions, etc." The Introspection Rundown came under public scrutiny after the death of Lisa McPherson in 1995.

Study Technology

Main article: Study Tech

Hubbard described three barriers to study: lack of mass, too steep a gradient, and the misunderstood word. Scientology teaches that a student who learns only ideas, without also seeing the thing in real life that they are studying (the mass) or at least a picture of it, would suffer feeling dizzy or bored or angry—the remedy would be to provide the student with some mass of the thing they are studying. If a student doesn't know the fundamentals of a subject and advances too quickly to higher levels, they would feel confused—the remedy for too steep a gradient would be to drop back down to the earlier level the person thought they knew well, but didn't. When a student reads past a word they don't fully understand, they would "go blank", yawn, or seem distracted—the remedy would be to find the word they didn't know and look that word up in a dictionary, then continue studying.

In Scientology, "misinformation or miscommunication is analogous to original sin, inhibiting individual growth and relationships with others." The "misunderstood word" is a key concept in Scientology, and failure in reading comprehension is attributed to it. Scientology therefore focuses heavily on the use of dictionaries. The Church of Scientology includes glossaries in most of their books, and even publishes several dictionaries covering Scientology-specific terminology, words, phrases and abbreviations. Critics have accused Hubbard of "loading the language" and using Scientology jargon to keep Scientologists from interacting with others outside of Scientology.

Interpretation and context

Scientology discourages secondary interpretation of its writings. Students of Scientology are taught to direct others to those original sources, rather than to convey any interpretation of the concepts in their own words. Emphasis is placed on keeping the writings in context.

Silent birth

Main article: Silent birth

Advocated by Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard, silent birth describes "the process of childbirth where labor and delivery is done in a calm and loving environment." To provide quiet surroundings for the delivery of the baby, individuals in his/her immediate vicinity are prompted not to speak. According to Scientology practices, silent birth is "mandatory to provide the best possible environment for the pregnant mother and her new baby." Shouting, laughing or making loud remarks must be avoided while the baby is being pushed out. According to The Multimedia Encyclopedia of Women in Today's World, "its origins are fundamentally rooted in the principle that women, particularly expectant mothers, be given the utmost care and respect."

Holidays

Scientology celebrates seven main holidays each year:

L. Ron Hubbard's birthday, March 13, celebrates Scientology's achievements during the prior year
Dianetics Day, May 9, marks the anniversary of the 1950 publication of Dianetics
Maiden Anniversary Voyage: June 9 is the anniversary of the maiden voyage of the ship Freewinds.
Sea Org Day is held on August 12
Auditor's Day is the second Sunday in September
The IAS event, October 7, celebrates the anniversary of the founding of the International Association of Scientologists
New Year's event, December 31

Sunday services

A Scientology Sunday service has a sermon, similar to some other religions. It typically begins at 11am and Hubbard's writings are read aloud during the service. Much like other religions' services, music is played or sometimes musical performances are enjoyed. The minister speaks on Scientology doctrine, announces that weekly activities of the community and recent updates from churches around the world. Scientologists also say "A Prayer for Total Freedom", asking the "author of the universe" to help them as they seek enlightenment.

The way Scientology's service has been executed has not changed. The minister chooses from a limited selection of possible sermons and group processing exercises. He creates the sermon within the parameters of a literal interpretation of Hubbard's canonical teachings, functioning similar to other indigenous theologians who work with canonical texts.

According to religion scholar James R. Lewis, Sunday services are more for interested non-members and the holidays and events are more for existing members of the church.

Rituals

The church's rituals can be categorized four ways: first, rituals performed for spiritual transformation; second, collective ceremonies usually called events, including Hubbard's birthday; third, rites of passage including weddings and funerals; and fourth, those that mimic Christian rituals, such as Sunday services. Events include the anniversary of Dianetics, the anniversary of Freewinds and Auditor's Day.

Training

Scientologists also undergo training aside from auditing, which consists of several levels of courses about daily life improvement using various tools, and auditing techniques, so that members are able to perform the same procedure to other Scientologists.

Applications of "ethics" and "disconnection"

Main articles: Scientology ethics and justice, Suppressive person, and Disconnection (Scientology)

Scientology's internal ethics and justice system is designed to deal with unethical or antisocial behavior. Ethics officers are present in every org; they are tasked with ensuring correct application of Scientology technology and deal with violations such as non-compliance with standard procedures or any other behavior adversely affecting an org's performance, ranging from errors and misdemeanors to crimes and suppressive acts, as defined by internal documents. Scientology teaches that spiritual progress requires and enables the attainment of high "ethical" standards. In Scientology, rationality is stressed over morality. Actions are considered ethical if they promote survival across all eight dynamics, thus benefiting the greatest number of people or things possible while harming the fewest.

While Scientology states that many social problems are the unintentional results of people's imperfections, it asserts that there are also truly malevolent individuals. Hubbard believed that approximately 80 percent of all people are what he called social personalities – people who welcome and contribute to the welfare of others. The remaining 20 percent of the population, Hubbard thought, were suppressive persons. According to Hubbard, only about 2.5 percent of this 20 percent are hopelessly antisocial personalities; these make up the small proportion of truly dangerous individuals in humanity: "the Adolf Hitlers and the Genghis Khans, the unrepentant murderers and the drug lords."} Scientologists believe that any contact with suppressive or antisocial individuals has an adverse effect on one's spiritual condition, necessitating disconnection.

In Scientology, defectors who turn into critics of the movement are declared suppressive persons, and the Church of Scientology has a reputation for moving aggressively against such detractors. A Scientologist who is actively in communication with a suppressive person and as a result shows signs of antisocial behaviour is referred to as a potential trouble source.

Fair game

Main article: Fair game (Scientology)

The term fair game is used to describe policies and practices carried out by the Church against people the Church perceives as its enemies. Hubbard established the policy in the 1950s, in response to criticism both from within and outside his organization. Individuals or groups who are "fair game" are judged to be a threat to the Church and, according to the policy, can be punished and harassed using any and all means possible.

Hubbard and his followers targeted many individuals as well as government officials and agencies, including a program of covert and illegal infiltration of the IRS and other U.S. government agencies during the 1970s. They also conducted private investigations, character assassination and legal action against the Church's critics in the media. The policy remains in effect and has been defended by the Church of Scientology as a core religious practice.

Splinter groups: independents, Miscavige's RTC, and "squirreling"

While "Scientology" generally refers to the David Miscavige-led Church of Scientology, many other groups practice Scientology. These groups, collectively known as the Free Zone or as Independent Scientologists, consist of both former members of the official Church of Scientology and entirely new members. In 1965, a longtime Church member and "Doctor of Scientology" Jack Horner, dissatisfied with the Church's "ethics" program, developed Dianology. Bill Robertson, a former Sea Org member, was a primary instigator of the Free Zone in the early 1980s. The church labels these groups as "squirrels" in Scientology jargon and often subjects them to considerable legal and social pressure.

On January 1, 1982, Miscavige established the Religious Technology Center (RTC). Shortly thereafter, individuals began splintering off the Church of Scientology and forming their own groups called the "Free Zone". Most notable was the ousting of David Mayo, Hubbard's own auditor and the highest-ranking technical officer in Scientology whom Hubbard had appointed successor guardian of Scientology's doctrines. After his removal, Mayo established the Advanced Ability Center, which became quite successful until it went bankrupt in 1986 after years of litigation and harassment from the Church of Scientology.

In the mid-2000s, high-profile defectors Mark Rathbun and Mike Rinder represented and stood for the cause of Independent Scientologists wishing to practice Scientology outside of the Church.

Use of contracts

The Church of Scientology requires that all members sign a legal waiver which covers their relationship with the Church of Scientology before engaging in Scientology services.

References

"Road To Total Freedom". Panorama. BBC. April 27, 1987.
Farley, Robert (May 6, 2006). "Scientology nearly ready to unveil Super Power". St. Petersburg Times. Archived from the original on July 5, 2006. Retrieved December 7, 2008.
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Harley, Gail M.; Kieffer, John (2009). "The Development and Reality of Auditing". In Lewis, James R. (ed.). Scientology. Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 183–205. ISBN 978-0-19-5331-49-3.
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Urban, Hugh B. (2011). The Church of Scientology: A History of a New Religion. Princeton University Press. ISBN 9780691146089.

External links

Scientology.org

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Government reports	Anderson Report (AUS) Dumbleton–Powles Report (NZ) Foster Report (UK) Lee Report (CAN)
Litigation	R v Registrar General, ex p Segerdal Hubbard v Vosper United States v. Hubbard X. and Church of Scientology v. Sweden Church of Scientology v. Sweden Wollersheim v. Church of Scientology Hernandez v. Commissioner New Era Publications International ApS v. Carol Publishing Group and Jonathan Caven-Atack Church of Scientology of California v. Armstrong R. v. Church of Scientology of Toronto Church of Scientology Intl. v. Fishman and Geertz Hill v. Church of Scientology of Toronto Religious Technology Center v Lerma Religious Technology Center v. Netcom On-Line Communication Services, Inc. Church of Scientology Intl. v. Time Warner, Inc., et al. Arenz, Röder and Dagmar v. Germany Church of Scientology Moscow v. Russia Headley v. Church of Scientology International
Organizations (and properties)	Cadet Org Celebrity Centre Château Élysée Church of Scientology Church of Scientology International Guaranty Building Church of Spiritual Technology Trementina Base Flag Service Organization Flag Building/Super Power Building Flag Ship Service Org Freewinds Founding Church of Scientology Galaxy Press Author Services building Golden Era Productions (Gold Base) Hubbard Association of Scientologists International International Association of Scientologists Office of Special Affairs Religious Technology Center Rehabilitation Project Force Saint Hill Manor Scientology Missions International Sea Org
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v t e L. Ron Hubbard
Life	Biographies Early life 1911–1950 1950–1953 1953–1967 1967–1975 1975–1986 Pseudobiography Bibliography written works Military career USS PC-815 USS YP-422 L. Ron Hubbard House Relationship with psychiatry Timeline of L. Ron Hubbard
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Novels and novellas	Battlefield Earth Branded Outlaw Buckskin Brigades Death's Deputy Excalibur (unpublished) Fear Final Blackout If I Were You Mission Earth series Slaves of Sleep To the Stars The Iron Duke Typewriter in the Sky
Short story collections	The Kingslayer Ole Doc Methuselah Science-Fantasy Quintette Triton
Film	The Secret of Treasure Island Battlefield Earth Revolt in the Stars (screenplay)
Dianetics and Scientology	Affirmations Dianetics: The Evolution of a Science Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health Science of Survival Scientology: A History of Man Have You Lived Before This Life? All About Radiation
Music	Space Jazz Mission Earth The Road to Freedom
Biographies	Bare-faced Messiah L. Ron Hubbard, Messiah or Madman? The L. Ron Hubbard Series (official church biography)
Publishers' sites	Bridge Publications Church of Spiritual Technology Galaxy Press Writers and Illustrators of the Future
Family	Margaret Grubb (first wife) Sara Northrup Hollister (second wife) Mary Sue Hubbard (third wife) Ronald DeWolf (son) Quentin Hubbard (son) Jamie DeWolf (great-grandson)

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