L. Ron Hubbard and Church

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  • Topic: L. Ron Hubbard, Scientology, Religion
  • Pages : 8 (2687 words )
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  • Published : November 8, 2012
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Is Scientology a on the Rise Religion or Cult?
The Church of Scientology is a well known and on the rise religion. A large number of people are expressing it as their religion of choice. Scientology is a religion that does not have an extended past, in spite of this it does bring up various questions from people who are unfamiliar with Scientology beliefs. Surprisingly, though, it has seldom been subjected to any extensive thorough study by historians of religions, the main reason is the tremendous amount of secrecy that has surrounded the church from its beginning. A lot of uncertainties come about for the reason that Scientologists are very secretive in their practices, several which are not even made known to the church members until they have been involved with the religion for a number of years. Many people think of Scientology as an “out there” religion because it is not the traditional religion with a higher being but instead it is a spiritual religion. For the most part people think that Scientology is a religion meant for individuals who are weird or who may be uncaring because it is not the traditional religion. A great deal of people perceive that Scientology is not an authentic religion but instead a cult. In this essay, I hope to clarify how Scientology started, show the major beliefs that Scientologists embrace and discuss various customs and procedures that they follow. Scientology is a religion more than a cult because much of its leadership, teachings, belief structure, charitable missions and community involvement are similar to other traditional religions.

Scientology's foundation can be followed back to Dianetics; however, the accounts of its beginning are mostly secretive. L. Ronald Hubbard, whom is the founder of Dianetics, used scientific methodology to the struggles of human existence; the result was Dianetics. The beliefs of Dianetics soon after progressed into The Church of Scientology. The Church of Scientology was first incorporated in 1953. In 1954, Hubbard formally launched the first Church Of Scientology in Washington, D.C. The classification of Scientology as a religion in the U.S. was long and drawn out and still is controversial. The church had a lengthy struggle with the Internal Revenue Service to become classified as a religion. In 1993, the IRS ultimately gave The Church of Scientology the status of being a religion, but the grant is not without conflict. “Scientology has always had a rather stormy history, having to deal with critics, ex-members turned enemies, deprogrammers, and the United States Government” ("The Church of Scientology"). Scientology is a group or institution that is on the edge of being psychology or a religion, it is very controversial, some describe it as a cult but others believe it is a business enterprise.

The innovations of Scientology are beliefs that clarify the basic laws of life. It clarifies why individuals act the way they do, the hurdles to survival and how to deal with them. “The basis of their belief is that man is far more than a product of his environment, or his genes, and is in fact an immortal spiritual being whose experience extends well beyond a single lifetime” (Emery). Scientology has to do with the spirit of the human being, together with how it connects to the universe and the creator. Scientologists disagree with the belief of everlasting life in heaven and hell. They have faith in reincarnation where an individual passes through numerous lifetimes.

It is hard to compare this application of science and technology with religions such as Islam, Judaism, Christianity and Hinduism. Islam teaches that an individual is only capable of finding peace in their life by submitting to Almighty God, Allah, in heart, soul and deed (Huda). Judaism is a monotheistic faith, referring that Jews believe there is just one God (Pelaia). Christianity is a major religion, coming from the life, teachings and death of Jesus...
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