What about this Scientology? It seems they recruit the very rich and famous?

Question

Is it expensive to join this order? What really is behind all of it?
Their beliefs etc., Please i wish to know?

I must say majority rules and all of you gave very informative answers against it and why? Thanks, now I see and it reminds me of that financial pyramid stuff, like those vitamin salesman or the Transedental Medition Cult from the 60's. I won't ever join that and thanks for the tips guys.

Answer 1

from what I've heard....stay AWAY from it. And if you don't take my advice at least don't EVER give them any personal information!

What they teach you is actually 99% correct and useful stuff that will help with your life. The big problem is that they are basically a cult. No matter how involved you are with them, in their eyes you will always need more guidance, another class, to rise another level, that very conveniently (for them) will cost you THOUSANDS of dollars. And I've heard they recruit famous people because they can afford it, so they get treated better.

Try books like "The Science of Mind" (Ernest Holmes), "the Power of Decision", and "Conversations with God". Basically the same teaching for $25, not $2500. And the books won't keep harassing you.

Answer 2

It's very very very expensive.

L. Ron Hubbard, the science fiction writer and “prophet” of Scientology, has been quoted as saying: "Writing for a penny a word is ridiculous. If a man really wants to make a million dollars, the best way would be to start his own religion" http://lisatrust.freewinds.cx/scientology/hubbard.htm

The cult is mostly a high powered scam. It pays members 10% commissions, called FSM (Field Staff Member) commissions, for bringing in new recruits who take a course or get counseling, so Scientology members routinely try to "sell" Scientology to others.

The new members then, in turn, are required to pay vast amounts of money to the "church" in order to receive "auditing", courses, literature, take tests, retake tests, etc. Here is a run-down of all the costs involved with Scientology membership: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientology_as_a_business#Costs

Here is testimony from a woman who had been involved in exposing Scientology and other cults for most of her adult life: http://www.clambake.org/archive/books/tsos/sos-19.html

Even more proof that Scientology is out for your money... here is Hubbard discussing turning the business of Scientology into a "religion" for profit:

"I am not quite sure what we would call the place - probably not a clinic - but I am sure that it ought to be a company, independent of the HAS (Hubbard Association of Scientologists) but fed by the HAS. We don't want a clinic. We want one in operation but not in name. Perhaps we could call it a Spiritual Guidance Center. Think up its name, will you. ... It is a problem of practical business. I await your reaction on the religion angle." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientology_controversy#L._Ron_Hubbard_and_starting_a_religion_for_money

Answer 3

Well I'm not particularly rich and definitely not famous, but then the majority of Scientologist are like me. Seems the media is only interested in the "rich and famous" when it comes to most things, so I can see how you might get that impression. Here's a factual decription of Scientology for you: Scientology is an applied religious philosophy. When I say "applied" I mean you actually use it in your life to change or improve existing conditions. It is a very practical religion. All religions if you learn about them have a basic philosphy, but they also have certain dogma, rituals and observances, and a certain faith or belief is required. There is nothing wrong with this, but Scientology is not that kind of religion. It does not intrude on anyones faiths of beliefs in the area of God , the Supreme Being, or the Infinite. This area is left totally up to the indivdual as pasrt of his life. It does not conflict. You can have no specific religious beliefs and still benefit from it. And it is only true for you according to your own observation and experience with it. It is also not a messianic religion. This means there is no worship of messiahs in Scientology. There are no “beliefs” as such because a truth should be according to ones own observation and experience. The dictionary definition that applies: Religion: The spiritual or emotional attitude of one who recognises the existence of superhuman power or powers. The most basic principle of Scientology is that YOU are your own immortal soul, that this is not a "thing" you HAVE but what YOU actually are. The whole purpose of Scientology is to increase an individual's understanding and awareness of himself. and lifeAnd thereby his native abilities . When you do this the sphere and zone of his positive influence increases and moves outward into his life, his family ,his friends, his groups and mankind which he is part of. How this result is achieved is the "technology" of Scientology, which was developed by L.Ron Hubbard after his extensive research and the discoveries he made, about the human spirit. The basic religious philosophy and knowledge of Scientology is very old, going back 10,000 years at least to the Veda or Vedic Hymns from the East. L. Ron Hubbard researched and made new discoveries about the human spirit. He developed technology from these discoveries to apply to increase spiritual awareness and ability. He completed his research before his death in 1986 and left all of his results and copyrights to the Church of Scientology along with most of his considerable personal estate, when he died. He published a book in 1951 to communicate the basic principles he discovered called: " Scientology The Fundementals of Thought" There are currently over 10 million Scientologists in more than 163 countries world wide. However we are a new religion, only 53 years old. The true story of Scientology as a religion goes like this: 1. A philosopher developes a philosophy about life and death. 2. People find it interesting. 3. People find it works. 4. People pass it along to others. 5. It grows. This is just an overview. L. Ron Hubbard explained fully the theology and technologies of Scientology in more than 500,000 pages of writings, including dozens of books and over 2,000 tape-recorded public lectures. So it's not possible to fully answer your question on this forum, but I hope this gives you some idea.... and no, belief in aliens is not part of it. Another myth created by somebody.

Answer 4

Well I guess if you now have formed an opinion based on the "majority" on this forum there's not much point in giving you the factual information.
But I will state for the record that my religion is not a "pyramid scheme" nor is it about "recruiting rich or famous people".
I should know since I have studied and practiced Scientology for almost 35 years. ( Oh, and by the way I am not rich or famous)
For what it's worth, here is some actual facts about it, if you still wish to know:

Scientology is an applied religious philosophy. When I say "applied" I mean you actually use it in your life to change or improve existing conditions. It is a very practical religion.
All religions if you learn about them have a basic philosphy, but they also have certain dogma, rituals and observances, and a certain faith or belief is required. There is nothing wrong with this, but Scientology is not that kind of religion. It does not intrude on anyones faiths of beliefs particularly in the area of God , the Supreme Being, or the Infinite. This area is left totally up to the indivdual, which is why you can be a practicing Jew,for example and still use and apply the priniciples of Scientology in your life. It does not conflict. If anything it will enhance your understanding of your chosen religious practice.
You can have no specific religious beliefs and still benefit from using it.
And it is only true for you according to your own observation and experience with it.
It is a non denominational religion . The dictionary definition that applies:
Religion: The spiritual or emotional attitude of one who recognises the existence of superhuman power or powers.

The most basic principle of Scientology is that YOU are your own immortal soul, that this is not a "thing" you HAVE but what YOU actually are.
The whole purpose of Scientology is to increase an individual's understanding and awareness of himself. and lifeAnd thereby his native abilities .
When you do this the sphere and zone of his positive influence increases and moves outward into his life, his family ,his friends, his groups and mankind which he is part of.

How this result is achieved is the "technology" of Scientology, which was developed by L.Ron Hubbard after his extensive research and the discoveries he made, about the human spirit. The basic religious philosophy and knowledge of Scientology is very old, going back 10,000 years at least to the Veda or Vedic Hymns from the East. L. Ron Hubbard researched and made new discoveries about the human spirit. He developed technology from these discoveries to apply to increase spiritual awareness and ability.
He completed his research before his death in 1986 and left all of his results and copyrights
to the Church of Scientology along with most of his considerable personal estate, when he died.

He published a book in 1951 to communicate the basic principles he discovered called: " Scientology The Fundementals of Thought"
There are currently over 10 million Scientologists in more than 163 countries world wide. However we are a new religion, only 53 years old.
The true story of Scientology as a religion goes like this:
1. A philosopher developes a philosophy about life and death.
2. People find it interesting.
3. People find it works.
4. People pass it along to others.
5. It grows.

This is just an overview.
L. Ron Hubbard explained fully the theology and technologies of Scientology in more than 500,000 pages of writings, including dozens of books and over 2,000 tape-recorded public lectures. So it's not really possible to fully answer your question on this forum, but this IS what is "behind all of it".

Answer 5

Scientology is the study and handling of the spirit in relationship to itself, others and all of life. The word Scientology literally means "the study of truth."

It can be VERY expensive, check out the website below

Answer 6

LOL it's a religion that is mostly for Rich snob entertainers and Rich and Famous. It's the celeberites cult religion.

Answer 7

They target the rich to get their money.
They target the famous so that other people will wish to join

Can't you live a full and content life without being a member of somebody else's order?

Answer 8

Hell yeah it's expensive. When my father was in college they tried to recruit him to Scientology. They made him and his peers take a test and they proceeded to tell my dad and peers what was wrong with them. For sessions or whatever they call it they can "fix" you, of course it costs thousands of dollars. It's paying to get fixed, like a doctor but in a spiritual way. But wait, didn't we say indulgences were wrong?

Answer 9

They basically sell courses on how to clear your mind. The more courses you do, the more they get you to pay.

They do a really good job on telling you that "if only you did just this one course on psychology" you will be able to do blah blah blah, and its only costs $500, a real bargan. Most psychologists charge $1000 for similar courses."

Its all BS but thats how they make their money. Once you have no more money, you get dumped fast.

Answer 10

that would be the first sign its not a biblical church, if you have to pay to join.
yes they do recruit the rich and famous. They make it sound nice but we must beware of false religion.
http://www.whatisscientology.org/