How can Scientology have any followers?

Question

when everyone knows it was created Hubbard just to make money and to prove how weak the human mind is?

Quoted from Wikipedia:

While the often-cited rumor that Hubbard made a bar bet with Robert A. Heinlein that he could start a cult is almost certainly false, others have claimed direct knowledge that during 1949 Hubbard did make statements to other people that starting a religion would be a good way to make money.

Writer and publisher Lloyd Arthur Eshbach, for example, reported Hubbard saying "I'd like to start a religion. That's where the money is." Writer Theodore Sturgeon reported that Hubbard made a similar statement at the Los Angeles Science Fantasy Society. Likewise, writer Sam Moskowitz reported in an affidavit that during an Eastern Science Fiction Association meeting, Hubbard had said "You don't get rich writing science fiction. If you want to get rich, you start a religion."

What do you think?

Answer 1

Well, when new actor$ and actre$$e$ come into Hollywood, they are a$ked to come to the $cientology Celebrity Center where they meet all $orts of fabulou$ movie $tar$ like John Travolta and Tommy Crui$e...and - if they pledge a portion of their earning$ to the Church of $cientology, they will get work.

$imple economic$.

Answer 2

What Would Xenu do?

I love the Scientologists in here defending their cult. The story of Xenu has a lot of bearing on their "religion". L. Ron Hubbard swears he went through Hell to get that information. If it wasn't for the internet, it would still remain the "secret" of Scamatology. You have to be a level OTIII to even know about Xenu and that will probably cost you a cool 50K for that info. Scamatology is a cult that traps people. The basis of their religion is the souls of dead aliens called "Body Thetans" cling to you and they are angry and confused. They are the cause of all the ills in your life. You get "cleared" of these BT's by holding two metal rods connected to a "E-meter" while an "Auditor" reads the meter and determines the number of BT's clinging to you. Then they charge you for the session and say you need more sessions. This info comes from several sites by people who have escaped the clutches of the cult.

Answer 3

wow this quote, "Hubbard had said "You don't get rich writing science fiction. If you want to get rich, you start a religion."

Keeps getting better and better as the years go by. I wonder what this quote will be in 100 years from now.

If you want to know how Scientology has followers quit getting your information off of Wikepedia (which isn't an authority) and learn for yourself what Scientology is about at http://scientology.org However quit asking silly questions that you feel you know the answer to already.

Answer 4

Hey, it works for innumerable Christian preachers, why shouldn't SF writers get in on the action? At least the Scientology history (as revealed on South Park) makes more sense than the OT history.

Religions - all religions - are a waste of time and effort. If you need someone to tell you what to do and what to believe, I'll do that for only 1% of your income versus the 10% you give to the church.

Answer 5

I think that when you start any sentence with "everyone knows",a vast diliberately dispersing generality that obviously
isn't the case, then you must be concerned that maybe NOT everybody buys into this false rumor.
Maybe you think it's your job to spread this muck...... it's not even an "urban ledgend" and "everyknows" those things usually never happened.

The facts are that many folks have discovered for themselves that this is just a false rumor circulated to create a negative slant on what is and growing and expanding, very beneficial religion.

Besides which L.Ron Hubbard died in 1986 and willed the majority of his personal estate, as well as the royalities from the sales of his works to the Church of Scientology when he died.
Oh, and he did do very well financially as a writer of fiction as well as having a substancial inheritence from his own family.
He never had money problems.
He was able to fund his research from his own funds.

Sorry mate, must be something more to it than what you've posted here.

What do you think???

Answer 6

Yes, it sounds weird but when you think about the far out claims of other religions its really no weirder than any. We just have been told the mainstream religion weird stories since birth so that they no longer seem so weird to us. I think his statements about religion and money are on the mark.

Answer 7

Per PT Barnum, there is a sucker born every minute. Another great quote, You cannot possibly underestimate the intelligence of the human animal in groups.

Answer 8

And why do people worship Buddha when he said himself he is not at all a diety?
People have a hole in them. They need to believe in something, latch on to anything that might fill the need. And when that stops working, they move on to the next thing.
Human nature.

Answer 9

It proves to you how easy it is to get people to follow you under th pretext of god. Don't for get about Joans town (spelling uf Joans Town unsure) and how many gave every thing away, commited suicide.
Cults are one of the fastest growing movement in todays society.

Answer 10

You nailed it.

The irreducible element of Scientology and it's obnoxious spin-offs (EST, Landmark, etc...) is money. That is the red flag of a rotten organization.