I have just been shown some of what Scientologists believe in and without doubt these people are sorely mislead and confused and loony. This is an excerpt of what you can find on this site at this address..... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xenu
In Scientology doctrine, Xenu is a galactic ruler who, 75 million years ago, brought billions of people to Earth, stacked them around volcanoes and blew them up with hydrogen bombs. Their souls then clustered together and stuck to the bodies of the living, and continue to cause people problems today. These events are known to Scientologists as "Incident II", and the traumatic memories associated with them as The Wall of Fire or the R6 implant. The story of Xenu is part of a much wider range of Scientology beliefs in extraterrestrial civilizations and alien interventions in Earthly events, collectively described as space opera by L. Ron Hubbard, the founder of Scientology.
Hubbard detailed the story in Operating Thetan level III (OT III) in 1967, famously warning that R6 was "calculated to kill (by pneumonia etc) anyone who attempts to solve it." The Xenu story was the start of the use of the volcano as a common symbol of Scientology and Dianetics from 1968 to the present day.
Much of the criticism of the Church of Scientology focuses on the story of Xenu. The Church has tried to keep Xenu confidential; critics claim revealing the story is in the public interest, given the high prices charged for OT III. The Church avoids making mention of Xenu in public statements and has gone to considerable effort to maintain the story's confidentiality, including legal action on the grounds of both copyright and trade secrecy. Despite this, much material on Xenu has leaked to the public.
After reading the entire article on the subject I truly cannot understand how apparently completely sane, intelligent people can swallow all this crap that Scientology and other cults spew forth.
Please participate in this thread and add anything that you view as relavent or has even touched you personally on this subject of cults.
I have read a lot more about Scientology since the last post and have come to a couple of conclusions..... L.Ron Hubbard was a Sci-Fi fan and was so borderline nutcase that he confused reality with fantasy and thought he actually lived through some of the things he was reading and dreaming about. He was completely off the planet, literally. Through the years others read his beliefs that he had written down and the structure of Scientology and said 'Hang about, this guy is for real' and joined the bandwagon. Anyone who follows Hubbard's tenets is as crazy as he was. Which saddens me greatly because I absolutely love John Travolta, have since I was 18 or 19, and I am afraid after reading everything about the 'religion' he follows I know he must have a home persona and a very public persona. But now I know what it is in the scientologists heart, I cannot watch another of his movies or interviews without that coming to mind.
I agree, its the craziest load of crap I've ever heard! And I too, cannot believe ppl actually believe it! They MUST brainwash, as seen on The Simpsons in the episode about the 'Movementarians'. I tell ya, they make as much sence to me as the scientologists!
Meanwhile, did anyone else think of Scientology when they watched 'The 4400'? That crazy center they opened with the different levels called Keys, they tried to get celebs involved etc... Sounds like they based it on that nutty cult.
I agree, its the craziest load of crap I've ever heard! And I too, cannot believe ppl actually believe it! They MUST brainwash, as seen on The Simpsons in the episode about the 'Movementarians'. I tell ya, they make as much sence to me as the scientologists!
Meanwhile, did anyone else think of Scientology when they watched 'The 4400'? That crazy center they opened with the different levels called Keys, they tried to get celebs involved etc... Sounds like they based it on that nutty cult.
Completely... actually the Simpson's episode was more believable than Scientology. As for the 4400. It has been picked up in the US for more seasons and actually I have watched the entire second season. I love the show but have to agree with you that the '4400 Centre' smacks of cultism. Their intentions are good but there are always people in a movement like that who want to exploit and are driven by greed. Scientologists have to pay (cash, money) and heaps of it to 'unlock' different prophesies and beliefs of Hubbard. Also they have to buy their way to access different levels. What a heap of Horse Crap that is.
...Xenu is a galactic ruler who, 75 million years ago, brought billions of people to Earth, stacked them around volcanoes and blew them up with hydrogen bombs...
Gawd that sounds like a storyline for a Star Trek episode. I cannot believe Gene Roddenberry let that idea slip by!
Scientology is a good way of providing amusement to the rest of the world. Without it we couldn't laugh at Tom Cruise. I like the sci-fi story though, would make a way better action movie than the other religions stories.
According to http://www.xenu.net/cic/definit.html Definition of a Cult is: Every cult can be defined as a group having all of the following 5 characteristics:
1. It uses psychological coercion to recruit, indoctrinate and retain its members
2. It forms an elitist totalitarian society
3. Its founder leader is self-appointed, dogmatic, messianic, not accountable and has charisma
4. It believes 'the end justifies the means' in order to solicit funds recruit people
5. Its wealth does not benefit its members or society
A religion or religious sect generally considered to be extremist or false, with its followers often living in an unconventional manner under the guidance of an authoritarian, charismatic leader. The followers of such a religion or sect. A system or community of religious worship and ritual. The formal means of expressing religious reverence; religious ceremony and ritual. A usually nonscientific method or regimen claimed by its originator to have exclusive or exceptional power in curing a particular disease. Obsessive, especially faddish, devotion to or veneration for a person, principle, or thing. The object of such devotion. An exclusive group of persons sharing an esoteric, usually artistic or intellectual interest.
This is an excellent site with the definition of a Religion
http://www.darc.org/connelly/religion1.html
also... http://atheism.about.com/od/religiondefinition/a/definition.htm here is an excerpt: Some have argued that religion isn’t hard to define and the plethora of conflicting definitions is evidence of how easy it really is. The problem lies in finding a definition that is empirically useful and empirically testable. So far, the best definition of religion I have seen is in The Encyclopedia of Philosophy. It lists traits of religions rather than declaring religion to be one thing or another, arguing that the more markers present in a belief system, the more”religious like” it is: Belief in supernatural beings (gods). A distinction between sacred and profane objects. Ritual acts focused on sacred objects. A moral code believed to be sanctioned by the gods. Characteristically religious feelings (awe, sense of mystery, sense of guilt, adoration), which tend to be aroused in the presence of sacred objects and during the practice of ritual, and which are connected in idea with the gods. Prayer and other forms of communication with gods. A world view, or a general picture of the world as a whole and the place of the individual therein. This picture contains some specification of an over-all purpose or point of the world and an indication of how the individual fits into it. A more or less total organization of one’s life based on the world view. A social group bound together by the above.
Another site: http://www.wordreference.com/definition/religion
and last of all: http://www.lawsview.com/definition-of-religion.html
When I want to research something, I usually just Google it.
Oh my Gawd.........its all a load of bollocks really ,isnt it............people are afraid to die and are hoping for something after death......thats really all it boils down to............all these sects, cults. religeons are only someones way of cashing in on the gullible........ When we are gone, we are gone.........fini.........if we wer important we may end up remembered in history books but for most of us........its just a name carved on a slab of stone to say we were actually here......... AMEN..........
My belief is that our souls continue on and we are re-born in another vessel (body) http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=reincarnation says: Rebirth of the soul in another body. I believe that we are not a body with a soul but a SOUL with a BODY. The Soul is everlasting, infinite. My belief is much more complex than that short translation but you get my drift. I do however believe in Heaven as well as I think the entire 'Life after Death' encompasses much much more than we can ever cover in a forum setting. But I also believe in what my heart believes in and I do not try to convert anyone to my way of thinking and other people who have their own beliefs and faith are entitled to their own opinions and ideas also. Faith is an individual thing and not for others to deride people of differing opinions about. I do not however believe in 'organised religion' and think it was invented to keep people imprisoned' in religious dogma which means: A doctrine or a corpus of doctrines relating to matters such as morality and faith, set forth in an authoritative manner by a church. An authoritative principle, belief, or statement of ideas or opinion, especially one considered to be absolutely true.
please believe me Suzi, I would never deride or belittle anyone their religeous beliefs, to each their own, you may have the last laugh on me yet.........
As the late great Dave Allen said........May your God go with you.....
My dear friend Lawnbowler, believe me when I say I was generalising when I wrote the above and never for a moment thought you were deriding me. I have had a bad week and yesterday I was not myself so please forgive me if you thought I was aiming anything at you.
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