Scientology as a modern religious movement

Scientology plethora of information on the Church of Scientology is available online, in official Scientology publications, and in trade books. Additional resources should come from interviews with Scientology members and ex-members, many of whom become vehemently opposed to the Church and deride it for unscrupulous business practices, mind control, and other forms of social manipulation. Interviews with religious scholars who specialize in cults would also offer insight into the Church of Scientology. Official Church of Scientology publications include classics by L. Ron Hubbard like the Dianetics series of books. Other Church of Scientology publications include the encyclopedic work begun in 1992 and revised regularly: What is Scientology? Official DVDs and audio lectures are also available to offer primary source material for this research project. The official Church of Scientology publications will provide a canon of literature on the organization's core philosophical, social, and religious ideologies and will be treated as primary source reference materials.

However, equally as relevant are the mass of critical materials available on Scientology. Some of the most vocal writers publish Web sites warning prospective members that Scientology is a cult. Scholastic journals also include articles written by religious scholars and sociologists that can lend insight into the ways the Church of Scientology fits into relevant theory. Articles from popular trade publications will also be of use for this research project because Scientology is a high-profile religion with a substantial celebrity endorsement including the likes of Tom Cruise, John Travolta, and Isaac Hayes. For example, Tom Cruise successfully stymied a South Park episode that satirized the religion and which also led long-time cast member Hayes to quit the show.

Interviews with current Church members, former Scientologists, and religious scholars will bolster the research. Providing qualitative data about the perceived effects of the religion, these sources will add a dynamic element to the project and will allow nuances to emerge that would not be possible by relying on printed materials alone. Finally, a personal visit to a Church of Scientology will round out the research by offering first-hand reports and impressions. Church of Scientology Missions (SMI) are scattered around the country, including one in Teaneck, New Jersey. There are no churches of Scientology in New Jersey but several are within driving range in New York and Pennsylvania. Visits offer visual and auditory impressions of services or meetings and will also allow the possibility of meeting with Church leaders.

The Church of Scientology is somewhat secretive about its ideology and practices and teachings are disseminated to students in stages. One of the most common criticisms of the religion is how members pay substantial fees for access to each level of materials and information. However, the basic elements of Scientology and Dianetics include the following. First, Scientology is somewhat anthropocentric. The religion is not deistic as most religions are, and human beings are viewed as manifestations of Theta, the universal spirit. The Human being is therefore called a "thetan" and is believed to possess a wealth of untapped spiritual powers that can be harnessed through the acquisition of spiritual truth and the elimination of ignorance. The Church of Scientology offers "the study of truth" that helps the practitioner reach a state of enlightenment. As they study Scientologists, thetans progress through stages of spiritual development: Pre-Clear, Clear, and ultimately Operating Thetan. "An Operating Thetan is a spirit who can control matter, energy, space, time, thought, and life," (Beliefnet).

Second, Scientologists believe in human immortality and reincarnation: the home page of the Church of Scientology website reads "Man is an immortal, spiritual being. His experience extends well beyond a single lifetime." Third, pain, suffering, and evil are due not to external forces but to "engrams," or the negative mental imprints gathered through traumatic experiences in current and past lives. In this sense Scientology promotes similar beliefs to Eastern religions and New Age ideologies.

Fourth, the Church of Scientology advocates social service and remains particularly concerned with problems related to drug abuse. The Church is active in disadvantaged communities, especially those with drug abuse and criminal problems. Worldwide, the Church of Scientology has established missions that ostensibly help the most disenfranchised people on the planet achieve peace.

The tenets of Scientology are more practical than theological, and in many ways the ideology resembles a New Age self-help program. Although the Church of Scientology claims that faith is unnecessary, practitioners are nevertheless expected to believe that Scientology teachings offer the only solutions to their worldly problems. The Church of Scientology disavows the benefits of psychological therapy or counseling outside of the Church because its views on the nature of human life differ significantly from that of the scientific establishment. The "auditing" process in Scientology resembles psychological counseling but is done so within the parameters of the religion. Auditing involves an established set of questions and auditors use an "electropsychometer," or E-meter to assess the practitioner's responses.

The Church of Scientology claims to have the answers to all human pain and suffering, listing a litany of social and psychological problems the religion can heal. For example, the Church website mentions depression, anxiety, drug and alcohol problems, and family issues. The Church advocates a strong human rights policy and promotes social justice and equity. What the Church of Scientology offers is prospect of "freedom," and union with the Ultimate Reality. The Church of Scientology does not denounce other religions and in fact claims that its ministers study the world's religions because all religions offer different means to the same end: spiritual truth.