BEGINNINGS

L. Ron Hubbard founded the Church of Scientology in 1954 in Los Angeles, CA

Scientology claims to be a religion “by its basic tenets, practice, historical background and by the definition of the word religion itself”

Hubbard has drawn from several older religions and philosophical belief systems, including Gnosticism, Buddism, Taoism, Judaism, Hinduism, Confucianism, and teachings from Jesus

Hubbard initially discovered what he described as man’s “most advanced school of the mind,” which he coined Dianetics

“Dianetics was the ultimate development of the mind of humans, Scientology is the road from there to Total Freedom”

John Travolta, Mimi Rogers, Sony Bono, Kirstie Alley, and Tom Cruise

Coorperate Scientology currently boasts there are 10 million members worldwide

However, independent organizations report that there may be only about 200,000 “active” members worldwide

BELIEFS

(1) Man Is A “Thetan”

A “thetan” is an immortal spirit

Apologist John Weldon commented on Scientology literature, “Man is not the pitiful body and ego he mistakenly imagines himself to be. He is a thetan whose fundamental nature is basically good and divine. He is not morally fallen; rather he is simply ignorant of his own perfection”

Indeed, God affirmed, “Now see that I, even I, am He; And there is no God besides Me” ()

God makes His point even more clear, “Thus says the LORD, the King of Israel, and his Redeemer, the LORD of hosts: ‘I am the first and I am the Last; besides Me there is no God”

Additionally, quotes God as saying, “Remember the former things of old, for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me”

Man is not a thetan, who believes he is now a body, as a result of a fall into MEST (matter-energy-space-time)

God has told us a disembodied human spirit goes either to Heaven or Hades to await the resurrection of the just and unjust (), where they will be judged ()

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Humans will not be complete again until the resurrection and the body is reunited with the spirit (see ()

Paul wrote, “Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God” ()

reads, “Know that the LORD, He is God; It is He who has made us, and not ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture”

(2) Man Is Held Back By “Engrams”

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