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YOUR STORY
The science of religion?
07/06/2007 12:01 - (SA)
Brandon Faber, News24 User
In the beginning, the earth was nothing but a ball of gas and water. Nothing existed here. In seven days that all changed rather dramatically. In fact, it took only six to create it all...
Asking people to question their religion, whichever one it may be, is like begging to go ten rounds with Muhammad Ali back in his day. I have no real desire to be chased down the street by hordes brandishing torches, hayforks and copies of everything from the Bible and the Koran, to the Book of Mormon and Dianetics: The modern science of mental health. But I am willing to step in the ring with you.
Let's for one second forget about Dan Brown, The Da Vinci Code and the battlefield which has erupted around a movie that has created great controversy in Christian circles. Other religions have come under recent scrutiny too, most notably so the belief system known as Scientology.
Created by the famous science fiction writer, Lafayette Ronald Hubbard in the mid-twentieth century, Scientology is the religion of choice for many A-list Hollywood celebrities. John Travolta, Kirsty Alley, Pricilla Presley and, of course, that man Cruise, are just some of the Hollywood highfliers who swear by this belief system. The question is... why?
YOU Almighty
Scientology (meaning the "study of truth" according to their official website, scientology.org) was established as a religion in 1954. The basis of this religion is the book, Dianetics: The modern science of mental health, published in 1950.
This best-selling work, written by L Ron Hubbard (LRH), concerns the workings of the human mind. Dianetics suggests that, through a series of regression therapy sessions, the "reactive" mind (the part of the mind which governs how we respond to incidents in our lives) can be cleared of previous traumatic experiences.
"The mind, you see, should not be confused with the brain (which is merely a conductor)," says *Kate, an ex-Scientologist of nearly seven years.
"Our reactive minds store all traumatic experiences from past lives and it is these memories which affect the way we live today." Once the reactive mind has been cleared of all these bad memories, the convert can progress to infinity and beyond into the varying levels of Operating Thetan (OT).
This is where the actual science of Scientology kicks in.
"Whereas Dianetics concerns itself with the mind, Scientology concerns itself with the spirit or 'thetan' as LRH named it," says *Kate. "Our thetans (souls) are also traumatised by events of our past and it is only through a process called 'auditing' that you and I can rid ourselves of the limitations placed on our souls by Matter, Energy, Space and Time (MEST)."
The mind and the "thetan" go hand-in-hand. Once the reactive mind (governing how we respond to things) is cleared by dianetics, Scientology auditing (OT levels) works on restoring the "thetan" to its original, uncorrupted state. This is also why Scientologists insist on minimum levels of noise at child birth, or any operation, for that matter.
Panic, noise, trauma, screaming and such are all things the reactive mind records, which is why some people cannot stand the smell of a hospital or have an intense fear of needles. Scientologists say that the environment a child is born into must be as quiet and calm as possible as to keep the traumatic effects on the reactive mind to a minimum.
"Followers believe that once all the levels of auditing are completed, your soul and mind will be free from the constraints of Matter, Energy, Space and Time (MEST)," says Kate. "Once this level of clearance is reached you will be free from limitation and, some suggest, achieve immortality. . ."
Taking this into account, it doesn't really come as a surprise that the world of celebrity, already obsessed with its own significance, finds Scientology so appealing.
Cult Status
Wikipedia.com defines a cult as: "a cohesive group of people (often a relatively small and recently founded religious movement) devoted to beliefs or practices that the surrounding culture or society considers to be far outside the mainstream."
Well yes, then, going by definition you'd have to classify Scientology as a cult. But, there was a time when Christianity was relatively small and "a recently founded religious movement". In fact, there was a time when every major religion in the world was, by definition, a cult?
"What's the big huha then?" you ask, searching for your hayfork and torch. Well, many ex-members describe the religion as a money-making-machine that uses its "church" status simply to avoid taxes.
If you research the subject you will read of something allegedly called an SP, short for "Suppressive Person". An SP is anyone who is deemed a negative influence on the Church of Scientology. Such a person is not to be communicated with.
You will read of the SEA ORG, a Scientology-owned ship where it is suggested that the most senior levels of Scientology processes take place and where followers, some as young as 14, work very hard for very little remuneration.
You will read many arguments, for and against, about the money made and how celebrities are managed to market this specific brand of religion. There is, after all, no greater publicity than celebrity endorsement.
Is Scientology suspect?
It may very well be but that is not for anyone but you to decide. The Church (much like every other religion) does a lot of good at base level. Education, anti-drug, disaster-relief and highly efficient business programmes (to name but a few) all form part of the Scientology soup. Just how delicious a mix you find it is entirely up to you - as it should be.
Blind faith, however, does not allow for free will. It does not create an environment conducive to question, to debate and to ask why things are the way they are.
Imagine this:
Everything you've ever heard, read or known about the religion you subscribe to is taken away.
Imagine there was no Bible, no Koran, no book to explain how the world as you know it came about being. No Sunday school teachers, no doctrine of faith, no commandments and no laws based on a specific belief system. No movies, no writers, nothing that challenges the world you accept as true.
Having no frame of reference, would you believe that a man once walked on water, fed masses with seven cakes and a few small fish, turned water into wine and made the blind see? Would you believe that, upon your death, seventy virgins wait in paradise and that a man named Moses once parted the seas with a stick?
We believe as we do because we have either been taught that it is the way or, at some stage in our lives, we found acceptance, support and comfort in a specific belief.
Herein, ladies and gentlemen, lies the power of every world religion.
In the end... common sense, common decency and compassion will set us free from the suspicions, confines and dangers of religious intolerance. Allowing every person to live their lives as they see fit - as it should be, as is our right.
Here's to a new beginning.
*Names have been changed
Click here for a Q&A with Shaleen Whornitz, Director of Public Affairs, Church of Scientology
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