So, right now Scientology is what ? A few million strong ? And in another century, wh
Half a billion strong ? And how did it get started ? Who was Scientology's 'prophet' ? And what was he really all about ? Money. He even freaking said so. He said he would start a religion to get rich. And now Scientology is set to be really huge in the future. Does no one see what this says about their own precious mythology ?
A few million? Are you crazy? It's only a few tens of thousands strong. I just looked it up, and apparently it has less than 60,000 members. As for it being set to be "huge", it's actually on the decline, and has been for quite some time now.
Let them do what they wish. On the day of judgment God will ask them each "Did ye conduct in usury and make a small profit on the soul of this and this person?" They will reply "Yes" Then ye shall bear the cost of every soul you have led astray.
There does seem to be a demographic trend of stupid people having more kids than intelligent people. Consequently, Scientology may have more people that fit their demographic in the future.
In a hundred years religions will commonly be known in the west as cults and be more outcast than they are now. Christianity's dieing and Islam is on the rise.
Maybe in a hundred years you will see the real signs of Islamerica
It's growing in #'s. One of their main headquarters is in Cincinnati, Ohio (they normally come to northern KY, to our flea markets and hand out pamphlets on Dianetics).
L Ron Hubbard, a science fiction writer, came up with this idea. I don't know the specifics of it. Though, a long time ago (no not in a galaxy far away - right here in KY), I picked up the book Dianetics. It's an interesting read, but I do not suggest sending in any info to them. At the time I did it, some 20 or so yrs ago, I didn't really know what Scientology was. At the back of the book "Dianetics" is a worksheet... you answer the questions and send it in. THEY WILL NOT LEAVE YOU ALONE AFTER THAT! I had to threaten to call the police and place a harassment charge to get them to quit sending me stuff and calling my house, etc... Ugh, it was crazy.
Not saying all the people in it are like that, they aren't. But their "business" sure as hell is.
If you want an idea about Hubbards writings... get the movie Battlefield Earth with John Travolta and Barry Pepper.... that's one of Hubbard's writings.
One thing I can give Hubbard.... he didn't lie when he said he was doing it for money. Whereas a lot of other religious leaders will tell you they are doing it for YOU.... not your money. So at least he was honest about it Lil
Yeah, like they wish they had millions of followers LOL!!! They are number in the tens of thousands in the USA, I am not sure about worldwide. But even so, that is a lot of stupid people. The people at the top are the ones who are less stupid and more likely to know the extent of the con and what they are really doing.
One day all religions will be dead and in the realm of mythology, Christianity, Islam - all of them. It may be a long time coming, but hopefully mankind will have woken up to the truth and reality of the actual universe we live in, rather than the fictional works of men which was never more than a vain attempt to further their own personal agendas, wealth and power at the expense of truth and the trust that so many people have put into them over the course of their existence.
EDIT: Theta Works - did you stop to consider that Lr said this to many people, at many times through his life in different ways? Its not too hard to figure really.
Some interesting research you did there. Seems that you missed some things.
Scientology is not messianic. There is no worship of any entity.
The rumor you quote has cropped up a number of times, always with Ron supposedly saying that writing for a penny a word was silly, or stupid, or ridiculous, and the way to make a million bucks would be to start a religion.
Each time, he is supposed to have said it to someone else (same wording, different time and place, different audience) on a different date under different circumstances.
When George Orwell actually wrote that exact phrase in a letter to a colleague in 1938, Ron was not yet well-known, so it would have been a bit off-the-wall to claim Ron said it to a crowd of writers in '38. So, instead, he is accused of making the statement when he WAS well-known, variously in 1947, 48, and 49 (always before Dianetics was published, you see [and before anyone had any idea on how well Dianetics would take off]). He is variously supposed to have said it to another writer over lunch, to a pair of writers in a hotel room, to a convention of writers during a speech, to a different convention of writers while hob-nibbing on the floor, to a book editor, to a roommate with whom he stayed shortly after getting out of the Navy, or to have said it in the context of a bar-bet made with Robert Heinlein (with whom he was well-acquainted, being his colleague and frequent house guest). One of those who claims he said it (in '47, mind you, before the word 'cult' was in common use), said that he used the word 'cult,' not 'religion.' - a transparent attempt to brand Scientology a 'cult.'
So far, Heinlein denies the bet, two writers who were at one of the conventions said he never said it, two German publications have been sued for publishing the "quote" and lost, etc. etc.
Detractors use the fact that the rumor is present in so many versions to mean that something of the kind MUST be true. More likely the rumor was planted sometime around 1954 when the AMA, APA, FDA, WFMH, FBI and IRS were working overtime, in concert, to make up stuff and plant it in the media and in investigative files to discredit Ron and Dianetics. (in 1993, the IRS wrote a letter and attached a thick sheaf of documents, sending it to foreign governments, outlining the above Miltie-prong attack, apologizing for their part in it, and asking them to correct their Scientology files) Somebody had likely caught wind of the Orwell quote, which IS in writing, and HAS been pr oven, and thought it would be effective black PR to attribute it to Ron. If so, the ploy seems to have worked at least to some degree. The rumor hangs on and on, doesn't it? The fact that it seems to come from so many different sources, each with slightly different facts, is most likely because Ron never said it, and so it is not possible to nail down the context in which he DID say it, since it would never entirely fit the facts of an actual event that did transpire.
Consider: Scientology and Dianetics work or they don't. If they do, then any off-the-cuff remark Ron did or did not make in 1947 or 48 or 49 is irrelevant to that issue, isn't it? If they don't, then that is ample reason to ignore them without having to attack their founder. One need only look at the materials, try the techniques, and decide for himself.
Consider: That Orwell is pr oven to have written the exact remark with which Ron is credited is a bit coincidental, don't you think? Either Ron is a shameless plagiarist, or he mentioned the Orwell remark in the company of others, or he never said it.
Consider: Ron initially wrote all Dianetics materials from a strictly non-religious, therapeutic viewpoint. If he were out to start a religion, wouldn't he have done that straightaway? It was not until 1952, when people running Dianetics were hitting past lives all the time, that he had to admit there was a spiritual element to all this, and not until 1954 that he was forced to incorporate as a church in recognition of the fact that Scientology was turning out to be not a mental pursuit, but a spiritual one. People "start a religion" pretty much on a daily basis. This is not how they do it. First, they hold up something to worship, claim a revelation from God, and then they order everyone to bow down. Ron and Scientology never did that.
All in all, the quote is completely irrelevant to Scientolgoy, whether true or not. Most likely, it was never said by Ron.
Hubbard's own son has stated in an interview that Hubbard said it multiple times:
"My father started out as a broke science-fiction writer. He was always broke in the late 1940s. He told me and a lot of other people that the way to make a million was to start a religion. Then he wrote the book Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health while he was in Bayhead, New Jersey."
In ans to "No chance without Nat20", I don't think those are straight statistics fortunately. Sounds like typical Scientology media propaganda stats...should be something like 60,000 apex and getting lower all the time as people jump ship and take their already traumatized kids to boot! In all likelihood Scientology will be non-existent in the the next century if humans are still here and hopefully have gotten past allowing these cults to ripoff Pol.
Also, I pray Theta works stops listening to Scientology rhetoric that seems to have log-jammed her synaptic nerves from working on all cylinders. If she would look objectively at factual reports & view videos of L.R.H. himself this would save herself and so many others from a huge waste of time/money for some farcical tale conger ed up by some ne'er do well, wanna-be Isaac Asimov who found a niche conning people into believing him.
"More likely the rumor was planted sometime around 1954 when the AMA, APA, FDA, WFMH, FBI and IRS were working overtime, in concert, to make up stuff and plant it in the media and in investigative files to discredit Ron and Dianetics. (in 1993, the IRS wrote a letter and attached a thick sheaf of documents, sending it to foreign governments, outlining the above Miltie-prong attack, apologizing for their part in it, and asking them to correct their Scientology files)"
Of course this letter is being held by the Easter Bunny so we'll never see it.
Reputable sources that don't have to rely on bandwagon marketing like Scientology say there are 50 to 60 thousand Scientologists in the world, thrall be less and less as time goes by since people can use the net to get past Scientology's deceptive marketing of itself.
The Scientology religion 1 deals with the human spirit and its relationship to the universe and its Creator. It teaches that the fundamental laws of life, when applied, help people achieve a happier and more fulfilling existence, just as surely as an apple falls to the ground when dropped.
Scientology contains numerous workable methods :
To deal with life situations
To create strong interpersonal relationships, raise bright and able children and have happy and lasting marriages.
It also contains techniques to tackle the most serious social problems of our age ? illiteracy, drugs, crime and immorality. Scientology is something one does: it is not just a system of beliefs one is asked to hold.
The keynote of the Scientology religion is the human spirit ? its salvation and rehabilitation. It teaches that an individual is a spirit ? not a body, a brain, or a fortuitous random conglomeration of genes and chemicals. It is this recognition of the nature of an individual that forms the foundation of the Scientology religion. Throughout the ages, man has traditionally viewed himself as a spiritual being. It is only in the last century that the materialistic idea that man is a mere animal similar to a monkey or rat has taken hold. Scientology teaches that this idea is patently false, unworkable, and acts as a barrier to personal understanding of life. One little suspects how much untapped potential one has to create his or her own life.
Scientology directly addresses an individuals spiritual nature with answers to the age-old questions ? Who am I? What do I consist of? Where do I come from? Where am I going? This spiritual enlightenment leads to personal understanding of oneself, others and one?s relationship to the Universe.
So, right now Scientology is what ? A few million strong ? And in another century, wh
