Going Clear Scientology and the Prison of Belief PDF

Preview

Summary

Dr. Ashley Wellman Contemporary Topics in CRJU Cults class. Class was mostly documentary-based....

Description

Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief Monday, February 4, 2019

• • • •

•

•

•

1:00 PM

Apparently if you give them all your money, they'll make anything possible in your life One of its main goals is joy People are full of a certainty that eliminates doubt You have to read and then do OTTR0--you sit eyes closed three feet away from someone who is doing the same thing and you confront them ○ Exterior: leaving your body ○ It was a transcending experience Sea Org: people who really believe in the cause and sign a billionaire contract ○ You thought you were doing something good to have a positive effect on all of mankind L. Ron Hubbard: founder of Scientology ○ Expert author/writer ○ Began to write for a magazine about science fiction § A lot of what scientology is he had previously written about in his science fiction ○ Transported imaginary stories into his theology ○ After war, he ended up in LA ○ Hubbard became Jack Parson's assistant ○ Sarah Northrup: his ex girlfriend, 13 years younger than him ○ Hubbard lied to many people including Sarah ○ Said he would commit suicide if Sarah didn't marry him ○ They had a kid together, but he was very manipulative and mean ○ He wanted to get a religion where he could have an income and the government could not take it away from him in the form of taxes Dianetics became a success ○ You have two sides of your mind: the analytical side which is a perfect computer, and then the reactive size where all your fears and anxieties are stored

• •

• • • • • • • • • •

•

•

perfect computer, and then the reactive size where all your fears and anxieties are stored ○ Come from Ingrams: like a memory Auditor: practitioner in Scientology E-meter: 1/3 of a lie detector, it supposedly detects the mass of your thoughts ○ As your mental mass increases, so does the resistance of the circuit When you come out of an auditing session, you feel euphoric Clear: individual has erased his unconscious mind, is totally alert and capable Once you have taken away traumatic memories, then you are clear Hubbard began to believe he was a savior and a god-hero Republished ideas of Dianetics into the religion of Scientology Mix between emotion and belief--you get stuck to it ○ People were convinced they were going to save the world You could be pushed overboard for committing errors Hubbard was very active in directing the operations of the church especially in Hollywood Scientology: "Get high without drugs" The bridge: a metaphor, you start at the bottom and reach the top ○ Operating Thetan: spiritual being ○ OT VIII is the highest you can get ○ They gave you a locked briefcase and a letter inside it doesn't make sense at all When you get to upper levels, creation myth is explained to you ○ Similar world and there were similar problems, one of which was overpopulation ○ In order to solve problem of overpopulation, Zenu called people in and had them frozen and threw them into space planes and thrown to the prison planet (Earth) and dropped into volcanoes ○ Their disembodied spirits called Thetans were captured and forced to watch movie screens about Jesus ○ Thetans jump into people's souls and are the source of all our fears and anxieties Mind control and manipulation said that they did it to themselves

• Mind control and manipulation--said that they did it to themselves • They were breaking into offices and framing people • RPF (rehabilitation project force): place where they get disciplined; menial type work and 5 hours of scientology training ○ 30 hours on 3 hours off it felt like ○ They would get table scraps ○ Lady who was pregnant in this ○ When she escaped, her child had fleas all over him • Tom Cruise as an ambassador • Nazaneen was hired to be the girlfriend of Tom Cruise against her will ○ She agreed to do punishments like cleaning with a toothbrush for telling her friend that she was heartbroken by him • Scientology is really good at making you feel like you've done something wrong • Lots of punishments • Everything is scripted in interviews • Video came out of a man telling the truth about scientology--people responded that they saved his family • Church doctrine viewed homosexuality as a disease, they can cure ○ Doesn’t support human rights for everybody • Told members not to go online and look at stuff about them • Denied disconnection on the media but they ask people to do it all the time • Squirrel: former members who threaten the church teachings...