by Margery Wakefield (1991) Abstract: When new people are inducted into Scientology, they are often told that there is no inherent conflict between Scientology and any religion, including Christianity. But it is common for Scientologists to be less than truthful at the outset.

By calming the new person's misgivings, they know that by the time the person has become fully indoctrinated, these misgivings will no longer matter.

In fact, there is no compatibility between Scientology and Christianity. As a belief system based on satanic principles, Scientology is diametrically opposed to Christianity. The truth is that you cannot be both a Christian and a Scientologist.

Contents 1. Introduction
2. L. Ron Hubbard as Liar
3. The Satanic Roots of Scientology
4. Scientology and Christianity
5. The Propaganda of Scientology Appendix A. Creation According to Scientology
B. The Creed of Scientology
C. Scientology Evaluated in the Light of Biblical Christianity
D. A Summary of the Main Differences Between Scientology and Christianity
E. Bibliography

For those of you whose Christian toes I may have stepped on, let me take the opportunity to disabuse you of some lovely myths. For instance, the historic Jesus was not nearly the sainted figure (he) has been made out to be. In addition to being a lover of young boys and men, he was given to uncontrollable bursts of temper and hatred.... You have only to look at the history his teachings inspired to see where it all inevitably leads. It is historic fact and yet man still clings to the ideal, so deep and insidious is the biologic implanting....

No doubt you are familiar with the Revelations section of the Bible where various events are predicted. Also mentioned is a brief period of time in which the arch-enemy of Christ, referred to as the anti-Christ, will reign and his opinions will have sway ... this anti-Christ represents the forces of Lucifer (literally, the "light-bearer" or "light-bringer"), Lucifer being a mythical representation of the forces of enlightenment.... My mission could be said to fulfill the Biblical promise represented by this brief anti-Christ period.

-- L. Ron Hubbard, Student Briefing, OT VIII Series I

According to Dianetic theory, the mind is composed of mental image pictures of every event in a person's life. Memories, or pictures, of painful events from the past containing pain or unconsciousness are known in Dianetics as "engrams." By recalling and "erasing" these memories a person can be restored to perfect physical and mental health and analytical functioning. A person whose engrams have all been erased is called a "Clear."

It is the purpose of Scientology to "clear the planet." In other words, that every person in the world will eventually be cleared of his engrams through Dianetic "processing."

By 1954, Hubbard had "discovered" that in order to be truly "clear," a person also had to erase all the engrams from his hundreds of past lives. The new science of Scientology was founded and organized as a religion to incorporate this belief.

Sooner or later, most people in Scientology will begin to "remember" (imagine) their past lives.

Scientologists do believe in reincarnation, which is an occult belief.

According to the theology of Scientology, a person is actually an invisible entity, similar to the soul in Christianity. This entity in Scientology is known as the "thetan."

As the thetan becomes relieved of his engrams, he will regain the many godlike powers that are inherently his -- powers such as telepathy, "exteriorization" (the ability to be separate from his body with full perception), telekinesis (the ability to move objects with thought), etc. The belief in Scientology is that we were once godlike, and that we have deteriorated over time. The promise of Scientology is that through Scientology counseling, called "auditing," the person can regain these godlike abilities.

A thetan who has been restored to a godlike state is known in Scientology as an "operating thetan," or "OT" (pronounced "oh-tee"). People in Scientology spend exorbitant fees, sometimes as much as $1000 per hour, to attain the exalted state of OT.

Death in Scientology is known as "dropping the body." According to Scientology theory, when a person dies, he (the thetan, or spirit) has been pre-programmed to "return" to an "implant station" out in space. In the implant station, the thetan will have all memories from the most recent lifetime electronically erased, and then the thetan will be sent back to earth to "pick up a new body," or start another life.

But Scientology promises that with auditing, the person can erase this "return command" so that he will never again have to return to an implant station after death. He will then be a "free being," able to drop his body and pick up a new body with full consciousness and self-determinism.

Scientologists therefore believe that they are very ancient beings, with memories that reach millions of years into the past, and that they are inherently immortal, once the impediments to immortality -- the engrams -- have been erased.

Scientologists believe that they can become gods.

2. L. Ron Hubbard as Liar

You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father's desire. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies. John 8:44

Unfortunately, almost every fact in the cult biographies of L.

Ron Hubbard is a lie. While the legendary accomplishments of this cult guru could have come unedited from one of his swashbuckling novels, the true facts of his life reveal quite another picture.

As with the Wizard of Oz, once the curtain was drawn, the fearsome wizard was just an ordinary man. So it was with Hubbard.

"L. Ron Hubbard," the official biography begins, "was born in Tilden, Nebraska, on the 13th of March, 1911. His father was Commander Harry Ross Hubbard of the United States Navy. His mother was Dora May Hubbard...." [Corydon, p. 219] So far, everything is true.

The biography continues:

Ron spent his early childhood years on his grandfather's large cattle ranch in Montana, said to cover a quarter of the state.

It was on this ranch that he learned to read and write by the time he was three and a half years old. [Corydon, p. 219] None of which is true.

The truth is that Hubbard's grandfather was a small town veterinarian who did not own a cattle ranch in Montana. After Hubbard and his parents relocated to Helena, Montana, where his father was hired to manage a local theater, the grandparents soon followed, bought a house on Fifth Avenue, and the grandfather opened the Capital City Coal Company.

The story continues:

L. Ron Hubbard found the life of a young rancher very enjoyable.

Long days were spent riding, breaking broncos, hunting coyote and taking his first steps as an explorer. For it was in Montana that he had his first encounter with the Blackfoot Indians. He became a blood brother of the Blackfoot.... [Corydon, p. 219]

Young Ron Hubbard lived with his parents in a small apartment on Rodney Street in Helena, and he attended the local kindergarten.

When he was six years old, his father enlisted in the Navy after the start of World War I. For the next few years, Ron and his mother followed Harry to a series of port cities where Harry was stationed.

By the time he was twelve years old, young Ron Hubbard had read a large number of the world's greatest classics -- and his interest in philosophy and religion was born. Ron Hubbard had the distinction of being the only boy in the country to secure an Eagle Scout badge at the age of twelve years.... [Corydon, p.

220]

The following years, from 1925 to 1929, saw the young Hubbard, between the ages of fourteen and eighteen, as a budding and enthusiastic world traveler and adventurer.... Having the financial support of his wealthy grandfather, L. Ron Hubbard spent these years journeying through Asia. [Corydon, p. 220] He was up and down the China coast several times in his teens from Ching Wong Tow to Hong Kong and inland to Peking and Manchuria.

In China he met an old magician whose ancestors had served in the court of Kublai Khan. In the hills of Tibet he lived with bandits who accepted him because of his honest interest in them and their way of life.

In the remote reaches of western Manchuria he made friends with the ruling warlords by demonstrating his horsemanship. Deep in the jungles of Polynesia he discovered an ancient burial ground steeped in the tradition of heroic warriors and kings....

[Miller, p. 26]

The truth, however, is a bit more believable. At the age of thirteen, the Hubbards had moved to Bremerton, Washington, where young Ron was an eighth grader at Union High School. Hubbard enjoyed such activities as hiking and camping at the nearby Boy Scout campground.

Two years later, when Ron was a sophomore at Queen Anne High School, his father was unexpectedly posted to Guam, where Ron spent part of the summer, sailing with his mother on the steamship President Madison, with stops in Honolulu, Yokohama, Shanghai, Hong Kong and Manila.

In the spring of his junior year, Ron dropped out of school. Two years later, Ron was enrolled in the Woodward School for boys in Washington, D.C. as a substitute for taking the College Entrance Examination. In 1930, Ron was admitted to George Washington University School of Engineering with a major in civil engineering.

His grades for the first semester ranged from an A in Physical Education, a C in Mechanical Engineering, a D in chemistry, and F's in German and Calculus, earning him a D average. After a second and similar semester, he dropped out of school. Later he would say he had been a student in the first course in atomic physics in the country and that he had a Ph.D. -- which he renounced much later when it became known that the degree had been purchased from a California diploma mill.

Soon Hubbard married and began his career as a struggling science fiction writer. His stories began to appear regularly in Astounding Science Fiction magazine.

In 1941, as the United States was drawn into the Second World War, Hubbard was determined to get into the Navy. He composed his own letter of recommendation for the military:

I have known him for many years and have found him discreet, loyal, honest and without peer in the art of getting things done swiftly. "For courage and ability I cannot too strongly recommend him." [Miller, p. 93]

Commissioned by the U.S. Navy, Hubbard was ordered to the Philippines at the outbreak of the war and was flown home in the Secretary of the Navy's private plane as the first U.S. returned casualty of the Far East.

He served in the South Pacific, and in 1942 was relieved and rushed home to take part in the battle against German submarines as Commanding Officer of a corvette serving in the north Atlantic.

After serving in all five theaters of World War II and receiving twenty-one medals and palms, in 1944 he was severely wounded and was taken crippled and blinded to Oak Knoll Naval Hospital.

[Miller, p. 95]

The truth about Hubbard's war career is quite different.

Hubbard's first job in the Navy was a desk job in public relations. He soon requested a transfer to Navy Intelligence. On his way to this posting, he so antagonized his superior officers that he was sent home, with an entry in his record stating that:

This officer is not satisfactory for independent duty assignment. He is garrulous and tries to give impressions of his importance. He also seems to think he has unusual ability in most lines. These characteristics indicate that he will require close supervision for satisfactory performance of any intelligence duty. [Miller, p. 98]

Hubbard was then given another desk job. Eventually, however, he worked his way out of this job, and into the Submarine Chaser Training Center in Miami, Florida. After a few misadventures on training ships under his command, the following notation was placed in his record:

Consider this officer lacking in the essential qualities of judgment, leadership and cooperation. He acts without forethought as to probable results. Not considered qualified for command or promotion at this time. Recommend duty on a large vessel where he can be properly supervised. [Miller, p. 107]

Crippled and blinded at the end of the war, he resumed his studies of philosophy and by his discoveries recovered so fully that he was reclassified in 1949 for full combat duty. It is a matter of medical record that he has twice been pronounced dead and in 1950 he was given a perfect score on mental and physical fitness reports. [LRH, Facts[sic] About L. Ron Hubbard]

Contrary to his own report of receiving twenty-one war medals, he received four routine medals which were awarded to all servicemen serving in this war.

He was eventually awarded a small partial disability rating.

Two years later, in a pathetic letter to the Veteran's Administration, Hubbard wrote:

This is a request for treatment.

After trying and failing for two years to regain my equilibrium in civil life, I am utterly unable to approach anything like my own competence. My last physician informed me that it might be very helpful if I were to be examined and perhaps treated psychiatrically....

I cannot account for nor rise above long periods of moroseness and suicidal inclinations.... I cannot, myself, afford such treatment.

Would you please help me?

Sincerely, L. Ron Hubbard [LRH, 1947 Letter to the VA]

Had the Veteran's Administration heeded Hubbard's plea for help, the outcome for many might have been different.

The outcome of history is often ordained by the trivial and the mundane. So it was with Hubbard.

3. The Satanic Roots of Scientology

Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. --- Ephesians 5:11

Thereafter, he was fascinated by Crowley's "Magick," and Crowley became Hubbard's mentor, a relationship that would last until Crowley's death in 1947. In one of his later lectures, Hubbard would refer to Crowley as "my good friend." [Miller, p. 135] Crowley's most famous work was called The Book of the Law in which he expressed his philosophy of life: "Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law." It is a philosophy Hubbard was to live by throughout his life.

Crowley wrote, in The Book of the Law:

We have nothing with the outcast and the unfit; let them die in their misery. Compassion is the vice of Kings; stamp down the wretched and the weak; this is the law of the strong; this is our law and the joy of the world.

I am of the snake that giveth Knowledge and Delight, and stir the hearts of men with drunkenness. To worship me take wine and strange drugs.... They shall not harm ye at all. It is a lie, this folly against self.... Be strong, Oh man! Lust, enjoy all things of sense and rapture ... the kings of the earth shall be kings forever; the slaves shall serve.

Them that seek to entrap thee, to overthrow thee, them attack without pity or quarter, and destroy them utterly.

I am unique and conqueror. I am not of the slaves that perish.

Be they damned and dead! Amen. [Corydon, p. 49]

Following in Crowley's footsteps, Hubbard adopted some of the practices of the black magician, including the use of drugs and the use of affirmations.

According to Hubbard's son, his father regularly used illegal drugs including amphetamines, barbiturates and hallucinogens including cocaine, peyote and mescaline. [Corydon, p. 53] Among the many affirmations that Hubbard was known to have used was the following:

All men shall be my slaves! All women shall succumb to my charms! All mankind shall grovel at my feet and not know why!

[Corydon, p. 53]

Parsons wrote to Crowley about Hubbard:

About three months ago I met Ron ... a writer and explorer of whom I had known for some time. He is a gentleman; he has red hair, green eyes, is honest and intelligent, and we have become great friends.

Although Ron has no formal training in magick, he has an extraordinary amount of experience and understanding in the field. From some of his experiences I deduce that he is in direct touch with some higher intelligence, possibly his guardian angel.

Ron appears to have some sort of highly developed astral vision.

He described his angel as a beautiful winged woman with red hair, whom he calls the Empress, and who has guided him through his life, and saved him many times.

We are pooling our resources in a partnership which will act as a limited company to control our business ventures.

I need a magical partner. I have many experiments in mind....

[Corydon, p. 255]

In order to obtain a woman prepared to bear this magical child, Parsons and Hubbard engaged in eleven days of rituals.

All this seemed to achieve its desired result and, on January 18th, Parsons found the girl who was prepared to become the mother of Babalon, and to go through the required incantation rituals. During these rituals, which took place on the first three days of March 1946, Parsons was High Priest and had sexual intercourse with the girl, while Hubbard who was present acted as skryer, seer, or clairvoyant and described what was supposed to be happening on the astral plane. [Corydon, p. 256]

I am under command of extreme secrecy. I have had the most devastating experience of my life between February second and March fourth. I believe it was the result of the ninth degree working with the girl.... I have been in direct touch with the One who is most Holy and Beautiful as mentioned in the Book of the Law. First instructions were received direct through Ron, the Seer. I have followed them to the letter. There was a desire for incarnation. I am to act as instructor guardian guide for nine months, then it will be loosed upon the world. That's all I can say for now.... [Corydon, p. 257]

Apparently Parsons and Hubbard or somebody is producing a moonchild. I get fairly frantic when I contemplate the idiocy of these louts. [Corydon, p. 257]

We were in Philadelphia. It was November 1952.

Every night in the hotel, in preparation for the next day's lecture, he'd pace the floor, exhilarated by this or that passage from Aleister Crowley's writings.

Just a month before, he had been in London, where he had finally been able to quench his thirst; to fill his cup with the true, raw, naked power of the magick. The lust of centuries at his very fingertips.

To stroke and taste the environs of the Great Beast, to fondle Crowley's books, papers, and memorabilia had filled him with pure ecstasy!

In London he had acquired, at last, the final keys; enabling him to take his place upon the "Throne of the Beast," to which he firmly believed himself to be the rightful heir.

"The books and contents to be kept forever secret," he says. "To reveal them will cause you instant insanity; rip your mind apart; destroy you," he says.

"Secrets, techniques and powers I alone have conquered and harnessed. I alone have refined, improved on, applied my engineering principles to. Science and logic. The keys! My keys to the doorway of the Magick, my magick! The power!"

"I've made the Magick really work," he says. "No more foolish rituals. I've stripped the Magick to basics -- access without liability."

"Sex by will," he says. "Love by will -- no caring and no sharing -- no feelings. None," he says. "Love reversed," he says. "Love isn't sex. Love is no good; puts you at effect. Sex is the route to power," he says. "Scarlet women! They are the secret to the doorway. Use and consume. Feast. Drink the power through them. Waste and discard them."

"Scarlet?" I ask.

"Yes Scarlet: the blood of their bodies, the blood of their souls," he says.

"Release your will from bondage. Bend their bodies; bend their minds; bend their wills; beat back the past. The present is all there is. No consequences and no guilt. Nothing is wrong in the present. The will is free -- totally free; no feelings; no effort; pure thought -- separated. The Will postulating the Will," he says.

"Will, Sex, Love, Blood, Door, Power, Will. Logical," he says.

"The doorway of Plenty. The Great Door of the Great Beast."

[Corydon, p. 307]

According to Ron (Hubbard) Jr., his father considered himself to be the one "who came after"; that he was Crowley's successor;

that he had taken on the mantle of the "Great Beast." He told him that Scientology actually began on December the 1st, 1947.

This was the day Aleister Crowley died. [Corydon, p. 50]

4. Scientology and Christianity

Jesus answered, Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, claiming, "I am the Christ," and will deceive many. Matthew 24:4-5

Somebody on this planet, about 600 B.C. found some pieces of "R6."

I don't know how they found it; either by watching madmen or something. But since that time they have used it. And it became what is known as Christianity.

The man on the cross. There was no Christ!

The Roman Catholic Church, through watching the dramatizations of people picked up some little fragments of R6. [LRH, Routine R6EW]

For those of you whose Christian toes I may have stepped on, let me take the opportunity to disabuse you of some lovely myths.

For instance, the historic Jesus was not nearly the sainted figure [he] has been made out to be. In addition to being a lover of young boys and men, he was given to uncontrollable bursts of temper and hatred.... You have only to look at the history his teachings inspired to see where it all inevitably leads. It is historic fact and yet man still clings to the ideal, so deep and insidious is the biologic implanting. [LRH, Student Briefing, OT VIII, Series 1]

The whole Christian movement is based on the victim.... They won by appealing to victims. We can win by converting victims.

Christianity succeeded by making people into victims. We can succeed by making victims into people. [LRH, Technically Speaking]

Very often you will find aberrative personalities addicted to religion, but the addiction will not be accompanied by any belief in the human spirit. Just how this paradox is accomplished -- a professed avowal of Christianity and a complete unwillingness to accept any effort to heal or help the human spirit -- is another one of the paradoxes which mark the aberrative personality. [LRH, from PABS, Book 1]

Everywhere you are
I can be addressed
But in your temples best
Address me and you address
Lord Buddha
And you then address
Meitreya.

Hubbard writes that Christianity is simply an extension of Buddhism:

And the parables of Gautama Buddha were re-expressed with some differences and additions to spread westward again as Christianity. [LRH, from PABS, Book 3]

This science [Scientology] is formed in the tradition of ten thousand years of religious philosophy and considers itself a culmination of the searches which began with the Veda, the T'ao, Buddhism, Christianity and other religions.... Scientology can demonstrate that it can attain the goals set for man by Christ, which are: Wisdom, Good Health, and Immortality. [LRH, from PABS, Book 1]

Well, I have been to heaven.

Yes, I've been to heaven. And so have you. And you have the pattern of its implants in the ... Line Plots. It was complete with gates, angels and plaster saints and electronic implantation equipment. So there was a Heaven after all -- which is why you are on this planet and were condemned never to be free again until Scientology.

For a long while, some people have been cross with me for my lack of cooperation in believing in a Christian Heaven, God and Christ. I have never said I didn't believe in a Big Thetan but there was certainly something very corny about Heaven et al. Now I have to apologize. There was a Heaven. Not too unlike, in cruel betrayal, the heaven of the Assassins in the 12th Century who, like everyone else, dramatized the whole track implants....

The symbol of the crucified Christ is very apt indeed. It's the symbol of the thetan betrayed. [LRH, Routine 3 Heaven]

He makes this claim in a late writing:

No doubt you are familiar with the Revelations (sic) section of the Bible where various events are predicted. Also mentioned is a brief period of time in which an arch-enemy of Christ, referred to as the anti-Christ, will reign and his opinions will have sway ...

this anti-Christ represents the forces of Lucifer (literally, the "light-bearer" or "light-bringer"), Lucifer being a mythical representation of the forces of enlightenment.... My mission could be said to fulfill the Biblical promise represented by this brief anti-Christ period. [LRH, Student Briefing, OT VIII, Series 1]

I will return not as a religious leader but a political one.... I will not be known to most of you, my activities misunderstood by many, yet along with your constant effort ... I will effectively postpone and then halt a series of events designed to make happy slaves of us all. [LRH, Student Briefing, OT VIII, Series 1]

I hope that it is now clear that there is no compatibility between Scientology and Christianity; in fact, as a belief system based on satanic principles, Scientology is diametrically opposed to Christianity. The truth is that you cannot be both a Christian and a Scientologist.

The choice is up to you.

5. The Propaganda of Scientology

But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them -- bringing swift destruction on themselves.

2 Peter 2:1-2

In all of the propaganda of Scientology, three lessons predominate:

1.That there is a problem.
2.That there is a solution to the problem.
3.That the solution can only be found in Scientology.

The first problem posed by Hubbard is the imminent danger of nuclear war. And only Scientology has the potential to thwart this danger:

We are the only people and the only organizations on Earth which have the technology and the ambition to attempt a clarification of situations which in other hands are considered entirely out of control, to wit, the atomic bomb and the decay and confusion of central governments. [LRH, Purpose]

In the same period in history, two of the most sweeping forces Man has known have come to fruition: a knowledge of himself and others with Scientology, and a means of destroying himself and all others by atomic fission. Which force wins depends in a large measure on your use of Scientology. [LRH, Fundamentals of Thought]

The mission of Scientology is not conquest -- it is civilization. It is a war upon stupidity, the stupidity of which leads us to the Last War of All. [LRH, Fundamentals of Thought]

The primary race of Earth is not between one nation and another today. The only race that matters at this moment is the one being run between Scientology and the atomic bomb. The history of man, as has been said by well-known authorities, may well depend upon which one wins. [LRH, Fundamentals of Thought]

In fifty thousand years of history on this planet alone, Man never evolved a workable system. It is doubtful if, in foreseeable history, he will ever evolve another.

Man is caught in a huge and complex labyrinth. To get out of it requires that he follow the closely taped path of Scientology. [LRH, Safeguarding Technology]

We're free men and women -- probably the last free men and women on Earth.... If we don't do a good job now we may never get another chance. [LRH, Your Post]

Is there a way out?

Yes there is.

We have it in Scientology now. I have found it and charted it. I know exactly how to open the gate. [LRH, Escape]

The whole agonized future of this planet, every Man, Woman and Child on it, and your own destiny for the next endless trillions of years depends on what you do here and now with and in Scientology. [LRH, Keeping Scientology Working]

In all the broad universe there is no other hope for man than ourselves. [LRH, Ron's Journal 1967]

Let us face the reality of this thing. The world confronts several crises. Man's inhumanity to Man is gaining monuments daily. The time to bring a chaos under control is before it is well begun. We're slightly late as it is. Brutally, there is no other organization on Earth that can slow these down. Factually there is no other know-how on Earth that can plumb the problems of Man. So if we don't want all of us to be sitting amongst the charred embers, we had better get busy. [LRH, The Eighteenth A.C.C.]

We are the first group on earth that knew what they were talking about. All right, sail in. The world's ours. Own it. [LRH, The World is Ours]

Auditors have since the first session of Scientology been the only individuals on this planet in this universe capable of freeing Man. [LRH, Auditors]

We're playing for blood, the stake is Earth. [LRH, Policy Letter 7 Nov 1962]

The purpose of the Field Staff Member [a Scientologist] is: To help LRH [Hubbard] contact, handle, salvage and bring understanding to individuals and thus the peoples of Earth. [LRH, Field Auditors]

Now, without further discourse, let's get hot. This is Scientology -- the freedom for Man. Let it be known. [LRH, The Public Divisions]

Scientology -- The Road Sign Out.

We are the Free People. We LIVE! We're FREE! [LRH, We Are the Free People]

There is no greater game in the Universe than Scientology, for it is the only game in which everybody wins. [LRH, Contests and Prizes]

The Valuable Final Products of a Scientologist are:
DISSEMINATED KNOWLEDGE
PURCHASED BOOKS
ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROL
A CLEARED PLANET [LRH, Org Board Division Six]

The eons march on.... Perhaps, this time, due to our efforts, a humanitarian world can exist. We, the Prophets of the Morrow, know the way. [LRH, Scientology: The Philosophy of a New Age]

"No one can serve two masters." Matthew 6:24 Jesus Christ or L. Ron Hubbard -- who will your master be?

Appendix A:

Creation According to Scientology

THE FACTORS, by L. Ron Hubbard 1. Before the beginning was a Cause and the entire purpose of the Cause was the creation of effect.

2. In the beginning and forever is the decision and the decision is TO BE.

3. The first action of beingness is to assume a viewpoint.

4. The second action of beingness is to extend from the viewpoint, points to view, which are dimension points.

5. Thus there is space created, for the definition of space is: viewpoint of dimension. And the purpose of a dimension point is space and a point of view.

6.The action of a dimension point is reaching and withdrawing.

7. And from the viewpoint to the dimension points there are connection and interchange. Thus new dimension points are made. Thus there is communication.

8. And thus there is light.

9. And thus there is energy.

10. And thus there is life....

[There are thirty Factors in all.] Humbly tendered as a gift to man by
L. Ron Hubbard
April 23, 1953

We of the Church believe:

That all men of whatever race, color or creed were created with equal rights.

That all men have inalienable rights to their own religious practices and their performance.

That all men have inalienable rights to their own lives.

That all men have inalienable rights to their own sanity.

That all men have inalienable rights to their own defense.

That all men have inalienable rights to conceive, choose, assist and support their own organizations, churches and governments.

That all men have inalienable rights to think freely, to talk freely, to write freely their own opinions and to counter or utter or write upon the opinions of others.

That all men have inalienable rights to the creation of their own kind.

That the souls of men have the rights of men.

That the study of the mind and the healing of mentally caused ills should not be alienated from religion or condoned in nonreligious fields.

And that no agency less than God has the power to suspend or set aside these rights, overtly or covertly.

And we of the Church believe:

That man is basically good.

That he is seeking to survive.

That his survival depends upon himself and upon his fellows, and his attainment of brotherhood with the Universe.

[Etc.]

How, then, can Scientology be evaluated by biblical Christianity?

First, its primary assumption that man is basically good is not biblical. Familiar scriptures such as "For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God," and "All our righteousnesses are as filthy rags," indicate quite clearly that the Bible and Hubbard are not in the same corner.

Second, Scientology's highest authority is not Jesus Christ or the Christian Bible but a science fiction writer named L. Ron Hubbard. In some ways, the Scientology organization is disturbingly similar to Orwell's 1984 with Ron Hubbard as "Big Brother."

Third, to Scientology God is irrelevant. Scientology alone is relevant. Whether God exists or not is not a matter of concern.

Fourth, Scientology has no salvation to offer the poor. Books are sold, counseling sessions are expensive. Nothing is said about the plight of the poor, the sick, the homeless and oppressed. According to Time magazine, one woman said, "It's the only church I've seen with a cashier's booth." Contrast that to biblical Christianity which offers salvation without money and without price.

Fifth, Scientology has a warped code of ethics. In the Scientology code are such statements as "Never fear to hurt another in a just cause," and "To punish to the fullest extent of my power anyone misusing or degrading Scientology to harmful ends." Such statements bear no resemblance to the words of Jesus: "Turn the other cheek," and "Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you and pray for them that spitefully use you and persecute you."

And sixth, Scientology deifies man. In fact, in their writings, man is often capitalized.

Man's reason will produce perfect behavior and therefore solve all the problems of the human predicament.

A Summary of the Main Differences Between Scientology and Christianity (from The Challenge of the "Cults," by Maurice Burrell)

1. Authority Scientology: Although the Bible is used to bolster up the sect's ideas, the source of Scientology's philosophy and technology is Hubbard himself.

Christianity: As the Word of God, the Bible is the yardstick against which all claims (including those of Hubbard) have to be measured.

2. God Scientology: Although Hubbard and many of his followers are theists, belief in God is not essential to Scientology.

Christianity: God is Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, three Persons within the unity of the Godhead.

3. Christ Scientology: Christ has no essential or central place in the sect's teachings.

Christianity: "God sent his Son to be the Savior of the world."

4. Salvation Scientology: Man is basically good, but "engrams" (psychological hang-ups) prevent him from reaching his full potential. When released from these engrams through the sect's techniques, man begins to live on a higher level in terms of his own human achievement.

Christianity: Man needs to be saved from sin and to be given new life. Both are available from God through faith in Christ.

Bibliography Atack, Jon. 1990. A Piece of Blue Sky. Secaucus, New Jersey:

Carol Publishing Group.

Burrell, Maurice. 1982. The Challenge of the Cults. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House.

Corydon, Bent. 1987. L. Ron Hubbard: Messiah or Madman.

Secaucus, New Jersey: Lyle Stuart.

King, Francis. 1970. Ritual Magic in England. London: Neville Spearman, Ltd.

Miller, Russell. 1987. Bare Faced Messiah: The True Story of L.

Ron Hubbard. London: Penguin Books, Ltd.

Petersen, William. 1982. Those Curious New Cults in the 80's.

New Canaan, Connecticut: Keats.

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