Validity Of Scientology

Scientology is the most modern religion in the world. It is also one of the fastest growing organizations in the modern age. After the publication of Dianetics in 1951, its membership totals have been steadily rising, leading to an international deity which attracts more new members everyday. Now, with members spread through all seven continents, and more than eleven thousand churches, missions and groups worldwide, Scientology has once again entered the spotlight. Scientology has been a hot topic in the media for almost its entire existence. This being said, The Church has spent its life shrouded in controversies, many of which have sparked debate over the organization’s validity. In order to rightfully question the church, one must first

Lafayette Ronald Hubbard was born in Nebraska in 1911; soon after the family moved to Helena, Montana, where Hubbard wasted away the days of his youth. Little is known about the occurrences that took place during his childhood, though there is speculation. The church claims that Hubbard was a child prodigy, whizzing quickly through his normal school work (scientology.org). Even more impressively, they state that he could read and write prodigiously by the age of three, and by age six read the works of some of the most famed Greek and Roman philosophers. While this may seem difficult to believe, like many parts of Scientology, accounts of Hubbard’s mother show that he was bright, and learned with a relative ease (Brittanica.edu). As a young adult Hubbard joined the U.S. Navy, where he managed to climb through the ranks eventually captaining his own ship. However, his military success was short lived; Hubbard was relieved of his command after several incidents- so many, in fact, that he accumulated a nine hundred page military file detailing instances of his poor leadership. After his time in the service, Hubbard became a successful writer. Over his career in science fiction, Hubbard published over a thousand books (Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief). Many of these novels, curiously enough were stories of men going into space- a theme that

The two had a child together. It was during their marriage that Hubbard would write Dianetics- which would soon lead to the emergence Scientology. After Dianetics:A Modern History of Mental Health was published in 1951, it became an immediate phenomenon in the US, even making its way to the best-seller list. Not only did people buy the book- but they believed it too. In only a few short years, Hubbard had gone from a struggling author- writing as many books as possible in order to provide for himself and his family, to a respected leader with hundreds, and eventually thousands of loyal subjects. This admiration only inflated Hubbard’s ego, and in time, he began to see himself as more god than man (Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief). Hubbard, a notably anti-government being, also became very volatile and developed paranoia in the latter half of his life. In some cases this paranoia was, perhaps, for good reason. After years of tax evasion, there were several warrants out for Hubbard’s arrest. To combat this, Hubbard established the Scientology Navy: a group of early Sea Org members who traveled around the world by ship with the mission of, in the words of Hubbard “research, and spreading the eternal truth”. Many of those original members who recall accompanying Hubbard on this journey, remember the experience as difficult, but enlightening, commenting specifically on the