I think many of the Independents do realize that Hubbard to a large extent was a con man. On the other hand, some of his technology is very workable, so that is what they are trying to carry on. They are trying to keep the good, and get rid of the bad. Whether they will succeed in the long run, I have no idea.

Or between the Pope’s resignation and this:

Lightning bolt strikes the Vatican’s St Peter’s Basilica – video
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/video/2013/feb/12/lightning-vatican-peter-basilica-video

Miscavige must be so jealous.

MM, “We aren’t punished, or disconnected from our families or pressured for money for speaking up or treated like degraded beings.” So true. I was baptized Catholic, am not now but my dear late Dad was. He remained a believer but lost faith in the church until he found the Paulists who were liberal and very vocal in the fight to bring child abusing priests to justice. I wonder if he himself wasn’t abused…I do know there was a priest who sternly warned him during his very first confession that he would go to hell if he ever touched his “organ.” Which left him terrified and very confused. He grew up in an age when if the priest hit you and you told your mother, she’d say, “What you do to make him do that?” Anyway, my Dad loved the Paulists and also loved arguing theology with his dear friend, an Irish Jesuit father. My Dad believed the Catholic church will be saved only when it modernizes by allowing priests to marry, allowing women priests, allowing birth control and honoring homosexuality as natural and not sinful. His Jesuit friend did not agree – but they still went to church and took communion together.

That right there is the difference between a religion and a cult.

I’m not a Republican by any means – I’m pretty far left (actually right now I’m registered as Independent because I went through a long period of being pissed at the DNC) but I’ll respect you if you respect me. Like my Dad and his friend the Priest. A political party can become a cult too – I know many cultish liberals and just as many cultish Republicans. I believe many Tea Party Republicans act cultish and I have experienced some horrible things with liberals who I admired on paper then worked with in person and discovered to my dismay were as closed-minded in their own way as the most extreme bigots.

When we close off from seeing one another as different but equal, when we only accept black or white answers to problems and refuse to negotiate to compromise in the field of the gray, we all risk behaving like Scientologists.

I guess you could say my religion and my political party are the same – tolerance.

He never did buy the house in Rockland County so he could be near Suri – I wonder if that was his original intention (a friend of mine knows the realtor who handled it) but Pope Davey intervened? According to my friend, he seemed serious at the time.

Nancy (so nice to ‘meet’ you – loved your book & the Discovery ID piece was excellent.), I have heard that the Pope’s resignation was indeed related.

Dear Susan,

I’d vote for a Republican if it was you. (But probably not otherwise.)

Too bad I don’t get to vote for Pope, because I think you would make a great Holy Mom, better than most of the last couple of hundred pontiffs. You could do the blessing part of the job, and the common sense part, and the divine grace part, and I bet you could celebrate Mass with a little practice. You could delegate all the administrivia to the cardinals. I’d think your blessing would carry a LOT more weight with the Almighty than the hypocritical blessings of misogynists, homophobes and pedophiles no matter what kind of robe, ring or funny hat they might wear. When such people go on sinning year after year against those in their care and make it their way of life, they should be ashamed to pose as Christ’s ministers.

The Underground Bunker is a mixed bag: here you might find people on every side of any issue, some more vocal than others. We come from all walks of life, and even when it comes to Scientology we have a diversity of experience and opinion. Try to keep in mind that each person speaks only for (him)(her)self. If in your opinion there is something that needs to be said, then it is up to you to say it.

The Internet is like a stage: some people appear as themselves, some portray a character. Some seek to entertain (others or themselves), provoke, or enlighten. Some come to get help, some to offer help, some for nefarious purposes, some for private reasons, some just wandering lost. Fortunately the Bunker seems to attract a lot of good-hearted people who present themselves with at least a measure of honesty and compassion.

Hope you will rejoin us soon, spiritually refreshed!

Mom, I am just now reading your message (a day late) but please know that no one intended to make you feel uncomfortable. KNOW THAT! That is not what this blog is about. Your contributions here have been great–I’d hate to see you leave. Please don’t paint us all with a broad brush either!

Beautifully said.. Sincerely seconded..

Midwest Mom, I abhor bigotry, and I think most people on this blog also abhor bigotry. Their crime, if there is one, is going a little too far with humor. I am Jewish, with many Gay friends, and clergy friends. I know how hurtful bigotry can be. Most Catholic priests that I have known are caring, loving men, who find the molesters as repugnant as everyone else. The Catholic Church reacted very slowly to a scandal that unfolded over many years, and many people don’t understand that an ancient instution does not move quickly. To understand institutional delay, all one needs to do is look at our system of justice and see how many decades it took for prosecutors to prosecute spouse batterers or parents that beat their children or child molesters that are ” pillars of society.” Laws had to be changed, old boys clubs had to be broken up or broken into. It is hypocrisy to think that the Catholic Church was alone in coming to grips with child molesters in its midst. We as a society are still coming to grips with this problem. If we weren’t, David Miscavige and everyone else that abused children in the short history of the Church of Scientology would be in jail. So, we need your voice on this blog, don’t leave us!

Midwest Mom:

I’m also Catholic (but a Democrat, if you’ll excuse that). I know that often people who are not familiar with Catholicism make incredible assumptions about what we believe and think (or not). In most cases, this is due to the massive amount of misinformation that exists concerning Catholic belief and practice. The U.S. was historically not hospitable to Catholics and this lack of understanding continues to appear in the media and in the consciousness of many non-Catholic Americans to this day. I attribute it to a form of “Father, forgive them for they do not know what they do.” I hope that you stay with the blog as a commenter. Your voice and reason are a vital part of this community and would be seriously missed. Please stay with us.