Don’t give short shrift to one of Scientology’s most defining qualities – its arrogance

 
You can’t really begin to understand why it’s so difficult for Scientologists to rejoin the outside world unless you keep in mind that throughout their time in the church, they’ve had it pounded into their heads that Scientologists are superior to the rest of us, who are considered “degraded beings.”

Founder L. Ron Hubbard promised his followers that his ideas would literally transform them into a new, superior species which he called homo novi, or “new man.” And along with that came a sneering disregard for what he called “wogs,” Hubbard’s word for non-Scientologists which has racist origins in British slang.

The promise of “evolving” to a new sort of creature is a common feature of New Age charlatanism, of course, but Scientology takes it to the extreme. Not only do Scientologists believe that they go to a higher, superhuman state as “Operating Thetans,” but they are led to believe they will eventually reach a godlike state giving them the power to crush whole planets between their thumb and forefinger.

Imagine, then, the disappointment of learning that we’re all just wogs and there are no homo novi, and you begin to understand why some former Scientologists can be a bit cranky.

Anyway, we were reminded of Scientology’s inherent arrogance when we noticed this particularly obnoxious statement at Scientology’s official website recently…

 
This comes directly from Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard, of course, and you can hear him use virtually these same words in a 1966 television interview talking about Scientology as a “religion of religions.”

The presumption of superiority here is off the charts – the website is saying that other religions may be false, but they can achieve salvation if they really want to by going through Scientology. Wow.

We thought it would be interesting to ask a couple of Christian pastors what they thought about that statement.

“The statement that ‘Scientology shares much in common with other religions’ is hogwash,” says a Nashville pastor who had reached out to us to let us know that he is a regular reader at the Bunker. “I am a rarity in that I am a Conservative Born-Again Christian who actually knows something about Scientology.”

We asked him to read the “religion of religions” passage from his perspective as a Christian pastor. Here’s what he sent us…

Luke 11:28 tells the Christian that “Blessed are those who hear the Word of God and put it into practice.” I hate to use the word “tech” but for a Christian our “tech” is The Bible and doing what it says to do. (And my apologies here for Christians who have not represented us well.)

Now, Scientology’s statement on Salvation is laughable. It’s like a 7th grader wrote this. Every good Christian knows Romans 10:9. Paraphrasing here it says “If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead you will be saved.” Christians do believe in Eternal Life. But we also believe that once we accept Jesus as Lord we are saved. That is salvation now and forever.

The “Religion of Religions” statement would be preposterous to a Christian. I would have respected L. Ron Hubbard more (well, not really, but hypothetically) had he come out and said “Scientology is the only way.” There is no way a Born-Again Christian would embrace both Christianity and Scientology. Not a good Christian, anyway.

Jesus said in John 14:6 “I am the way, the truth, the life. No one comes to the father except through me.” Also, the parable in Luke 16:13 clearly tells the Christian that they can’t serve two masters.

The only way this stuff on the website would work for a Christian is if they didn’t have a clue what the Bible said or what it meant to be a Christian.

We also asked Clearwater’s Pastor Willy Rice for his thoughts on Scientology’s statement. He obliged with this message…

Clearly, Scientology is incompatible with a Christian worldview. I have stated a couple of times that someone can be a Scientologist, or a Christian, or neither, but you cannot be both. A person who claims to be both either misunderstands Christianity, Scientology or both.

Scientology is not just incompatible with historic Christianity, it is in many ways the exact opposite. In the Christian worldview, original sin, which is the source of all the brokenness in the world, comes from believing the lie “you shall be as gods.” (Genesis 3:5) That is precisely what Scientology promises and, like all lies, it delivers only betrayal, deception, and bondage.

More insidious still, though not surprising, is the way Scientology portrays itself, as you noted, as “a religion of religions.” It seems to particularly target “Christians” (at least those who are so culturally if not convictionally) by using the term “church” and the symbol of a cross. It seems like a deliberate attempt to pass itself off as some type of faith closely related to Christianity, when it is the opposite.

In almost every way Scientology offers a worldview that is the opposite of historic Christianity. The source of life, the reason for brokenness in the world, the source of hope and means for salvation are all presented from a view diametrically opposed to the teaching of Jesus. This should not surprise students of Christian theology who understand that evil comes masquerading as an angel of light.

We also asked both pastors to reflect on a particular passage that the “religion of religions” continues to publish in its most important single book, L. Ron Hubbard’s 1950 breakout bestseller, Dianetics: “The seven-year-old girl who shudders because a man kisses her is not computing; she is reacting to an engram since at seven she should see nothing wrong in a kiss, not even a passionate one. There must have been an earlier experience, possibly pre-natal, which made men or kissing very bad.”

Our Nashville pastor…

I am the father of two daughters (now 22 and 19) and if a man passionately kissed my 7-year-old daughter I would have beaten him and once he was subdued I would have alerted authorities. Here is what I taught my daughters at a very young age: I Timothy 5:2 teaches men to “Treat older women as mothers and younger women as sisters with all purity.” I told my girls that if any boy (or man) is not treating you like a sister and tries to do anything inappropriate to run away and let me know right away. What L Ron wrote is sick and disgusting.

And Pastor Rice…

In regards to the quote you referenced in Dianetics, it is of course horrific and troubling. The Scientologist “theology” of children opens the door to the worst types of abuses, as are now regularly being reported. The problem Scientologists have is they cannot escape the teachings of L. Ron Hubbard. When Christianity and Christian churches have erred, which is often, it is always because they drift away from and neglect the teachings of Jesus. Our error is in not being like our Savior, their error is the opposite, taking LRH seriously and in some way seeking to become like him.

Our thanks to both pastors for helping us see Scientology from their perspective.

 
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Posted by Tony Ortega on November 27, 2017 at 07:00

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The Best of the Underground Bunker, 1995-2016 Just starting out here? We’ve picked out the most important stories we’ve covered here at the Undergound Bunker (2012-2016), The Village Voice (2008-2012), New Times Los Angeles (1999-2002) and the Phoenix New Times (1995-1999)

Learn about Scientology with our numerous series with experts…

BLOGGING DIANETICS: We read Scientology’s founding text cover to cover with the help of L.A. attorney and former church member Vance Woodward
UP THE BRIDGE: Claire Headley and Bruce Hines train us as Scientologists
GETTING OUR ETHICS IN: Jefferson Hawkins explains Scientology’s system of justice
SCIENTOLOGY MYTHBUSTING: Historian Jon Atack discusses key Scientology concepts

Other links: Shelly Miscavige, ten years gone | The Lisa McPherson story told in real time | The Cathriona White stories | The Leah Remini ‘Knowledge Reports’ | Hear audio of a Scientology excommunication | Scientology’s little day care of horrors | Whatever happened to Steve Fishman? | Felony charges for Scientology’s drug rehab scam | Why Scientology digs bomb-proof vaults in the desert | PZ Myers reads L. Ron Hubbard’s “A History of Man” | Scientology’s Master Spies | Scientology’s Private Dancer | The mystery of the richest Scientologist and his wayward sons | Scientology’s shocking mistreatment of the mentally ill | Scientology boasts about assistance from Google | The Underground Bunker’s Official Theme Song | The Underground Bunker FAQ

Our Guide to Alex Gibney’s film ‘Going Clear,’ and our pages about its principal figures…
Jason Beghe | Tom DeVocht | Sara Goldberg | Paul Haggis | Mark “Marty” Rathbun | Mike Rinder | Spanky Taylor | Hana Whitfield