Eric Idle and Kirstie Alley discuss Scientology!

We’ve been discussing some awfully serious issues this week. From the suicide of a talented young woman who was memorialized at the Hollywood Celebrity Centre, to the odd disappearance of a prominent 40-year member of Scientology, to the grinding arguments of a court hearing in Texas.

Oh, how we’d love a little comedy to lighten the mood. And thankfully, one of our all-time favorites of comedy was there to supply it for us!

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Ray Jeffrey on Scientology in the courtroom: ‘Constantly getting tripped up on the facts’

We had a chance to talk with Monique Rathbun’s attorney Ray Jeffrey about Wednesday’s court hearing in Monique’s harassment lawsuit against the Church of Scientology and its leader, David Miscavige.

The most important result of the hearing is that Scientology’s attempt to quash a deposition of Miscavige was unsuccessful. Comal County Judge Dib Waldrip said that he could see more reason than ever why Monique’s legal team should get the opportunity to question Miscavige, and he even suggested it might take place in his courtroom because he anticipated that Scientology’s attorneys would object to virtually every question.

“He didn’t order that, but he indicated that he would consider that,” Jeffrey tells us.

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Jeff Hawkins on Scientology’s brand of court martial — the ‘Comm Ev’

Jefferson Hawkins was once the top marketing executive for the Church of Scientology and helped it reach its greatest extent with the famous “volcano” TV ads in the 1980s. He’s told his tale of getting into and out of the church with his excellent books Counterfeit Dreams and Leaving Scientology, and he’s helping us understand the upside-down world of Scientology “ethics.”

We’re nearing the end of this series, Jeff, but you’ve saved one of the best for almost last. We’ve always wanted to know more about Scientology’s brand of court justice. Tell us about it.

JEFFERSON: We’re now on Chapter 12 of Introduction to Scientology Ethics, and we’re going to be taking up every Scientologist’s favorite subject — Comm Evs! Of course, I’m being facetious — I think every Scientologist, and certainly every staff member, has their own horror stories about Comm Evs. It’s a system that is particularly prone to abuse and misuse.

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Monique Rathbun seeks sanctions, Scientology tries to kill Miscavige deposition in court today

The BBC’s John Sweeney sets up today’s court clash for us

Monique Rathbun is back in court today in New Braunfels, Texas for her harassment lawsuit against the Church of Scientology and its leader, David Miscavige. Several different issues may come up for discussion today. Monique filed a notice to depose David Miscavige on January 29, and Scientology responded with a motion to quash the deposition. Scientology also asked Judge Dib Waldrip to reconsider his order allowing Monique to depose Miscavige. But the main action today may be Monique’s motion for sanctions. She’s asking Judge Waldrip to punish Scientology because its employees, she says, have been dishonest in depositions and because Scientology has not turned over evidence.

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Where is Scientology keeping Barbara Cordova Oliver?

In December, a 56-year-old woman who had long been a prominent presence at Scientology’s Hollywood Celebrity Centre, Barbara Cordova Oliver, flew home to Los Angeles from Clearwater and suffered a nervous breakdown.

Her mother, Arlene Cordova, 80, called police to her home, where Barbara was staying. (Arlene has never been involved with Scientology.) Barbara was taken by police to Olive View-UCLA Medical Center in Sylmar, where she was held for observation. Arlene visited her daughter in the facility, but on December 12, she says that Barbara’s Scientologist husband Robert Oliver and a Scientology attorney attended a court hearing that enabled them to get Barbara out of Olive View.

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Tales from Scientology’s Hollywood Celebrity Centre: A new film, and a new death

We have two very different reports for you today that share one thing in common — Scientology’s Hollywood Celebrity Centre.

Steven Mango spent four years in Scientology, hoping that his involvement with the Celebrity Centre would help his acting career. A year ago, he left Scientology after he’d had enough of the church’s constant requests for money.

Most people who leave Scientology keep quiet. Steven had a different idea — he made a two and a half hour movie about it. He’s debuting his film this Sunday at the ACME Theater in Hollywood (go here for tickets).

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Sunday Funnies: For the second year in a row, Scientology will have an ad in the Super Bowl

On the first day of 2012, a woman named Debbie Cook who had been a somewhat legendary official in the Church of Scientology rocked the church with a lengthy e-mail that went out to thousands of her fellow church members.

One of the accusations she made in that e-mail (which the church sued her over) was that Scientology’s leader David Miscavige was sitting on more than a billion dollars in cash that had been raised by the International Association of Scientologists — money that was supposed to be used for promoting the church. Specifically, Cook complained that you never saw the kind of high-profile advertising that Scientology had been known for decades earlier.

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Jon Atack on Scientology’s fundamental feature: the thousand-yard stare

Jon Atack is the author of A Piece of Blue Sky, one of the very best books on L. Ron Hubbard and Scientology. He has a new edition of the book for sale, and on Saturdays he’s helping us sift through the legends, myths, and contested facts about Scientology that tend to get hashed and rehashed in books, articles, and especially on the Internet.

Once again, Jon takes apart a bedrock concept of L. Ron Hubbard’s cabal. Take it away, Jon…

JON: Scientologists will correct you, should you suggest that in Training Routine 0 you stare. ‘No,’ you will be assured, ‘You confront.’ Taxed on the difference between ‘confronting’ and ‘staring’ little of use is forthcoming. The difference, it seems, is too subtle for words.

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‘The Factors’: Another video the Church of Scientology would rather you not watch

Our video source has come through again, sending us another “quote video” that is meant only to be seen inside a Scientology “org.”

As we learned earlier, many of these videos were created in order to highlight a portion of a particular L. Ron Hubbard lecture as new editions of his lectures were produced and Scientologists were encouraged to buy them. In this case, we’re seeing a portion of “The Factors: Admiration & the Renaissance of Beingness.” (Online price, $250.00)

According to Scientology’s own website, this was a series of lectures given in the spring of 1953, and they contain “the knowledge of universal truth unlocking the riddle of creation itself.” Wow! OK, so prepare to be blown away!

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Judge Waldrip grants Monique Rathbun’s discovery request, snubbing Scientology

Marty and Monique Rathbun

It’s another victory for Monique Rathbun in her harassment lawsuit against the Church of Scientology and its leader David Miscavige: Comal County, Texas Judge Dib Waldrip has granted her request for a continuance so she can gather more evidence to refute Scientology’s anti-SLAPP motion. A new hearing on the matter has been set for February 3 and 4, and in the meantime, Waldrip has given Monique a strongly-worded order to help her pry that evidence from Scientology.

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