10 CRAZY Facts About SCIENTOLOGY!

 

What celebrities are members of Scientology?

 What is the purpose of the Church’s isolated compound in middle of the New Mexican desert?

 Find out in 10 CRAZY Facts About Scientology!

 #10.

 “Planetary Reincarnation”-One of the main facets of Scientology’s belief system is the idea of Planetary Reincarnation.

 Scientology teaches that all beings on Earth are are the reincarnations of extraterrestrials from other planets throughout the universe.

 They believe that everyone is an immortal being called a ‘Thetan’ and that humans have forgotten their true origins other than traumatic events which hold them back from being pure.

 The only way to expunge themselves of these scars of their past lives known as ‘engrams’ is through a process called ‘auditing’.

 They hope through auditing that they can become ‘clear’ which means that instead of repeating this process of reincarnation when they pass away they become pure souls without the need for a body.

 Interestingly enough, if they do not become clear the thetans are warped to the planet Venus, where the memories of their old lives (aside from the hard to scrub engrams) are wiped clean and then reassigned a new life on Earth.

 Though this is not as easy as it sounds as thetans must search for their own body, in the form of an unborn fetus.

 #9.

 “Auditing”- In order for a thetan to pass from the lowly ‘preclear’ level that requires a physical body to that of being a pure and clear thetan, scientologists must go through a series of tests that are called ‘audits’.

 Auditing is done using a device called an E-meter, or more technically the Hubbard Electropsychometer, which is said to be able to read fluctuations in person’s electrical resistance.

 Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard famously stated that the device could even read the pain levels of fruits and vegetables when they are cut.

 E-meters are made up of two hollow metal handles that are attached to wires and then to the meter.

 The preclear holds on to these handles while an auditor asks them various questions which can range from the mundane to extremely personal.

 All the while the auditor is reading the needle on the meter to see which subjects or questions set off the highest amounts of electrodermal activity with the hopes of honing in on the traumatic engrams of the preclear’s past life and exorcise them.

 However, the auditor is only allowed to ask question and not to comment on the preclear’s answers.

 The auditor is essentially a guide and it is up to the preclear to be honest with themselves and find their engrams.

 #8.

 “Celebritology”- Although a considerably small religion in the rest of the world scientology is an incredibly popular religion among the rich and famous and has even been called ‘The Church of the Stars”.

 This is not by coincidence as in the early days of Scientology one of Hubbard’s main missions was to recruit as many celebrities as possible.

 This effort was a great success with high profile celebrities like John Travolta, Tom Cruise, Will Smith, Doug E. Fresh and Beck all being current members.

 Most of the celebrities that are still part of the Church don’t talk much about it but are intensely devoted.

 Tom Cruise has claimed in the past that he owes his success and health to the religion and that it even cured his dyslexia.

 John Travolta believes that he owes his career to Scientology as once he converted his fame skyrocketed.

 But this may not be because of spiritual reasons but more the fact that with so many celebrities involved, The Church of Scientology is a hotbed of networking.

 Though there are many celebs who are proud and ardent believers there are just as many that have left Scientology and have horror stories about what some say is just a large cult.

 Celebrities who have left Scientology include director Paul Haggis, Jason Lee, Lisa Marie Presley and Cedric Bixler-Zavala from the Mars Volta.

 #7.

 “Xenu and the Galactic Confederacy”-Before L. Ron Hubbard founded scientology he was a pulp science fiction writer so it’s not surprising that much of the myths and backstory of the religion involve several science fiction themes like aliens and futurists technology.

 One of the main origin myths of scientology involves a powerful alien named Xenu and despite it having an integral place in the religion, scientologists aren’t allowed to know the story until they reach the upper ranks of the church and even those who have sometimes publicly deny the myth.

 As the story goes Xenu was the overlord of an empire called the Galactic Federation which ruled over 76 planets including Earth.

 After millions of years of ruling these planets the Federation had a problem, the planets were becoming severely overpopulated.

 So Xenu, decided to eliminate millions of people, then freeze their thetans and dump them in Earth’s volcanoes whereupon they would drop nuclear weapons on them to finish them off.

 These thetans became known as body thetans, the source of the engrams in modern day people.

 Xenu was eventually overthrown in a revolution and locked away in the mountains of an unknown planet that sounds similar to Tatooine from Star Wars.

 #6.

 “Trementina”- In the deserts of western New Mexico there is a strange compound known as Trementina Base that though it is sparsely inhabited is an incredibly important site for Scientology.

 If you can find the base without getting lost along the miles of dirt roads it take to get there you will find a welcome center, an odd-looking cathedral built into the side of a mountain, several RVs, satellite dishes and a landing strip about a mile long.

 The facilities here are believed to be operated by The Church of Technology which is a branch of Scientology.

 There aren’t many non-scientologists that have been allowed onto the property let alone inside the facility and scientologists are very tight-lipped when it comes to Trementina.

 However, it is believed that the cathedral marks the entrance to a nuclear bomb proof vault that has been built deep inside the mountain.

 This vault is said to hold important documents to the church, article records of L. Ron Hubbard as well as the texts he wrote on Scientology etched onto gold discs.

 The landing strip was reported to have been built in the event that Hubbard comes back to earth or so that--in the event of nuclear armageddon--the surviving members of scientology can come back from space, once the dust is cleared and recover their important scriptures.

 How are they supposed locate Trementina from space you ask?

 Well, The Church of Technology has that covered, on top of the nearby mountains they have cleared and carved a giant version of one of their trademark symbols, two overlapping circles each with a diamond on the inside.

 #5.

 “Cost of Admission”-- There are many people who believe that the Church of Scientology is nothing more than a money making-scheme and one of the reasons for this is because of the way preclears have to move through the various levels and courses need to achieve ‘Total Freedom’.

 There are over 50 classes which are constantly being revised and added-to costing up to $650 each and require significant time commitments.

 Even after you complete the courses the church reportedly may keep adding more so that you keep spending money.

 For these courses there is also a large collection of required reading which if bought together in one package costs $4,000.

 And those required audits we mentioned before?

 They cost $800 an hour.

 One can see how being rich and famous is almost necessary to being scientologist as it can quick wipe out your bank account.

 It is also important to remember that because Scientology is an federally recognized religion, it doesn’t have to pay any taxes on any of this.

 #4.

 “Billion Year Pledge”- The most loyal and revered members of Scientology are often asked to join what is known as Sea Organization which is a highly secretive sect made up of the leader of scientology David Miscavige and his most trusted associates.

 When joining Sea Org the members are asked to make a one-billion year pledge which symbolizes their eternal commitment to scientology.

 The motto of Sea Org is appropriately, ‘Revenimus’ which is latin for ‘we come back’ and symbolizes that once signing the pledge Sea Org members are expected to return to the organization once they are reincarnated.

 Though the pledge isn’t a legally binding contract, it is often used by the church as an attempt to extract compensation from members who leave Sea Org.

 Though leaving in the first place has been said to be incredibly difficult due to the tight-hold Miscavige has on Sea Org’s members and reportedly unethical methods of preventing ‘deserters’.

 #3.

 “Guardian’s Office”-- Above even Sea Org sits the mysterious Office of Special Affairs, formerly known as the Guardian’s Office.

 The Guardian’s Office was Scientology’s espionage organization that was constructed to effectively silence anyone who spoke ill of them or released their secrets.

 In the 1970s, the Office executed what is known as Operation Snow White in which they infiltrated several government agencies having devout followers take jobs in the IRS, the FDA, the FBI and Interpol.

 Though eventually the operation was uncovered and several of the conspirators including L. Ron Hubbard’s wife Mary were sent to jail for five years, but before that they successfully destroyed dozens of files and documents that these agencies had been keeping on Scientology.

 The Office has participated in numerous other ‘Operations’ in which they have attempted to keep former members from speaking out against the religion and essentially ruined their lives.

 In one instance, called Operation Freakout they targeted author Paulette Cooper who published a book entitled ‘The Scandal of Scientology’ that exposed many of their underhanded dealings.

 To exact their vengeance they framed her for several bomb threats which ended up in her being arrested and arraigned by a grand jury before being let go on lack of evidence.

 They had several follow-up plans that could have been completely ruined Cooper’s life but Operation Freakout was thwarted when it was uncovered as part of the Operation Snow White investigation.

 The Guardian’s Office was re-branded The Office of Special Affairs in 1983 and though their operations may not be as bold as they were before they have continued to be accused of nefarious acts such as spying on Nicole Kidman, Trey Parker and Matt Stone of South Park and many believe they are behind the disappearance of David Miscavige’s wife Michele.

 #2.

 “On Mental Illness”-- One of the most controversial views of Scientology is their stance on mental illness.

 They believe that mental illnesses do not exist and that rather they are just symptoms of the engrams left over from past lives.

 These views have led to what several ex-members believe is the abuse of the mentally ill that are born into Scientology.

 There are several cases where children with mental disabilities don’t receive the care they need.

 They also believe that because mental illnesses don’t exist they should not be covered by insurance and that psychiatrist’s are all charlatans.

 L. Ron Hubbard himself was quoted as saying that psychiatrists are “the sole cause of decline in this universe” and went as far as to say that they invented the idea of pain in order to hold people back from becoming pure.

 The Church doesn’t just believe these things they actively are trying to stop pharmaceutical companies from making drugs that treat mental illness and lobbying against issues like mental health screening in schools.

 #1.

 “Gold Base”-- In the city of San Jacinto, California what was once a popular vacation resort is now home to the headquarters of Scientology known as Gold Base.

 Because the compound is extremely secure and not many non-scientologists have ever been inside there are countless conspiracies around what goes on inside.

 Gold Base is made up of over 50 buildings including a movie studio, a factory where E-meters are made and a $10 million mansion that was built by Hubbard but never used.

 The mansion, known as Bonnie View, is supposed to particularly eerie as though it houses a small museum the rest of the mansion is unused yet all the facilities are maintained in the event Hubbard comes back in another life.

 Only adding to the stories about the potentially unethical activities like human trafficking inside the compound, is the fact that it is surrounded by walls that are topped on both sides with sharp blades.

 The walls are also monitored by cameras, motion detectors and are patrolled by armed guards who are quick to make anyone trying to peek inside, uncomfortable to say the least.

 Next to the mansion is the church’s main building known as the Religious Technology Center.

 The building is over 45,000 square feet big and reportedly cost close to $70 million dollars.

 Gold Base is also home to mission control for all Sea Org operations and is believed to have been where Tom Cruise stayed in the late 80s when he was completing his “Bridge to Total Freedom” courses.

 What do you think is the most fascinating fact about Scientology?