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Originally Posted by willravel
This sounds like an interesting combination of alternate psychology with loose religious ties. I must admit, this looks interesting. Reading on.
When I watched todays episode of South Park, I figured that it was simply a joke ridiculing a religion. I was mistaken in that assumption.
So....now that we have a ballpark idea of what Scientology is, do you have any thoughts? I know my first thought is wondering how people can listen to this story and be spiritually inspired. Of course, I know that my belief in a 2000 year old carpenter/living God really doesn't make a whole lot of sense, too. Can you compare thefesability of these two stories, really? Boy, this is an intersting religion.
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Advancement through the ranks comes at an increasingly high "contribution" of both money, time, money, and more money. To step onto the Freewind would cost a small fortune. Scientology does a brisk and extremely profitable business in creating and exorcising non-existent demons from the affluent and the ignorant. The inclusion of ranks is a feature nearly unique to this group, as a religion typically follows a flock-and-shephard dynamic, not ranks you gain through time, money, and just a wee bit of volunteering to spread the good news. And money. And did I mention there's a lot of
money involved as well?
From what I know about human nature, the "Hidden Truths" are crackpot revelations that you will, by the time you reach them, embrace wholeheartedly. Right after you've signed the check. That Hubbard connivingly constructed this religion as a profit motive may never be clearly known, but what is known is that Scientology makes a lot of fucking money for itself while making its followers feel better about things that might or might not have happened to them.
Last but not least, they rabidly descend upon anyone who splits from their camp and reveals those crackpot revelations to a public that has not been conditioned to accept such information. That bit about Scientology encouraging its followers to scrutinize its values is, for lack of a better word, bullshit. Because you will be quickly and expertly evangelized, and they know this. If you refuse to be evangelized, they will merely pity you and move on to another opportunity.