Founded by L. Ron Hubbard in the 1950s, scientology has never been universally accepted. Both ridiculed and helped by the comments of Tom Cruise, what can it offer?
Based largely on Freud’s idea surrounding the powers of cumulative unconscious thoughts, L. Ron Hubbard came up with the idea of dianetics which is the founding stone of scientology.
Dianetics is a set of ideas and practices regarding the relationship between mind and body, or in crude layman’s terms, it is about mind over matter. Hubbard put forth the view that most mental and physical problems are caused by traumatic memories (which he called "engrams") that are stored in the unconscious mind (the idea which Freud had proposed nearly half a century earlier). The goal of Dianetics is to help the individual become free of this part of their mind.
According to dianetics, it is this build-up of the “reactive mind” which causes, or at least contributes to, the pains, negative emotions and unhappiness in life. By getting rid of it, we can effectively restore our mind-body balance and be miraculously healed.
Scientology shot into the news when Hollywood megastar, Tom Cruise, spoke out about his friend, Brooke Shields. When Shields bravely spoke about being on anti-depressants for post-natal depression, Cruise attacked her use of medical intervention, something which is frowned upon by scientologists. He said that there is no such thing as a chemical imbalance and called psychiatric medicine a “pseudo science”. Instead, scientology promotes good nutrition and rest to help get back into shape.
How much scientology can be classed as a religion is debatable. It is still regarded as a cult in many countries and has no God, but does talk of a spirituality which is separate from the mind and the body. It recognises some sort of higher life form or existence. Cruise has said that scientology has helped him overcome his dyslexia and there are stories of other miraculous cures when scientologists have intervened. In this respect, scientology is optimistic and sees life as a game in which everyone can win. As Hubbard once wrote, "All life is directed by one command and one command only – SURVIVE!"
However, medics, scientists, historians and academics refuse to accept that scientology has any valid points about it. Deemed some sort of pseudo religion or quackery, few professions have given it the time of day and will give it no higher status than a cult or a passing phase. Its claim to be in search of spiritual identity does little to appease the “real” religions either. Justice Anderson of the Supreme Court in Adelaide, Australia, described “scientology [as] evil; its techniques are evil; its practice is a serious threat to the community, medically, morally, and socially; and its adherents are sadly deluded and often mentally ill... [Scientology is] the world's largest organisation of unqualified persons engaged in the practice of dangerous techniques which masquerade as mental therapy.”
Yet eating well and resting, getting rid of negative thoughts and being optimistic seems like a good idea. Although it can’t really be classed as a religion, maybe it does have something to offer. Whatever the real status of scientology, in a world of ever-increasing technology and scientific dependence it could be here to stay in some form. But maybe the debate should be a case of separating the wheat from the chaff.
The copyright of the article Scientology in Religious Intolerance is owned by Ben Hughes. Permission to republish Scientology must be granted by the author in writing.
Does mind over matter really work? Can we really beat illnesses just by getting in the right frame of mind? Scientology's approach to life seems to be a mixture of utopia and delusion but surely there must be some truth in living an optimistic life.
May 23, 2007 6:20 PM
Smorg
:
Hiya, I think being optimistic gives one a better chance of beating diseases and depressions because it reduces stress. One doesn't need a religion to be an optimist, tho. And I think one can be over-confident about the power of optimism (like a few certain Scientologist who went on the record as to claim that it can replace modern psychiatry altogether).
I think it is nice that some people feel a sense of pride when they had beaten a disease after having been willfully optimistic through it, but the cases of people who had done the same things but lost the battle are usually ignored in this equation. I'd say staying optimistic doesn't hurt anyone as long as it doesn't go overboard and causes one to refuse real treatment...
We often hear of people who claim their prayer helped them beat cancer, for example (tho it is often lost in the story-telling, that they were also receiving modern medical treatment while they were praying. Somehow they tend to credit the prayer and not the medicine), but we don't hear from people who both took medicine and prayed, but died. :o)
May 24, 2007 1:58 PM
Ben Hughes
:
Hi Thanks for your comments. I agree that it all seems to be a bit of a fine balancing act between optimism and pessimism and it makes me wonder how strong the mind really is. I once knew someone who was the most optimistic person and always said she would beat her cancer, but eventually couldn't do it. If the mind was that strong, why is it that more people aren't successful, wealthy and healthy?
May 28, 2007 11:56 PM
Smorg
:
Thanks for keep posting up thought-provoking articles and questions, Ben!
Sorry to hear that your acquaintance didn't beat her cancer, too. I hope the optimism she had made her last fight not as bad as it would have felt had she been depressed or less optimistic.
I think being optimistic is always a good thing as long as it doesn't cause one to be careless or to expect unrealistic results. Maybe we don't get the result we want in the end sometimes, but at least it makes the game worth playing/more enjoyable, ay? Sisyphus never makes it to the top of the hill and escapes his eternal punishment, but at least he has something to shoot for. :o)
May 31, 2007 4:23 PM
Ben Hughes
:
If it doesn't sound too contradictory, I sometimes feel that over optimism leads to greater pessimism - if someone is over-optimistic and things don't work out, then there's a chance they will err on the side of greater caution in the future.
I suppose in many ways I could describe myself as an optimistic pessimist - I try to look on the bright side of things although I often find it easier to look towards the negative so I'm not too disappointed if things don't work out. All in all, it sounds a bit complicated and probably makes my life much more difficult than it needs to be.
I like what you say about carelessness though. I suppose it's about keeping your optimism under control.
