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Is Scientology a religion?
Results so far:
| Yes | 34% | 88 votes | Total: 259 votes | |
| No | 66% | 171 votes |
Yes
by Darren Owen
Created on: July 06, 2010
Is Scientology a religion?
First off let me just say that I am not a scientologist. As a faith I follow the pagan path, but I am interested in all religions because I believe at their core they are all the same so I started looking into scientology with a view to seeing what was similar to other religions. From this research I would have to say that this church is a religion.
The most important facet to any religion is a belief in a supreme being, no matter what he, she or it is called. Well the scientologist church does believe that a supreme being exists. It doesn’t however give that Supreme Being a name or any explicit dogma on it. This isn’t as strange as it sounds. Some sects of Buddhism do not believe in a supreme being, instead seeing all of us as having a Buddha nature, in effect seeing us as all divine and equal.
Any religion also has to believe in an afterlife of some sort. Well to scientologists the spirit or thetan as they term it has lived life time after life time and after the body dies it will come back in a new body. This is a form of re-incarnation but unlike other systems of re-incarnation scientology doesn’t believe in karma. There is no moral judgment between lives and there is no re-incarnating into a body other than human, but still it is re-incarnation and as such it counts as a view on the afterlife.
What about morals? Any faith or religion always teaches a moral point of view. Scientologists have something called the code of honor. This code represents an ethical or moral stance on many things. Examples include your integrity to yourself is more important than your body and Never desert a comrade in need, in danger or in trouble. These can certainly be seen to be an ethical stance, if not moralistic.
Scientology also has something called the eight dynamics. These dynamics or urges are part of the thetan’s or spirits urge towards total survival. The second dynamic is all about sex and the family and it is this dynamic that also gives us moral teachings. For example scientology doesn’t recognise gay marriage or abortion. Both of these sound remarkably similar to the Christian church’s views.
Another thing that some religions do is tithing. This is the practise of worshippers giving money to the church to support that religions organisation. This is can be anything from putting money into the collection plate during a Sunday service to paying five to ten percent of any money earned to the church. How does scientology cope with the tithing problem? Well they run bespoke courses for their members and get them to pay for that.
There is not much difference paying for a course designed to teach you about your faith and placing some money on a collection plate after a service. A service is designed to remind or teach you something about your faith after all. Scientologists just seem to make it a little less hypocritical.
In all respects it can be shown that scientology follows a similar path to that of other religions. They have religious ceremonies like marriage and funeral rites. They have a belief in a supreme being, they have a belief in an afterlife, they have moral and ethical teachings that they follow. They have views on sex and sex education, they go out and establish missions and they have a hierarchical structure that they follow.
Is scientology a religion? Overwhelmingly yes. It may be strange one to you and me but it still deserves to be called a church, a religion and a faith.
Learn more about this author, Darren Owen.
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No
by V R Rutledge
Created on: October 20, 2010
Before we can determine an answer to the question "Is Scientology a Religion?" we must first agree on a definition of Religion. Webster's has defined religion as follows,
"1. the service and worship of God or the supernatural
2. : commitment or devotion to religious faith or observance
3. : a personal set or institutionalized system of religious attitudes, beliefs, and practices
4. archaic : scrupulous conformity "
By the first definition, Scientology fails completely, as it does not contain "God" or "The Supernatural". The second definition also fails due to the popular connotation of religious faith and observances. It fails on the third definition because of a lack of formalized practices, even though its attitudes and beliefs are certainly institutionalized. By the archaic definition it could be said to be a religion, but one must allow the internal protestations of its members to forestall such an obvious valuation. Members of Scientology will stress that is it not a cult and that they, the members, have complete free will.
When we look at a religion, that is a system of beliefs that is not necessarily supported by science, (a religion itself to some), we must realize that true religion is both cultural and philosophical, having a personal and social aspect. A Religion will affect the life of its members and will exert a force of change in society as a whole. Pilgrims had a religion which limited their activities personally and yet created a strong social group that greatly contributed to the 'protestant work ethic' which caused the United States to become such a powerful political body. The effect of Hinduism and Buddhism on India and Southeast Asia is obvious, from diet to politics. No one can dispute the effect of Islam on the world, even though many would confuse the violence with the religion. In short, Scientology lacks a Credo, or a structure that would allow it to change Society. Societal changes accomplished by the existence of Scientology would seem, at present, to be confined to the actions of individuals, not any force exerted by the organization.
The use of the title "The Church of Scientology " is thus misleading, since there are few places called 'Scientology Churches'' , where services are held and the faithful sing the praises of 'going clear' or 'being Thetan'. Instead, we find a system of courses, registration, and systematic education toward a commonly held world view. The validity of this view must be judged by each of us individually, remembering that ancient peoples believed that the earth resided on the back of a giant Turtle. Whatever your opinion of the Organization, Scientology is not yet a religion, although it is moving rapidly in the direction of that classification, with only a short distance to cover.
Learn more about this author, V R Rutledge.
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