3 Questions All Scientologists Should Ask

Scientology is a religious cult that has been around since the early 20th century. It was founded by speculative fiction writer L. Ron Hubbard as a successor to his earlier self-help system called the dianetics. In 1993, Scientology was duly recognized by IRS as a religion and was then granted full tax exemption on its missions, organizations and other activities of the Church of Scientology.

What is this religious cult?
Scientology is a religion that is basically summarized by this definition – knowing how to know. The word scientology, itself, stemmed from the Latin word, 'scio', which means 'knowing' and the Greek word 'logos', which means 'study of'.

This is a 21st century religion that espouses the many beliefs from major religions in the world including Buddhism and Hinduism.

Who is L. Ron Hubbard?
L. Ron Hubbard is the controversial founder of the Scientology Religion. He was a fictional writer, a humanitarian and a philosopher. According to resources found on the official Scientology website, Hubbard is a larger-than-life figure that has been taught about human existence, thoughts, and philosophies by no other than the highest of religious leaders of major Eastern religions.

As a young man, Hubbard used to move a lot with his family due to his father's occupation in the U.S. Navy. When he was young, his family moved to Kalispell, Montana where he allegedly befriended the Blackfoot Indians who taught him their tribal lore, legends, and rituals. Before reaching the age of 13, he was made a Blood Brother, a status that is rarely achieved even by the Indians.

From 1927 to 1929, his father was sent to Guam. There, Hubbard met and befriended Commander Joseph Thompson who was then a close student of Freudian teachings. Hubbard is said to have spent many afternoon talks with Commander Thompson regarding the human mind and the early teachings of psychology.

Later in his life prior to his writing of the book Dianetics and the establishment of the Scientology Church, Hubbard journeyed throughout Asia and learned about the various teachings of Asian religions. He studied under the tutelage of China's, Tibet's and India's Holy Men. It is said that these travels gained him access to knowledge which he later wrote in his book Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health.

How Scientology came to be?
Scientology only came after when his book of self-help system was published in the 1950s. During those times, self-help books were a novelty and Hubbard's book came as a runaway bestseller. Many readers bought the ideas of the book and contacted Hubbard for further information as well as help. It was only a matter of time for the Dianetics Research Foundation to be established to cater to the needs for information of those people following the recommendations of the book. And in a few years, L. Ron Hubbard saw the founding of Scientology as a religion with Dianetics as its primary teaching.

Nowadays, the Church of Scientology is said to have a total of 8 million followers worldwide. Although much controversy surrounds the founder and the religion itself, many are still attracted to the teachings of this religious cult.