Founded by L. Ron Hubbard in the 1950's, Scientology considers itself a religion helping people
be free of trauma and experience a true reality. Since its founding, it has grown into a multi-million
dollar enterprise with many followers, including many actors and celebrities from Hollywood
who shell out cash to reach new levels in the organization. While it tries to look harmless
on the outside, many former Scientologists like Leah Remini have called it out for harmful,
dangerous, and deceptive practices. Turns out, there's much more to Scientology than
meets the eye. Curious to find out more about this controversial group? I'm Mike with List25
and here are 25 Shocking Facts About Scientology.
25. Scientology has its own rehab program called
"Narconon," using saunas, vitamins, minerals, and oils to treat people with serious medical
addiction. No one there is a medical professional; they indoctrinate you, and many have not been
allowed to leave. Some of these facilities have also been shut down.
24. The Church of Scientology spied on South Park
creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone when they aired the episode Trapped in the Closet, which
brutally made fun of the church. They went through public records, investigated their
friends, and even went through their trash. They found nothing.
23. L. Ron Hubbard's son, L. Ron Hubbard Jr.,
was once a leader in the church before walking away and changing his name to Ronald DeWolf.
He left because he didn't have a high view of his father and the last straw was when
his father sold secrets to the Russians.
22. Charles Manson, the insane mass murderer,
took 150 classes of Scientology and left saying it was too crazy for him.
21. They have security checks for children as
young as 6 years old with a wide range of questions. The first question is, "What has
somebody told you not to tell?"
20. Scientology leader David Miscavige is good
friends with Tom Cruise and was his best man at Cruise's wedding to Katie Holmes. Oddly,
while Miscavige's wife setup Cruise and Holmes, she hasn't been seen since 2006. Right before
her disappearance, she had filled vacant jobs without her husband's permission.
19. During a Reddit AMA with Leah Remini, she
said there is no top level of Scientology; it's never ending. When you reach the top
of The Bridge, you'll find out there are even more levels, and you'll have to pay much more
money to get there.
18. Journalist Paulette Cooper tried to expose
the Church of Scientology after her friend joined and claimed he was Jesus Christ. In
response, they sued her hundreds of times, sent libelous mail to her neighbors, and even
tried to frame her for a bomb threat she had nothing to do with.
17. Elvis Presley once visited a Scientology group
meeting, and when he left, he angrily said, "That S.O.B. group just wants my money!" Later,
both his widow and daughter joined the Church of Scientology.
16. In a book by Jenna Miscavige Hill, the niece
of David Miscavige, she mentioned "The Ranch," a deplorable child labor camp run by Scientology
in San Jacinto, California. She said it was like a military boot camp where kids work
under the hot sun, rarely see their parents, and are harshly disciplined if they speak
out.
15. Nancy Cartwright, the woman who voices Bart
Simpson, gave 10 million dollars, two times her annual salary, to the Church of Scientology.
In return, they awarded her with the "Scientologyâ€™s Patron Laureate Award."
14. Germany's government does not consider Scientology
a religion. They view it as an economic enterprise and a potential threat to the democratic order.
13. Scientologists believe that we are all spiritual
beings known as "Thetans" and merely inhabit meat bodies. When you die, you forget your
prior self and inhabit another body. Those who are high up in Scientology can make choices
like choosing their birth parents.
12. L. Ron Hubbard has been quoted saying that
when a Thetan dies, it is carried to a landing station on Venus. There, it's programmed with
lies and sent back to Earth to search for a baby to inhabit.
11. Used as a power grab by David Miscavige, "The
Hole" is a building owned by the Church of Scientology where high ranking executives
were sent to be interrogated, humiliated, and punished. They forced confessions out
of them to see if they had ill intent against Miscavige. Former Scientologists say 100 people
swelled the building at one time.
10. After repeated abuses in editing their articles,
Wikipedia banned all IP addresses owned by the Church of Scientology.
9. They have a secretive headquarters in the
desert called "Gold Base." It's a 700-acre compound with spiked fences, motion sensors,
and sniper bunkers. While the facilities look nice on the outside, supposedly treatment
for members is cruel with slop for food and required 20-hour work days.
8. According to Leah Remini, Scientology does
everything it can to brainwash you into only listening to Scientologists and not trusting
outside sources. If you try to leave the Church, they'll use all the information they know
about you to discredit you.
7. A group called the Cult Awareness Network,
which took over 16,000 phone calls a year to help families dealing with cults, labeled
Scientology has the #1 most dangerous cult. In response, Scientology forced them into
bankruptcy through a costly lawsuit and then bought them out, creating the New Cult Awareness
Network.
6. In 1973, L. Ron Hubbard, his wife, and the
Church of Scientology led a massive campaign against the U.S. government called "Operation
Snow White." Using 5,000 covert agents, it was one of the largest infiltrations of the
government, purging documents the church thought were harmful and false.
5. The hacking collective Anonymous sent all-black
faxes to the Scientology Los Angeles headquarters, overwhelming their printers and totally depleting
their ink cartridges.
4. Years before starting Scientology, L. Ron
Hubbard, then a science fiction author, said, â€œWriting for a penny a word is ridiculous.
If a man really wanted to make a million dollars, the best way to do it would be to start his
own religion.â€
3. They believe that 75,000,000 years ago, a
galactic overlord named Xenu dealt with overpopulation by gathering up people, killing them, freezing
their souls (Thetans), and sending them to Earth. The Thetan souls exploded next to volcanoes,
which created their bodies.
2. Tom Cruise had the Church of Scientology cast
for many of his girlfriends like it was a movie audition. One young Iranian actress
they set to groom to be his girlfriend was Nazanin Boniadi. Their courtship was heavily
monitored and eventually fell apart. Boniadi was supposedly shipped off to a Scientology
center in Florida to atone for her errors.
1. They have another compound in the forest of
Twin Peaks, California called "The Church of Spiritual Technology." It's notably fenced
off with spikes going inward, not outward. Former Scientologist Steve Hall said he believes
Shelly Miscavige, the missing wife of David Miscavige, could be held there.
So, were you ever apart of Scientology? Let us know in the comments below, or tweet your
answer to us @List25.
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