I have spent hundreds of hours poring through piles of materials related to the Church of Scientology, including books and articles by the founder, L. Ron Hubbard, the official church website, videos, blogs, and commentaries by both friends and foes, etc., etc. The result of my examination has been a crisp reminder of the fact that people are willing to pay any price and do anything for the promise that they will be able to better understand themselves and help themselves and others to achieve greatness and perfection in the universe.

The only problem is that Scientology does not deliver on its promises. Now don’t get me wrong, there is no doubt in my mind that Scientology does grant many of its practitioners some benefits. People have remarked how they learned to communicate better, to understand the root of some of their behaviors and  to deal calmly with stressful situations.

But Scientology promised a lot more than that. A person who has progressed through the various levels of Scientology to the point of being considered “Clear” (a stage where all the bad memories from this and past lives no longer affect you) is supposed to be able to perform tasks at a higher speed than a normal person (“pre-Clear”), and with total control of mind and spirit be able to function above the fray of the hang-ups common to man.

But the first Clear was a colossal failure. Trumpeted as someone who had attained “full and perfect recall of every moment of her life,” Sonia Bianca, a physics student from Boston, was presented at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles in 1950 as the  “World’s First Clear.” But when asked what she had for breakfast on a particular day and what the color of Hubbard’s tie was, she couldn’t remember. Fiasco wouldn’t come even close to describing it. It would take Hubbard 16 years to publically produce another “Clear.”

I am dealing with some key doctrinal aspects of Scientology this Sunday in church, but this post here today will be more about some of the other weird elements of this rather unusual religion.

First, its founder, L. Ron Hubbard. There is no question the man achieved something truly amazing. The speed with which he wrote is still unparalleled. His dedication to founding a religion with a broad scope touching every aspect of one’s existence borders the feat of geniuses. But did Hubbard have help?

His eldest son, also named Ron, now deceased, as well as some others who were close to him, have been on record as saying that Hubbard was influenced by a British writer who was a staunch promoter of black magic. They allege that he delved deeply into the occult and experimented with drugs. He was constantly preoccupied with sex and engaged in multiple affairs, at one time marrying a woman before he had divorced from a previous wife. This man fathered seven children through three different women, not exactly a model of someone who is operating at a higher level in the spiritual plane.

There are also many elements in the church’s version of Hubbard’s biography that are highly disputed. They claim that he was injured during the Second World War but there is no evidence for it. He claims that he cured himself through the use of his own “Scientific” methods, but again there is no reliable record of it except his word. Hubbard seems to have been a specialist when it comes to lying and we know who the father of lies is. Could Scientology be a carefully disguised way Satan has presented himself to the mind of “enlightened” man?

The current leader of Scientology, a man by the name of David Miscavige, has also been on the hot seat from time to time, accused of unspeakable abuses of staff and practitioners, both by family members and, more importantly, by some high level international executives who are no longer with the organization. If only a fraction of what people are alleging is true, this man should be in jail somewhere.

By the way, Hubbard himself spent the last months of his life hiding in a car, traveling throughout the country, to avoid being brought to justice in the biggest case of domestic spying to date, so-called “Operation Snow White,” which apparently originated in his mind and was carried out by his command. They managed to infiltrate several government organizations through wiretapping as well as physically planting spies in different places. Hubbard’s wife did time for this crime.

The allegations of wrong doing, from black mail to child slavery to physical abuse to forced abortion to kidnapping, etc. abound, which raises the question – why does Scientology continue to attract so many high profile, supposedly intelligent and incredibly powerful people in our world? To hear the answer to that, you will have to come to church this Sunday.

Meanwhile, if you want to read more on your own, you may get a hold of a recent book by Lawrence Wright, a staff writer for The New Yorker. You may also read a series of articles by The Tampa Bay Times, titled “The Truth Run Down,” or visit the website exscientologykids.com. Obviously, Scientology officials deny every allegation that has been brought against them and their organization, but they are comfortable in the world of shades and nuances, as you can clearly see from the opening page of their dazzling webpage when they affirm that Scientology is compatible with any other religious belief.

Don’t let it fool you: Scientology can NEVER be compatible with Christianity. NEVER.

Pastor Ivanildo C. Trindade