Hey guys,why are sciengologists hitting celebrities?

[Swede]

I'm Rick James bitch.

[crimson333]

1. money

[salin]

2. Exactly

[ET Awful]

3. No, actually it's more for the recruiting power.

How many people have you encountered that don't believe the bad stories of Scientology just because Travolta, Cruise, etc. are members of the church?

They use it as a gimick when they try and get people to start giving them money "hey, Travolta says that without us, he would never have had a successful career."

They get more money from the additional gullible people they get to sign up by using celebrity name-dropping than they do from the celebrities themselves.

[NewJeffCT]

7. agreed on that

Tom Cruise sells more on scientology than 100 priests just by getting the name out in the news.

[NMMNG]

4. Money, word of mouth, gullibility

Stars have lots of money (and $cientology requires you to have lots of money after all)

Stars are great vehicles for promoting things-which is why so many advertisers use them

Stars aren't always highly-educated, making them good prospects for conversion to cults

[FourStarDemocrat]

5. Here's the explanation

"The Church of Scientology uses celebrity spokesmen to endorse L. Ron Hubbard's teachings and give Scientology greater acceptability in mainstream America. As far back as 1955, Hubbard recognized the value of famous people to his fledgling, off-beat church when he inaugurated 'Project Celebrity.' According to Hubbard, Scientologists should target prominent individuals as their "quarry" and bring them back like trophies for Scientology. <...> Celebrities are considered so important to the movement's expansion that the church created a special office to guide their careers and ensure their 'correct utilization' for Scientology. The church has a special branch that ministers to prominent individuals, providing them with first-class treatment. Its headquarters, called Celebrity Centre International, is housed in a magnificent old turreted mansion on Franklin Avenue, overlooking the Hollywood Freeway.
- The Selling of a Church: The Courting of Celebrities

from: http://www.religionnewsblog.com/8449

[no_hypocrisy]

6. Agreed. Just another example of celebrity endorsement.

Equivalent of someone "trustworthy" like, say, Tony Randall recommending a certain pain reliever in a TV spot.

It's no secret that a lot of Americans worship celebrity and have for decades. Their "heroes" are people who are famous for being famous, not for their profound words or amazing deeds or dedication to a principle. Scientology just is sensible in using the role models that Americans have adopted as their spokespeople (provided the latter aren't total loons).

The rejection of psychiatry by Scientology is akin to the fundamentalists' rejection of evolution in that established scientific data is invalidated and discarded in favor its particular message.

[Swede]

8. Thanks for the link.

Scientologists are getting bolder every day.

[kittenpants]

9. they own pretty much all of downtown Clearwater (where I live)

and run around in uniformed packs. It's seriously weird.