Is Scientology a religion?

[LiberalFighter]

Is Scientology a scam?

[pwhtckll]

1. Can't it be both? (n/t)

[2ndAmForComputers]

23. Can it be anything OTHER than neither or both?

(The answer is no.)

[pnwmom]

2. It started off as a series of science fiction novels.

Then it was sold as a "scientific" method of personal growth.

Eventually, they fought the IRS for the right to have it designated a religion, although they worship no god, and charge adherents for their "sessions."

You decide.

[cbayer]

3. What's your definition of a religion?

[rug]

4. It is a religion without a god.

[Warren Stupidity]

20. It has some sort of non-anthropomorphic cosmic entity.

And reincarnation and immortal souls or thetans. It most certainly is a religion, complete with all sorts of goofy assertions.

[rug]

21. It calls it Infinity.

It has about as much to do with the concept of a god as advanced physics does.

[lindysalsagal]

28. What's a thetan?

Is it what you get when you go to the beach?

[TeamPooka]

5. like all religions, it's a business.

[cbayer]

7. Not all religions are businesses, but some certainly are.

[TeamPooka]

16. when I see one that doesn't ask for money I'll believe you

[cbayer]

17. Asking for money (donations) does not make something a business,

unless you want to use a very broad definition. If so, then unions, professional organizations, political parties and this website are all businesses.

And in that case, what's wrong with being a business?

[TeamPooka]

18. I never read anything about Jesus passing the hat in the bible

I believe religious faith and religious institutions are two different things.
An institution uses a faith
but you and I can disagree about why they use it.

[cbayer]

19. Somebody probably did pass the hat in one way or another.

They most likely needed food, shelter, clothing, transportation - just like most mainstream ministers.

[Warpy]

6. It's amateur psychiatry

that started off as a bad sci fi story and has now evolved into a scam.

[cbayer]

8. The anti-psychiatry parts of it are, imo, the most dangerous and shameful.

[Warpy]

12. It claims to be a substitute for psychiatry

and should have been put out of business as it was getting started in the 1950s as the quackery it is.

That's one of the reasons they sued and sued and sued until the IRS gave in and let themselves call themselves a religion.

Of course they hate psychiatry. It's their competition and it actually works.

[cbayer]

13. And they don't allow real psychiatric patients to be members.

They sell something they can't really provide to some of the most vulnerable members of society, then refuse to *treat* them.

It's despicable.

[lindysalsagal]

29. They treat them with punishment, isolation, starvation, heat stroke....

But, hey! Without that, it wouldn't be half as much fun!

[longship]

9. Is Bennie Hinn peddling religion?

I say NO! He is promoting a scam.

Is Scientology a religion? NO! For the same reason.

Both promote something that is manifestly false, solely for the purpose of enriching themselves.

Are all religions similarly money scams? Possibly not. But many which are easy to detect. The Crouch's at Trinity Broadcast Network? Definitely! Many mega-churches? Most likely. Mainstream religions? A mixed bag, depends on how they act.

The definition of a cult is not what they believe, but how they act.

For more information, Rick Ross, rickross.com, has gathered more info on the subject than probably anybody.

[cbayer]

10. Good answer and a really interesting site.

While the distinction is not always clear, sometimes it is very, very clear.

[longship]

15. I am glad some caught my point

We can throw chairs at one another forever, never resolving anything, when we discuss things in that fuzzy middle. But both believers and non-believers can come together about the edges, where the demarcations are the most apparent.

That's where the common ground is firm. We can throw chairs about the fuzzy middle some other time.

[mr blur]

11. Well, it's not recognised as a religion over here,

though I understand that it is over there.

I think it's a cross between new-age Woo and moneymaking scam. With a bit of fourth-rate sci-fi thrown in.

[lindysalsagal]

30. Sounds familiar:

[rrneck]

14. Well, it sure as hell ain't science. nt

[Odin2005]

22. Religion, scam, same thing.

Both are about parting fools from their money.

[AlbertCat]

25. Religion, scam, same thing.

Indeed.

Just because Christianity is a 2000 year old scam that's still raking it in doesn't make it any less of a scam than a 50 year old money making scam.

[Gore1FL]

24. I've never seen one in the first category that isn't in the second. n/t

[Siwsan]

26. How about a cult?

I've never actually seen anything about Scientology that's even close to what one would call a traditional, spiritual based' religion. Seems to be way more about controlling the minds and bank accounts of their membership.

[MineralMan]

27. In the US, it's recognized as a tax-exempt religion.

Not so in some other countries:

Scientology is legally recognized as a tax-exempt religion in the United States and some other countries,[10][11][12][13] and the Church of Scientology emphasizes this as proof that it is a bona fide religion.[14] In other countries, notably Canada, France, Germany, and the United Kingdom, Scientology does not have comparable religious status.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientology'

What does that mean? It means that it's a religion in the US. It's also a scam, but there's no official government recognition of that status.

[Iggo]

31. It's both.