This is a good question. I am an ordained minister who has been a Scientologist for over 20 years. When I came into Scientology I was looking to know about myself. I was not "looking for a religion". I wanted to improve myself. I read Scientology books and they worked. I seemed to get better. My business got better and I applied what I learned about life from Scientology. And as my life improved, I learned to improve the life of others. It made me really feel good. I worked a lot in down trodden areas of Asia. I helped people learn and study better, get them off drugs, and raise their IQ. I especially worked hard in helping those in disaster areas. Then I heard a senior Scientologist one day say that he most definitely believed in God. He was so emphatic. The concept of God was written about by Mr. Hubbard in several books but I never gave it much thought. You see, Mr. Hubbard (who founded Scientology) was a man, not a messenger from God. So he did not speak of God for God. He spoke or wrote of God as only a man might. He did write that man would demise once he gave up the belief in God. (Science of Survival, 1951) Obviously to me then Mr. Hubbard was a very Godly person. But he did not bring the subject of God heavily into his own teachings, other than to mention that God most definitely was apparent. So I thought about this. He said that God existed. He did not teach about it as a Christian might. In the Ministers Course - which I undertook - I read holy texts. I read what others had written about God; the entire Holy Bible, the Holy Koran, the four Vedas, books on Hinduism, and Buddhism, Shinto and more. Then the penny dropped. I got it. We were not speaking of the same thing between religions. Words have meanings, but the word religion is different for different people. I use the religion definitions from the Chambers dictionary 1949. There is a Natural Religion, as is Scientology, Hinduism, and Buddhism, and there are Revealed Religions, such as Christianity, Islam, and Judaism. So, to answer the question, yes, Scientology does have a God. but for some like me, it takes a while to recognize what God might be. However, in saying that, Scientology does not worship God or Gods as Revealed Religions may. Alternatively, it enables an individual to come to his own understanding as to what God is and his own companion with God. The Scientology term for God I like best, is the Allness Of All.
They have a thing for Mr. Hubbard
They believe in Xenu, the dictator of the galactic confederacy 75 million years ago. Seriously, check out xenu.net.
Money.
Scientology is not a faith based religion. It is an applied religious philosophy. It offers tools that one can use in his own life. One is not asked to worship a God or Gods in Scientology. What God is, is up to each personal understanding. People from all faiths practice Scientology. You can be a Christian Scientologist or a Muslim Scientologist, it doesn't matter.
He does. He thanks God for his sucess in the "Notes" of all his Albums. Also, he grew up playing music in Church Choir. I don't know if he still is a Christian. I read on this very site that he converted to Scientology. I hope he didn't though. Scientology is retarted. God bless, and may Jesus be with you :)
Scientology views Jesus as a spiritual leader and teacher, but not as the Son of God or the savior of humanity. They believe that Jesus was an enlightened being who achieved a high level of spiritual awareness and understanding.
Scientology is Fake.
There is no reason to compare Scientology with Christianity. The only thing they have in common is their religious nature and the presence of churches. All the rest is different. Christianity is a faith based religion were members are asked to pray and worship God . Scientology is an applied religious philosophy and it is not based on faith and beliefs. Scientology has more in common with Mahayana Buddhism. Members of the Scientology religion don't go to church to pray, but to study tools that they can apply in life to improve their skills and abilities, as well as the ability of helping others. There is no reason why a Christian could not study Scientology and use it in his life. Scientology is all-denominational and no one is required to change his personal beliefs in regards to God or Gods while studying in their churches. There can be a Christian who in the morning goes to the Sunday service in his Christian church, and in the evening goes into a Scientology church to to a course on "how to handle negative people" or "how to improve communication". They are two completely separate subjects.
You have to take a class for Scientology.
There are over 11'000 Scientology churches, missions and groups worldwide. To find the closest one to you, you can use the "Scientology church locator" on the Scientology website. That is a map that shows you the location of all Scientology churches and missions.
There are a lot of disscusions about scientology. Apparently they have many rules that are very contraversial, like they refuse drugs 'cause they belive God will cure them. Nobody actually knows the rules 'cause they sort of keep for themselves.
The Scandal of Scientology
Scientology was invented by the author Ron Hubbard.
The Scandal of Scientology was created in 1971.