Scientology with Joe

Thanks to some of my readers I watched the Podcast/Videocast of Joe Rogan and Leah Remini talking about Scientology. I really like them both, so to have them on the one show talking about the aftermath of Leah’s journey within the “church” was inspiring. Joe trying to convince Leah that she should do pot was brilliant, and I could almost be convinced that she would have gone for it if he had pursued it a little more.

If you have not seen it and are interested in watching this 2:15 video, then look no further.

One thing I think I have in common with others outside the “church” is a deep fascination with the whole “religion”. I am currently reading Bare-Faced Messiah by Russell Miller, and am enjoying reading about LRH’s real and fictional madcap life. Even the parts that are true are almost tall tales in themselves. I can see why he was a prolific fiction writer.

Over the weekend I also watch Going Clear. I have the book by Lawrence Wright and am looking forward to reading that as I presume it will be a lot more educational than the film, but the film was very interesting. I have seen it before, but at the time I do not think I took too much interest in it. This time I absorbed it from start to finish.

We also finished watching Leah’s second series of Scientology and the Aftermath, and I have to say I am hooked. Leah has a quality in doing these documentaries that I really like and as for Mike Rinder, he is just a fountain of knowledge. The last episode made me laugh as Aaron Smith-Levin’s dog is not considered an SP (suppressive person), or should that be an SD? Along with the fence between him and his Scientology neighbours, it finished on a high.

Book 2 – Troublemaker

A few years ago I watched a BBC documentary about Scientology and found the whole thing fascinating and a little jarring at the same time. So last year we discovered on Sky that Leah Remini had done a documentary series on Scientology after her leaving the church. I had only ever known her from “The King of Queens”, so thought it would be interesting from a comedy actresses point of view. We watched the first series and are nearly finished with the second. Whilst watching I found that the story she was telling was quite familiar with what I had heard from not only the BBC documentary, but other people who had also left.

A quick search and there it was, “Leah Remini – Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology”, a press of a button and I had bought it.

I knew of L. Ron Hubbards writings of science fiction novels, and when I was in my late teens (late 80’s) I attended a “fair” in Liverpool that had many things from occult societies to religious nuts, D&G, and a whole host of things, but, little did I know that one of the things there was the Church of Scientology. The girl I was with persuaded me to do a “dianetics test” with her to see what kind of personality we had. We did it and that was that, and I never thought about it again. But people were really into the “findings” and wanted to take things further. I was a student who had no money so I was out. Lucky me!

I’m also a very sceptical person and find the whole cult/religion thing outlandish. I am agnostic, and cannot commit to the belief that there is or isn’t a god or higher being. I mean, if he/she were introduced to me and could prove it, then I would change my mind, so until then…

Anyway, Leah tells of her being brought into Scientology at the age of 13 and how her life went through her 30 years in the “church”. She talks of neglect of children as the “church” believes that all people are responsible for their own lives including children, which I find outrageous. The physical and mental abuse that goes on is quite startling, but I suppose this is true of near all religions and is not something that is unique to Scientology. One of the eyeopeners is the cost to all of this and that people get themselves in so much debt in order to cross “The Bridge To Total Freedom” by completing courses, auditing, and being forced/managed into donating massive amounts of money, Leah donating millions. Signing a billion-year contract to join the Sea Org was something that made me laugh as if something like that could be upheld. Leaving the “church” Leah lost most of her Scientology friends as they were forced under the rules of LRH to disconnect from her as she would be labelled a suppressive person. One positive thing that came from here “church” activities was her husband who was not a Scientologist when she met him, and was, as she put it “more fucked up” than she was. She does name drop quite a lot, so keep a dustpan a brush at the ready to sweep up the names.

Her book is quite raw and revealing and if you don’t mind lots of bad language/cursing then give it a go. My view of Scientology has never changed, but my eyes have been opened up a little more to her candid writings.

One final thought, LRH was a science fiction writer, which should tell us all we need to know about his billion-dollar religion.