No bashing someone else for their religion allowed.
I'm using Scientology as my example becuase I just happened to read up on it the other day and it's a fairly new religion. I'm not bashing Scientology but just asking questions about it.
References to keep facts straight:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientology
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dianetics
I come across an article on Scientology the other day so I decided to do some reading on it. I was perplexed about certain things. How did L. Ron Hubbard found a new religion in modern day society?
Here is a science fiction writer that first writes a theory and associated practices regarding the relationship of the mind and the body known as Dianetics, published 1950. So a simple definition is a self help book. Ok, that's not too unreasonable.
So he thinks more and works Dianetics into a system of beliefs and practice of a self-help philosophy known as Scientology, in 1952. The big difference in the two is the Church says that Scientology is concerned with "the study and handling of the spirit in relationship to itself, others and all of life," but they say that Dianetics is only concerned about getting rid of the reactive mind. A philosophy isn't that hard to create and present to others. But by 1960 Hubbard had redefined it as a "religion by its basic tenets".
I know Hubbard did this in part to get tax relief status. But how did he convince others that it was a Religion? That's where I'm stuck. Here is a know Science Fiction writer and people buy into something he calls a religion. Hubbard has even been quoted as saying "If you want to make a lot of money, create a religion.”
I'm not sure if any of you have read any of their basic stories (like bible stories) but they have some odd ones. Some are called Space operas by Hubbard. Such as the story of Xenu and his Galactic Confederacy. "Critics point out that Scientology literature does include many references to extraterrestrial past lives and that internal Scientology publications are often illustrated with pictures of spaceships and oblique references to catastrophic events that happened "75 million years ago" (e.g. the Xenu incident)."
How did such philosophy jump into a religion that others strongly believe and structure their lives by? It has quickly spread around the world in the past 50 years. How?!
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How do religions get started and spread? If possible please include references for facts.
I'm using Scientology as my example becuase I just happened to read up on it the other day and it's a fairly new religion. I'm not bashing Scientology but just asking questions about it.
References to keep facts straight:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientology
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dianetics
I come across an article on Scientology the other day so I decided to do some reading on it. I was perplexed about certain things. How did L. Ron Hubbard found a new religion in modern day society?
Here is a science fiction writer that first writes a theory and associated practices regarding the relationship of the mind and the body known as Dianetics, published 1950. So a simple definition is a self help book. Ok, that's not too unreasonable.
So he thinks more and works Dianetics into a system of beliefs and practice of a self-help philosophy known as Scientology, in 1952. The big difference in the two is the Church says that Scientology is concerned with "the study and handling of the spirit in relationship to itself, others and all of life," but they say that Dianetics is only concerned about getting rid of the reactive mind. A philosophy isn't that hard to create and present to others. But by 1960 Hubbard had redefined it as a "religion by its basic tenets".
I know Hubbard did this in part to get tax relief status. But how did he convince others that it was a Religion? That's where I'm stuck. Here is a know Science Fiction writer and people buy into something he calls a religion. Hubbard has even been quoted as saying "If you want to make a lot of money, create a religion.”
I'm not sure if any of you have read any of their basic stories (like bible stories) but they have some odd ones. Some are called Space operas by Hubbard. Such as the story of Xenu and his Galactic Confederacy. "Critics point out that Scientology literature does include many references to extraterrestrial past lives and that internal Scientology publications are often illustrated with pictures of spaceships and oblique references to catastrophic events that happened "75 million years ago" (e.g. the Xenu incident)."
How did such philosophy jump into a religion that others strongly believe and structure their lives by? It has quickly spread around the world in the past 50 years. How?!
_________________________________________________________________
How do religions get started and spread? If possible please include references for facts.
s. Some people are just sheep, the first person with a stick can start herding them up into any cage they want.
