Over the last several years the Church of Scientology has made headlines around the world. This notoriety is due primarily to the fact that a number of famous Hollywood actors and musicians are adherents to that bizarre pseudo-religion. But what do most people really know about Scientology? Take this short quiz to test your knowledge. The correct answers are provided and explained below the quiz.
___1. The founder and first leader of the Church of Scientology was:
a. L. Ron Hubbard
b. Mary Baker Eddy
c. Charles Taze Russell
d. Tom Cruise
___2. The term “Scientology” comes from Latin and Greek words that literally mean:
a. Scientific studies
b. Knowing about knowing
c. Learning about learning
d. “Off to see the Wizard”
___3. One well known Scientology front group is:
a. Alcoholics Anonymous
b. Gamblers Anonymous
c. Narconon
d. The American Medical Association
___4. The current president and leader of Scientology is:
a. Thomas Monson
b. David Miscavige
c. Jorge Mario Bergoglio
d. Bart Simpson
___5. L. Ron Hubbard was originally employed as a writer of:
a. Science textbooks
b. Science fiction
c. Philosophy
d. Marvel Comics
___6. Until 1993, the Church of Scientology was embroiled in a decades-long dispute with what U.S. Government agency?
a. IRS
b. INS
c. FBI
d. ASPCA
___7. The Church of Scientology’s sea-based cruise line is called:
a. The Sea Explorers
b. The Aquanauts
c. The Sea Org
d. The Seabiscuits
___8. L. Ron Hubbard’s most read book is titled:
a. The Book of Mormon
b. Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health
c. The Secret
d. Gone With the Wind
___9. In Scientology the “compartments” of all life wherein each aspect can be more easily inspected and understood are called the:
a. The Eight Dynamics
b. The Seven Sacraments
c. The Seven Habits
d. The Ten Commandments
___10. According to Scientology the part of the mind which works on a totally stimulus-response basis is called the:
a. The reactive mind
b. The analytical mind
c. The Engram
d. The Petula Oblongata
___11. The system of treatment used in Scientology is called:
a. Psychoanalysis
b. Psychiatry
c. Auditing
d. Manchurian Reeducation
___12. The mechanism used in Scientology auditing is called a:
a. E-Meter
b. Electrocardiograph
c. Polygraph
d. Flux Capacitor
___13. A Scientologist who no longer has his or her own reactive minds and suffers none of the ill effects of the reactive mind is:
a. Called an Engramaphonic
b. Called a Dianetical
c. Called Clear
d. Assimilated by the Borg
___14. Advanced Upper Level Scientology Auditing allows one to advance to various levels of:
a. Operating Thetan
b. Eternal Life
c. Purgatory
d. The Hollywood Squares
___15. According to L. Ron Hubbard, 75 million years ago the head of the Galactic Federation was named:
a. Xenu
b. Kolob
c. Zeus
d. Darth Vader
ANSWERS
1. The correct answer is A – The founder and first leader of the Church of Scientology was L. Ron Hubbard.
Lafayette Ronald Hubbard was born in Nebraska in 1911. He spent most of his childhood on his grandfather’s Montana ranch while his parents served overseas in the U.S. Navy. Hubbard later stated that visits with parents to Asia in the 1920s introduced him to Eastern philosophies and religions.
As a young man, Hubbard claimed to have explored the world. He also claimed that he received near fatal wounds in World War II. While recovering, he formulated his novel psychological theories that were revealed in his 1950 book Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health.
In 1954, Hubbard incorporated the Church of Scientology to promote his ideas using a religious facade. His books and church spread worldwide, but Hubbard became a recluse. He spent most of his last years aboard his yacht being waited on hand-and-foot. He died inauspiciously in 1986.
Researchers not associated with the Church of Scientology have documented inaccuracies in Hubbard’s account of his life. They allege he fabricated and exaggerated many of his personal claims. His theories directly conflict with basic Christian teachings. Only the Bible is the infallible basis for faith and practice (2 Tim. 3:16; 2 Pet. 1:20-21).
2. The correct answer is B – The term “Scientology” comes from Latin and Greek words that literally mean “Knowing about knowing.”
The word Scientology was coined by L. Ron Hubbard to describe his method of therapy. According to one of Scientology’s own text books, Scientology… “Comes from the Latin scio, which means ‘know’, and the Greek word logos, meaning ‘the word or outward form by which the inward thought is expressed and made known.’ Thus, Scientology means… ‘knowing about knowing.'” Source: What is Scientology? p. 816.
3. The correct answer is C – One well known Scientology front group is Narconon.
Narconon is a Scientology affiliated drug treatment organization that supposedly uses the methods of L. Ron Hubbard to rehabilitate drug and alcohol addicts. It began in 1966 when L. Ron Hubbard visited a state penitentiary in Arizona and used his Scientology system on the inmates. Later, Hubbard coined the name “Narconon” and expanded it into a full-blown rehab organization. The name is probably a play-on-words from “Al-anon” which is a support organization for family members of alcoholics. People attending Narconon were reported to have paid as much as $30,000 for the treatment. In recent years, several law suits have been filed against Narconon centers blaming them for the deaths of some of their clients.
4. The correct answer is B – The current president and leader of Scientology is David Miscavige.
In 1986, L. Ron Hubbard died in California (coroner’s report says he died of a stroke – actually it was probably a drug overdose). Immediately, David Miscavige (b. 1960), Hubbard’s then young protege, seized control of the organization. He claimed Hubbard had left behind his physical body to do higher research in other planes of existence. From 2005 to 2009, several top ranking Scientology leaders defected from the movement accusing Miscavige and others of mental and physical abuse of staff members.
(FYI: Jorge Mario Bergoglio is Pope Francis I and is not a Scientologist. However, Nancy Cartwright, the voice of Bart Simpson, is a Scientologist.)
5. The correct answer is B – L. Ron Hubbard was originally employed as a writer of Science Fiction.
In his early years, Hubbard developed a career as a science fiction writer. He wrote short stories for Sci-fi magazines and cranked out dime novels to make a living. In fact, his concept of “Dianetics,” which was the basis of Scientology, was first introduced in a 1950 Science Fiction anthology magazine called Astounding Science Fiction.
Some of Hubbard’s older novels have been re-released in recent years. One such, Battlefield Earth (1982), was made into a movie in 2000 starring Scientologist John Travolta. It was produced by the Scientology affiliated New Era Productions and was panned by critics. Some even called it the worst movie ever made. I would put it right down there with Plan 9 from Outer Space.
6. The correct answer is A – Until 1993 the Church of Scientology was embroiled in a decades-long dispute with the IRS (Internal Revenue Service).
Beginning in 1967, the IRS refused to grant the Church of Scientology tax-exempt status saying it was not a not-for-profit organization. The IRS cited the exorbitant costs people paid for Scientology training and literature and argued that L. Ron Hubbard was skimming millions of dollars for his own use. In 1991, Scientology lawyers began negotiations with high level IRS officials. Amazingly, they were able convince (or perhaps coerce) the agency chiefs to grant them tax-exempt status. In exchange the church would cease high-profile lawsuits against the agency and its officers. The exemption became official in 1993.
7. The correct answer is C – The Church of Scientology’s sea-based cruise line is called The Sea Org.
In 1967, L. Ron Hubbard bought several luxury yachts and formed what amounted to his own private navy called the Sea Organization (“Sea-Org” for short). He then began sailing the seas visiting various ports of call lecturing on Scientology and conducting auditing for paying passengers.
Scientology staff members worked aboard the ships for small wages, were required to wear special ranked uniforms, and were expected to follow Hubbard’s orders without question. The Sea-org still exists and its headquarters is located at the church’s “Land Flag Base” in Clearwater, Florida. (FYI: Seabiscuit was a famous racehorse.)
8. The correct answer is B – L. Ron Hubbard’s most read book is titled Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health.
First written in 1950, this was Hubbard’s primary introduction to his strange philosophy of mental health. In it he describes the essential problems of the human race and what he regards as the only real solution. That solution, of course, is his mind clearing therapy process called “Dianetics” which is defined as Hubbard’s unique method for removing engrams and their negative effects from the mind. “Engrams” are supposedly unconscious mental images recorded in a person’s reactive mind that has negative effects on his or her life.
9. The correct answer is A – In Scientology the “compartments” of all life wherein each aspect can be more easily inspected and understood are called the “Eight Dynamics.” L. Ron Hubbard claimed that he discovered these eight levels of “Dynamic” which he defines as an urge, drive, or impulse to survive. He listed them as (1) Self, (2) Creativity, (3) Group Survival (4) Mankind (5) Life Forms (6) Physical Universe (7) Spiritual Dynamic, and (8) Infinity.
10. The correct answer is A – According to Scientology, the part of the mind which works on a totally stimulus-response basis is called the “reactive mind.”
The “reactive mind,” according to Hubbard, is the part of the mind not under a person’s rational, conscious control or awareness. He claimed negative thought sensations, called “engrams,” are stored in one’s “reactive mind”. Engrams are unconsciously learned from one’s past lives, prenatal experience, and early childhood. These prevent individuals from realizing their innate divinity and experiencing a happy and fulfilled life using their rational analytical minds.
Humankind’s problem is not “engrams,” it is sin. Sin is an attitude of rebellion or indifference toward God and His will, resulting in separation from God, both in this life and forever (Mark 7:20-23; Rom. 3:23; 6:23; 1 John 3:4; 5:17).
(FYI: According to Barney Fife, “the Petula Oblongata isn’t in the leg… it’s in the brain.”)
11. The correct answer is C – The system of treatment used in Scientology is called “Auditing.”
According to Hubbard, “Auditing” (from the Latin word audire – to hear or listen) is Scientology’s personal counseling process using his Dianetic techniques and utilizing an E-meter for reading engrams. An Auditor is a trained counselor who conducts the auditing sessions. Engrams are removed from the mind only by this expensive process. Auditing sessions may cost as much as $1,000 per hour.
Jesus Christ is God’s solution to the sin problem. He was God Himself, in human form on earth (John 3:16; 14:6; 1 Tim. 2:5-6; 1 Pet. 3:18). He lived a sinless life, died as an atoning sacrifice for sin, and rose from the dead. People thus receive salvation as a gift, both as a present reality and future hope, by grace through faith in Jesus Christ (John 14:1; Rom. 10:9-10; Gal. 2:15-16; Eph. 2:8-9).
12. The correct answer is A – The mechanism used in Scientology auditing is called an “E-Meter.”
The E-meter (Electropsychometer) is a machine originally invented in the early 1950s by an associate of L. Ron Hubbard named Volney Mathison. Later Hubbard and Mathison split, but Hubbard continued to use the machine getting a patent on a remodeled version in 1966. The utilization of the “E-meter” supposedly indicates when a person has discovered an engram and helps the client expunge it from his or her unconscious reactive mind.
13. The correct answer is C – A Scientologist who no longer has his or her own reactive minds and suffers none of the ill effects of the reactive mind is called “Clear.”
Supposedly, the “Clear” has no engrams “which, when restimulated, throw out the correctness of his computations by entering hidden and false data.”… He or she supposedly have the following qualities: “(1) freed from active or potential psychosomatic illness or aberration; (2) self-determined; (3) vigorous and persistent; (4) unrepressed; (5) able to perceive, recall, imagine, create, and compute at a level high above the norm; (6) stable mentally; (7) free with his emotion; (8) able to enjoy life; (9) free from accidents; (10) healthier; able to reason swiftly; and (11) able to react quickly.” What is Scientology, p. 811
(Some former Scientologists say they felt like they had been assimilated by the Borg!)
14. The correct answer is A – Advanced Upper Level Scientology Auditing allows one to advance to various levels of “Operating Thetan” (OT).
According to L. Ron Hubbard, “thetan” is the immortal human soul or spiritual being (“from the Greek letter theta the traditional letter for thought or life”). It is the true, timeless identity of the individual. Through advanced (and expensive) auditing sessions he or she can climb up the latter to higher “OT” levels of personal control and power.
A person will experience many thetan reincarnations in many lives over thousands of years. Thus, auditing often must include clearing the client of engrams from past lives. Eventually, the thetan can liberate itself completely from MEST (matter, energy, space, and time) and attain total spiritual awareness and become one with infinity.
15. The correct answer is A – According to L. Ron Hubbard, 75 million years ago the head of the Galactic Federation was named Xenu (or Xemu).
In advanced OT levels of Scientology, students are taught a secret story about what Hubbard called “The Wall of Fire.” This was an incident that occurred 75 million years ago. Xenu, then the tyrannical head of the Galactic Federation (76 planets of 178 billion people [wogs]), sent large populations to Earth (Teegeeack) where they were destroyed by H-bombs. Thetans of those beings were captured and held on earth as “clusters” where they affect people’s lives today. Xenu was captured and is held in an electronic cage somewhere on Earth (“The Evil Place”).
So how did you do? Yes, Scientology is both fascinating and bizarre. However, it is a spiritually and psychologically dangerous system of belief. Unfortunately, thousands of people have put their trust in this weird cult and many had their lives and fortunes destroyed. As Christians, we must seek to reach out to Scientologists with the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and continue to expose its falsehoods.
© 2014 Tal Davis