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A 'Troublemaker' Leaves Her Life In Scientology
In her new memoir, actor Leah Remini writes about growing up in the Church of Scientology, becoming one of its prized celebrities, and her family's eventual, wrenching decision to leave it behind.
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Scientology Could Get Its Own Senator
Meet Rep. David Jolly, the man who represents Scientology’s ‘Mecca’—and is now running to replace Marco Rubio in the U.S. Senate. The Church of Scientology may soon have a new ally in the U.S. Senate. Republican congressman and 2016 Senate candidate David Jolly’s district includes the town of Clearwater, Florida, which is home to the Flag Service Organization, the “spiritual headquarters of Scientologists planetwide” and the organization’s “Mecca.”
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Leah Remini to Write Scientology Memoir
Leah Remini, the actress who famously quit Scientology, is writing a memoir about her experiences in and out of the church, Random House imprint Ballantine Books announced Thursday. Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology will publish on Nov. 3. Remini has been quietly writing the book for some time, given the short window between the announcement of the book and publication. Typically publishers announce a book a year out from publication.
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How the Church of Scientology fought the Internet—and why it lost
The Church of Scientology would like you to know that, as of this writing, its official Facebook page has 329,903 likes. We’ll return to that number later, but it might be a heartening one for the church, which has recently grappled with less-friendly numbers, such as the 5.5 million people who watched Alex Gibney’s scathing documentary Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief, which premiered on HBO in March.
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What's the difference between a religion and a cult?
Hopes&Fears answers questions with the help of people who know what they're talking about. Today, we speak to theologians and psychologists about worship, fanaticism and blurred lines.
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Going Clear: Scientology And The Prison Of Belief (2015)
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Scientology Private Schools & Sea Org Recruitment (2015)
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My Month of Hell in a Gay CrossFit Cult
Thirty days in a gay CrossFit cult. By Chadwick Moore.
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What Really Happens In The Church of Scientology
"In Scientology, “going clear” means reaching a state of happiness and freedom. To get there, you've got to go through “audits.” Years of them. AJ+'s Francesca Fiorentini visited the Church of Scientology in San Francisco for her very first dip into the religion, or, as some would call it, cult.”
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Why I Left Scientology
I was a Scientologist for eight years. Although I identified as one I didn’t really understand what actually being a Scientologist fully entailed until after a couple of years of being heavily indoctrinated. The reality of Scientology is deceptively hidden and cleverly disguised. When I look at Scientology today, I have to forgive myself for not seeing through the manipulation sooner. I’ve spent the last 13 years keeping Scientology out of my life.
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Ex-Jehovah's Witness schoolgirl exposes organisation as a religion that 'destroys lives'
A schoolgirl who left the Jehovah’s Witnesses after learning of its alleged failure to protect vulnerable women has blasted the organisation in a powerful speech to her classmates. Holding back tears, she recalled her personal experiences as a member of the church and how she was taught everyone outside the religion, including her father, would be sent to Armageddon. She also highlighted women’s lowly position in the hierarchy of the organisation and how they are viewed as inferior to men.
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Scientologists are in Nepal trying to 'heal' trauma victims
cientologists profess a range of supernatural powers. They claim the ability to turn drunk people sober in minutes. A Scientologist can heal the traumatized, so they say, simply by reconnecting a victim’s body with a “thetan,” or immortal spirit. None of this is backed by medical science. But that hasn’t stopped Scientologists from flying to Nepal — alongside many other religious and spiritual groups — to practice dubious healing techniques on grieving earthquake survivors.
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Read Why Shelly Miscavige, Once Scientology’s Queen, Was Dethroned by Her Husband David
Many Scientologists regarded David Miscavige’s wife to be a “shock absorber” for her husband’s temper. Until late 2006. After the wife of Scientology leader David Miscavige disappeared from public view, in 2007, those who asked questions were stonewalled, or worse. Now interviews with former insiders provide a grim picture of Shelly Miscavige’s youth, marriage, and fall from grace—and an assessment of her fate.
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John Travolta happy with Scientology, won't see 'Going Clear'
John Travolta said Monday he hasn't viewed the HBO documentary Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief, currently shining an accusatory light on his church.
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Scientology calls HBO's documentary 'false propaganda' and slams former member featured in film
Director Alex Gibney's explosive new documentary on Scientology, which opened theatrically in limited release on Friday and airs on HBO March 29, alleges many things the church is not happy about. One of the allegations in "Going Clear" comes from former member, Mike Rinder, who, in an on-camera interview along with other former church members, discusses an area at one of the Scientology compounds supposedly called "The Hole," where disobedient members are allegedly sent as punishment.
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How Scientology controls John Travolta and Tom Cruise, according to ‘Going Clear’
HBO hired 160 lawyers when the network decided to air “Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief,” the two-hour documentary based on Lawrence Wright’s book. This makes sense when you watch the film, directed by Alex Gibney, which aired Sunday night. Ex-Church of Scientology members and officials reveal secrets of the organization, and tell horror stories of psychological and physical abuse during their time in the controversial religion — and after they escaped.
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A Guide to Scientology's Most Ostentatious Real Estate
Empire-building has been part of many a religious group's strategy throughout history. But no one does it better than Scientology. The documentary Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief, which debuts on HBO tonight, offers the first in-depth survey of Scientology's practices, including its ongoing quest to acquire high-profile real estate.
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How one woman climbed her way out of Scientology’s elite Sea Org
The release Sunday of HBO’s “Going Clear” documentary will bring attention to members and past members of Scientology and to questions about the movement’s allure and controversies. Among those speaking out is Tracy Ekstrand, who joined the Church of Scientology in 1967 when she was 19. Fourteen years later, after Ekstrand said her daughter’s finger was severed in the door of a Scientology nursery, she made her way out of the the Sea Organization...
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What You Need To Know Before Watching The New Scientology Movie
HBO's eagerly-anticipated, explosive Scientology documentary "Going Clear" finally premieres on the cable channel this Sunday. The film, written and directed by Alex Gibney ("The Armstrong Lie," "Taxi to the Dark Side"), is based on Lawrence Wright's controversial book of the same name. The documentary debuted at Sundance -- it does not disappoint -- but the more you know about Scientology before your viewing, the better you'll understand the mystery and mania that...
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How Scientology Is Suffering in the Internet Age
Since its founding in the 1950s, L. Ron Hubbard’s organization has put a premium on controlling the flow of information—an increasingly impossible enterprise in the Internet age.
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