Scientology in the United States
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Scientology was founded in the United States by science fiction author L. Ron Hubbard and is now practiced in many other countries.
History
Hubbard characterized Scientology as a religion, and in 1953 incorporated the first Church of Scientology in New Jersey.[1][2]
Adherents
In 2007 an official claimed 3.5 million members in the United States[3] but, according to a 2001 survey published by the City University of New York, 55,000 people in the United States would, if asked to identify their religion, have stated Scientology.[4]
Legal status
After being recognized as a tax-exempt religious organization in 1957, Scientology's tax-exempt status was lost in a 1967
The Church then embarked on an aggressive, but more legal course, the church's hundreds of affiliated entities filing a steady stream of lawsuits against the IRS in an attempt to have their tax-exempt status approved.[5] In addition, members of the Church started filing thousands of lawsuits against the IRS, claiming that they were entitled to tax deductions for auditing and training expenses.[5]
They were finally rewarded in October 1993, when the IRS formally announced that the Church of Scientology and all its related organizations (whether for-profit or not) had been granted tax exemption again.
Controversies
- On January 4, 1963, more than one hundred Founding Church of Scientology building located in Washington, D.C. The church was accused of making false claims that the devices effectively treated some 70 percent of all physical and mental illness. The FDA also charged that the devices did not bear adequate directions for treating the conditions for which they were recommended.[8][9]
- The FBI raid on the Church's headquarters revealed documentation that detailed Scientology actions against various critics of the organization. Among these documents was a plan to frame CIA; and a project called "Operation Freakout," aimed at ruining the life of author Paulette Cooper, author of an early book critical of the movement, The Scandal of Scientology.[10]
- The Church of Scientology long considered the Cult Awareness Network (CAN) as one of its most important enemies, and many Scientology publications during the 1980s and 1990s cast CAN (and its spokesperson at the time, Cynthia Kisser) in an unfriendly light, accusing the cult-watchdog organization of various criminal activities. After CAN was forced into bankruptcy and taken over by Scientologists in the late 1990s, Scientology proudly proclaimed this as one of its greatest victories.[11]
Washington Post lawsuit
In a 1995 lawsuit against The Washington Post newspaper et al.. The Religious Technology Center (RTC), the corporation that controls L. Ron Hubbard's copyrighted materials, sued to prevent a Post reporter from describing church teachings at the center of another lawsuit, claiming copyright infringement, trade secret misappropriation, and that the circulation of their "advanced technology" teachings would cause "devastating, cataclysmic spiritual harm" to those not prepared.
Operation Snow White
Operation Snow White was the Church of Scientology's name for a project during the 1970s to purge unfavorable records about Scientology and its founder L. Ron Hubbard. This project included a series of infiltrations and thefts from 136 government agencies, foreign embassies and consulates, and private organizations critical of Scientology, carried out by Church members, in more than 30 countries;[12] the single largest infiltration of the United States government in history[13] with up to 5,000 covert agents.[14] This was also the operation that exposed 'Operation Freakout', because this was the case that brought the government into investigation on the Church.[14]
Under this program,
Lisa McPherson and the "Introspection Rundown"
The most widely publicized death of one of the organization's members involved the 1995 death of 36-year-old
Noah Lottick
Noah Lottick was an American student of Russian studies who committed suicide on May 11, 1990, by jumping from a 10th-floor hotel window, clutching his only remaining money in his hands.[20] After his death, a controversy arose revolving around his parents' concern over his membership in the Church of Scientology.
References
- ISBN 0-8153-1140-0.
- ISBN 0-06-250365-0.
- ^ Kevin Collison, Kevin (2007-03-17). "Scientology center heads downtown", Kansas City Star
- ^ Kosmin, Barry A. et al. American Religious Identification Survey Archived 2007-03-20 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ a b c d e f g h Davis, Derek H. (2004). "The Church of Scientology: In Pursuit of Legal Recognition" (PDF). Zeitdiagnosen: Religionsfreiheit und Konformismus. Über Minderheiten und die Macht der Mehrheit. Münster, Germany: Lit Verlag. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 12, 2009. Retrieved May 10, 2008.
- ^ Staff Writer (February 8, 2000). "France urged to ban Scientology". BBC News. Retrieved May 10, 2008..
- ^ a b Frantz, Douglas (March 9, 1997). "Scientology's Puzzling Journey From Tax Rebel to Tax Exempt". The New York Times. Archived from the original on January 10, 2023. Retrieved November 12, 2007.
- ISBN 0-374-13324-7. Chapter 6.
- ISBN 1-55013-027-7.
- St Petersburg Times. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 9, 2007. "The 1980 Pulitzer Prize Winner in National Reporting". The Pulitzer Prizes.
- ^ "Scientology press release". issued upon winning the CAN court battle. July 3, 1997. Archived from the original on November 7, 2007.
- ^ Labaton, Stephen (October 14, 1993). "Scientologists Granted Tax Exemption by the U.S." The New York Times. Retrieved May 25, 2008.
- ^ Ortega, Tony (December 23, 1999). "Double Crossed". Phoenix New Times. Archived from the original on March 12, 2007. Retrieved June 12, 2006.
- ^ a b "Mystery of the Vanished Ruler". Time. January 31, 1983. Archived from the original on September 30, 2007. Retrieved August 10, 2007.
- ^ United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia against Mary Sue Hubbard, Henning Heldt, Jane Kember et al. Archived 2008-05-09 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Mary Sue Hubbard et al. Sentencing Memorandum - corrected Archived 2007-12-02 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Timeline of Scientology versus the IRS
- ^ wikisource:U.S. v. Hubbard 650 F.2d 293 (1981)
- St. Petersburg Times. Retrieved September 17, 2007.
- ^ Scientology: The Thriving Cult of Greed and Power, Time, May 6, 1991, see article: The Thriving Cult of Greed and Power
External links
