Scientology is a religion that originated in the United States in the mid-20th century. It teaches that human beings are immortal spiritual beings, fundamentally good, but whose true nature and abilities have become obscured over the course of their existence. It defines itself as an applied religious philosophy.
Its religious path aims to help individuals regain their spiritual freedom, better understand their relationships with others, and progress toward a deeper knowledge of existence and infinity.
Scientology was founded by L. Ron Hubbard, who was born in the United States in 1911. Its development began with the publication in 1950 of Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health. Dianetics initially focused on the human mind and the effects that painful experiences can continue to have on a person. As he continued his research, L. Ron Hubbard came to consider that human beings are neither simply their bodies nor their minds. Above all, they are spiritual beings.
This new dimension gave rise to Scientology. The first Church of Scientology was established in Los Angeles in 1954.
An essential term for understanding Scientology is thetan. The thetan is the spiritual being itself. According to this religion, a person does not simply possess a soul: the person is a spiritual being who has a mind and inhabits a body. The thetan is immortal. It existed before the birth of its present body and will continue to exist after its death.
Scientology teaches that this spiritual being has lived through many existences. The suffering, losses, fears, and painful experiences accumulated throughout this long journey can diminish its awareness of itself. It eventually forgets much of its true nature and spiritual abilities.
Certain painful experiences are believed to leave traces called engrams. These are found in the reactive mind, a part of the mind that operates without the person’s full awareness. An engram can thus trigger a fear, emotion, or reaction that the individual does not understand. The path proposed by Scientology is intended to enable people to recognize these influences and free themselves from them.
The principal religious practice of Scientology is auditing. This is a form of individual spiritual guidance. A trained person, called an auditor, helps the believer examine specific moments in their life, their difficulties, and the obstacles that limit their inner freedom. The auditor does not judge or provide ready-made interpretations.
Instead, the auditor listens and asks questions according to precise procedures, so that the individual can arrive at a new understanding of what they have experienced. Auditing includes thousands of codified spiritual exercises designed to produce specific results for the person undergoing them.
During many sessions, the auditor uses an electropsychometer, or E-Meter. The person holds two metal electrodes connected to the device. It records small electrical variations and helps the auditor identify subjects that provoke a reaction. The underlying principle is that thought influences the body’s resistance to the flow of electricity. For Scientologists, the device makes it possible to guide the spiritual exploration more precisely.
The Church defines the E-Meter as a religious instrument intended to guide auditing.
The first major stage of this path is the state of Clear. A person who is Clear is considered to have been freed from their reactive mind. They can then continue their spiritual development through the levels of Operating Thetan, commonly designated by the letters OT. As they advance, they seek to regain a fuller awareness of their divine and immortal nature and of their relationship with life, the universe, and the spiritual world.
This entire progression is represented by the Bridge to Total Freedom. The word “bridge” expresses the idea of a passage between the present spiritual condition of human beings and a higher state of freedom. Each stage prepares the way for the next. Believers thus progress through auditing, but also through the study of the religion’s teachings.
This study constitutes Scientology’s second major practice. It is based on the books and lectures of L. Ron Hubbard. These texts and recordings form the religion’s Scriptures. They address the nature of the spiritual being, the mind, ethics, communication, family, personal responsibility, and humanity’s relationship with the different dimensions of existence. L. Ron Hubbard is respected as the founder of Scientology and the author of its Scriptures, but he is not regarded as a god or a prophet.
The Scientologist understanding of existence is organized around the eight dynamics. A dynamic is a sphere in which life seeks to survive and flourish. These eight spheres are: the individual; the family and future generations; groups; humanity; all living beings; the physical universe; the spiritual world; and finally infinity or the Supreme Being.
The eighth dynamic therefore corresponds to the divine dimension. Scientology affirms the existence of infinity and the Supreme Being, but it does not impose a precise definition of God. An understanding of this reality is to be reached progressively by each individual through their own spiritual journey.
The Creed of the Church of Scientology affirms, among other things, that human beings are fundamentally good, that all human beings possess equal and inalienable rights, and that the spirit can be saved. Personal responsibility occupies a central place: spiritual progress should lead to a more honest, more aware life that is more respectful of others.
Scientology has ministers and a collective religious life. Churches hold Sunday services that include readings, a sermon, a prayer, and a form of group auditing. They also organize ceremonies to welcome newborn children (baptisms), weddings, ordinations, and funerals. Chaplains provide spiritual assistance to members of the community.
Since the death of L. Ron Hubbard in 1986, David Miscavige has served as the ecclesiastical leader of Scientology. The religion is now present on every continent through churches, missions, and groups.
Its members also participate in activities devoted to disaster relief, drug prevention, education, and the defense of human rights, through organizations it sponsors, such as the Foundation for a Drug-Free World.
Scientology thus offers a religious path of knowledge and spiritual liberation. It teaches that human beings are not bodies temporarily possessing spirits, but immortal spiritual beings who can regain awareness of what they truly are, of their divine nature.
The sociologist of religion Frank K. Flinn described Scientology as a form of technological Buddhism.