Blog: Critical Q&A 82 - 2016-11-06
Critical Q&A #82 November 6, 2016,
The weekly show where I answer viewer questions left in the comments sections of my Q&A videos or sent to me by email at AskChrisShelton@gmail.com. This week the questions I answer are:
(1) Are body thetans (BTs) mentioned anywhere outside the upper OT levels in Scientology? In other words, would a non-OT Scientologist (including Sea Org since they don't seem to be privy to any secret upper level doctrine unless they have worked their way up the Bridge the same as public) be aware of BTs? I assume the answer to both questions is no, and thus you yourself were not aware of the concept of BTs until after leaving the church and reading the OT materials online? What did you think when you read about BTs? To me that's almost as big of a revelation as the Xenu story to learn that there are supposedly other thetans clustered on various areas of the body causing all sorts of impairment. I would liken it to the discovery of bacteria and viruses and how revolutionary it was to see these previously unseen entities which have the ability to profoundly affect our health.
(2) Are you, or were you ever a smoker? If you were, how did you quit? In their podcast on Scientology, Ross and Carrie mentioned the large number of Scientologists that were smoking outside the building, and I've seen videos of Sea Org members and/or staff taking a smoke break. I know Hubbard smoked like a fiend (well, he was one) and dismissed it with the comment "nobody's perfect." Doesn't it seem a little "disconnected" that Scientology is so anti-drug but permits its members to smoke, unlike, say, the Mormons or Jehovah's Witnesses, which don't allow smoking? I welcome your comments on this.