Blog: Deconstructing Scientology: Chapter 18 - 2017-01-19

Deconstructing Scientology: Chapter 18 January 19, 2017, Chris Shelton, Critical Thinker at Large

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Hey everyone, we are really coming down the home stretch on this series with only three more chapters to cover after this one. This chapter-by-chapter breakdown of the book Scientology, edited by James R. Lewis, has been highly educational in terms of how far off the beam some academics can go in writing apologetics pieces in favor of the Church of Scientology. We've covered a lot of ground in this series actually, from Scientology beliefs and mythology to its supposed contributions to the community, its outreach programs around the world, as well as some of the legal and moral controversies it has been involved in. The last few chapters have covered Scientology's experience in specific non-US countries and this week we go to the Land Down Under, Australia.

Adam Possamai is Professor of Sociology and the Director of Research and Higher Degree Research in the School of Social Sciences and Psychology at Western Sydney University. He is also a novelist and the past President of the International Sociological Association's Committee 22 on the Sociology of Religion. He is currently working on a monograph on religion and neo-liberalism.

Alphia Possamai-Inesedy is an Associate Professor in sociology at the Western Sydney University. She is currently involved in ongoing research that focuses on the democratization of science, post-secularity, risk society as well as religion and spirituality.