Remembering that Scientology comes from a mix of science fiction and ghost stories - 2018-12-20

Remembering that Scientology comes from a mix of science fiction and ghost stories December 20, 2018, Tony Ortega, Underground Bunker

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An unexpectedly mirthful moment during Tuesday night's Scientology and the Aftermath episode about Shelly Miscavige was Tom DeVocht's explanation that remaining wretches like Norman Starkey put up with imprisonment and abuse from Scientology leader David Miscavige because they are waiting for L. Ron Hubbard to return and put things right.

Hubbard died in 1986, and church members were told at the time that he had decided to leave his body to pursue his studies elsewhere. But it made for awfully good television to see Leah Remini react to the news that some high-level Scientologists are waiting for Hubbard to return to Earth.

It was a great moment, but we were also struck by the big reaction from the audience (judging by what we saw online). Was this really a surprise? Have people forgotten how much Scientology comes from a tradition of spiritualism gussied up as midcentury science, of ghost stories passed off as advances in "technology"?

Wikipedia cite:

{{cite news | author = Tony Ortega | title = Remembering that Scientology comes from a mix of science fiction and ghost stories | url = https://tonyortega.org/2018/12/20/remembering-that-scientology-comes-from-a-mix-of-science-fiction-and-ghost-stories/ | work = Underground Bunker | date = December 20, 2018 | accessdate = December 20, 2018 }}