The real reason people leave Scientology: ARC Breaks

In February 2011 and incredible testimonial account from Bill Franks, the former international executive director (ED Int) of the Church of Scientology, attesting to one of the biggest secrets behind the brainwashing aspects of Scientology Technology.

Who is Bill Franks?

Bill Franks joined Scientology in 1968 studying the Saint Hill Special Briefing Course at Saint Hill UK, directly under L. Ron Hubbard. He joined staff and went up the Org Board. In December 1979, he was appointed by Hubbard to be "Senior Management Executive International." Franks eventually ended up as ED Int, likewise appointed personally by LRH in December 1980. He also served as the Commanding Officer of AOLA and was the Chairman of the Board of Directors for Church of Scientology International.

Training-wise, Franks was a Class IX auditor, OT VII and OEC FEBC graduate. He reached the highest level of administrative training, doing the FEBC directly under LRH on the Flag ship. In December 1981, Bill Franks was thrown out of his office in Clearwater and fired from his position executive director. In August 1982, he was declared a suppressive person by the Watchdog Committee.

Bill Franks' story about brainwashing

Firstly, I swear that this is the absolute and complete truth even though it occurred 37 years ago.

Secondly, a little about me which might put things into perspective as to why I saw what I am about to say as very significant and in a way horrific. I was in the SO for a little under 14 years. I attained the "rank' of Lt. Commander through promotions only by Hubbard. I was OEC and FEBC (trained by Hubbard), HSDC, Class IX when I left in December 27 1981, as well as DSEC, NOTs auditor, plus assorted other stuff. I was OT V plus NOTs, plus sec checked up the wazoo over the years. I also audited between 3-4000 hours conservatively speaking-probably much more, a lot of this was under Hub as the C/S. I spent about 3 1/2 years working with Hubbard pretty directly on the ship at various posts. I got to know him as well as anybody did.  

Thirdly and to the point of all this preamble, on one night in 1974 I found myself in David mayo's office in the tween decks of the Apollo. 

It was very late or early in the morning. We were, I believe in the port of Safi, Morocco. A student of mine, I was currently D of T and Mayo was Flag Senior C/S, had blown. Hubbard was extremely angry with us due to this blown student of mine on the FEBC program. In an attempt to show Hubbard what we had done to handle this guy we collected up all the sec checking that he had received over the last 2 months, it had been a lot poor guy, and presented it to him along with an outline of this student's progress on the courses he had taken. We had also wanted to show him how we had been careful that he hadn't gone by misunderstoods, etc.

We waited and waited and about 0300 hrs a messenger came down with a Despatch written by LRH. My memory does not recall any folders being returned. The despatch was entitled Very Confidential underlined. "He went onto say that if you or Franks ever reveal any of this information that I am about to reveal, the consequences will be severe for SCN."  

He then wrote "a person does not blow due Overts or Witholds. He blows only due to ARC BKs.  

"However, if any of this information ever became public, I would lose all control of the orgs and eventually Scientology as a whole." Signed, LRH.

Both Mayo and me looked at one another completely incredulously. I cannot speak for Dave but I was completely flabbergasted as I realized at that point of digestion that he is talking about something that 75-80% of the tech is premised upon. Furthermore, the OEC/FEBC was currently anchored by the latest" development" at the time -being the L's, L-10, 11 & 12. Which for those who don't know is about OW's. I don't believe Mayo or I talked about this again until we were out where I saw him at his auditing facility in Montecito, California in 1983. I believed we were a bit shell shocked about this. 

As for me, I began to see more and more that Scientology was merely a big prison camp. I stayed in for another 7 plus years but I was always mindful of this and always had in mind changing this "tech." I believe it is the key to what we have all seen and experienced as brainwashing.

That is all. I hope someone who wants to use this will do so as there is no doubt that there is good in the tech it is just a matter of where is it. 

How do you sort out the good and the bad and at the same time keep the good without throwing out the baby with the bath water. 

I regret that I could not fix this during my tenure.

Best, wogman Bill Franks

Verification

The discussion board post excerpted above originally occurred on Facebook (see image to the right) in response to a message Robin Scott posted to Bill Franks timeline. It was passed on to the ESMB community by "gwells," a friend of Bill's who was helping him navigate the internet.

Despite initial disbelief, Karen de la Carriere initially confirmed it was indeed posted by Bill Franks. Once Bill navigated his way through the registration ESMB process, he personally confirmed it himself.

Additionally, Glenn Samuels independently confirmed this account with through a source close to David Mayo who is unable to speak out directly due to a gag order he was forced to sign during a legal settlement with the Church of Scientology.

Similar to Bill, Glenn lived and worked aboard the Flagship Apollo where he was also personally trained as a counselor by Hubbard. Glenn left Scientology in 1982 after seeing Scientology’s corruption and greed firsthand. His response to Bill's remarks was that "it makes sense; did you leave because you committed some huge crime? Probably not. You left because of abuse, human rights violations, or some other form of harassment."

Additional insights

The Edge with Tom Smith, June 2010 - a previously recorded interview with Bill Franks was re-published on YouTube in January 2014. The topics discussed include Fair Game, Paulette Cooper, the framing of Mary Sue, orders issued against elected officials of a major Western government, Miscavige's psychopathy, Hubbard's psychopathy, etc. Bill also explains the story of the Hubbard despatch that admitted people blow due to ARC Breaks (upsets) rather than transgressions.

This interview was most likely Franks' original telling of his first hand account regarding Hubbard's emphasis on O/W being the source of people leaving the Church Scientology being a blatant deception instituted to control people.

Furthermore, this deception should raise questions regarding the real purpose of Scientology Ethics, PTS/SP tech and Sec Checks. If Hubbard was right when he stated that human beings are basically good, then what is it about Scientology that causes a need for all these coercive tactics, corrections and punishments?


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Disconnecting from Scientology

Adapted from posts by PandaTermint and Freeminds,
in the Leaving VS Blowing discussion thread on ESMB

Do you find the Church of Scientology to be a suppressive group? Have you ever tried to handle any of the suppressive aspects or actions you've observed in the Church? Do you sometimes wonder about how the organization currently operates and asked yourself – Is This a Religion?

If you answer yes to any of the above questions, then you are probably beginning to realize that there is no way to speak out within the Church regarding the outpoints so readily apparent nowadays.

Despite these issues, over 1500 former members have spoken out about the abuses that run rampant within the Scientology organization. An effort has also been completed to document the 31 Factors for Scientologists to Consider when they begin to face their doubts regarding their current involvement with the Church.

"Sometimes others seek to crush one down, to make nothing out of one's hopes and dreams, one's future and oneself. ... The real handling of such a situation and such people, the real way to defeat them is to flourish and prosper." - L. Ron Hubbard

If you find yourself unable to flourish and prosper within the Church of Scientology, or can no longer tolerate the off-policy and abusive practices being adhered too, then the following post from Freeminds on ESMB should provide some useful food-for-thought  when deciding if you want to leave.

***

Imagine yourself on a skydive. You're part of a large group, with a common purpose... which is to 'build' a complex formation, for the delight of a crowd on the ground. You all piled out of a couple of 'planes at 14,000 feet, and tried to take up the right grips with your buddies, just like you practiced on the ground.

Have you got that? You're a skydiver. It's the most exciting thing you've ever done. It's an expensive, elite world with its own language, and special equipment. It sets you apart from ordinary mortals. It felt good to be a 'skygod', right from your first static-line jump and on up through the qualification system. People who haven't done it just can't understand. You call them whuffos, which is skydiver-speak for 'wog'.

Now you're doing the thing you love the most.... but the formation isn't complete if even one person is out of position. You have to make the formation and hold it for three seconds, for it to count. During those three seconds, you'll fall six hundred feet.

Some people exited their 'plane a fraction of a second behind, and the difference in their acceleration has left them struggling to catch up. Some people are in place, but the buddy they were expecting to grip is missing, or has gone low. The core of the formation has been built, but there are still a dozen or more people drifting in to make their slot. Meanwhile, you're burning through a thousand feet in five seconds. Where the fields below were just a random mosaic, you can now make out roads, and buildings. Now the scenery is Getting Big. Soon, you'll be able to see cows.

The formation is not complete. Everyone is still trying to Make It Go Right. The people at the core have done everything they can. They're in place. They keep the faith. They hold their course. One hundred and twenty miles an hour, straight down towards destruction. Now the needle on your altimeter is drifting into the amber section. After that, there's only red.

You don't like this. It's not right. Your instinct tells you that it's not safe! Everybody around you is sticking with it, though. You don't want to be the bad guy. The one who wrecked the formation: the person who bailed just when it was about to be a success. Perhaps you don't have the full picture: perhaps that person way above you is just a video guy, and even now the formation is being completed? Perhaps your altimeter wasn't set right, and you're just being nervous?

You try to shout to your neighbour, but the wind whips the words away. Everybody else is so focused on the goal that they can't see the danger -- or perhaps they're so fearful of being the first to make a fuss that they don't dare to break formation.

Your 'dytter' (digital audible altimeter) starts beeping, horribly loud in your right ear. After the beeps it will 'flatline' to let you know that you really have run out of time. There's an umpteen billion billion tonne ball of rock coming right towards you (relatively speaking) and it can crush you like a bug on a windscreen.

Now, what do you do?

What is the ethical thing to do?

In truth, it's time to save your own life. Surviving group stupidity is not disloyalty. Show the rest of the group some nylon, and hope that they get the idea. Deploy your parachute. Live. There will be other formations to build, later.

Scientology in a skydive. They really aren't all that dissimilar!
Freeminds on ESMB


Additional Resources (for when your ready to pull the rip cord):

• Seven Questions Every Scientologist Has a Right to Ask 
• Abuse? In my Church? by Jeff Hawkins
• A Look at Escaping Scientology by Tory Magoo 
• Releasing The Bonds: Empowering People to Think for Themselves by Steven Hassan
• Why Religions Fail While Heretics Succeed by Bill Allen
• Scientology: Losing the Religion by Phineas Fogg

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What to do if you decide to leave Scientology

by gomorrhan, in Leaving the Church subforum on ESMB

Leaving Darkness by Lucho Mosqueira, on Flickr

Hello. This subject is one near and dear to me, because I left abruptly, without any preparation, and made a mess of all my family connections, work connections. Luckily I had some place to go.

1) DISCUSS IT WITH YOUR SPOUSE, if you have one. You may be surprised that they would understand. You have nothing to fear except the inevitable non-enturbulation order, and eventual declare, and perhaps a slew of knowledge reports. Don't worry about these, they are inevitably going to occur anyway, or it's best to operate as though you understood this was likely. They will be used against you. If you fail to communicate with your spouse, your family, and your friends, you may regret it later, when you cannot communicate with them any more because they close their doors to you.

The only time I wouldn't do this is if you are concerned for your safety or autonomy, in which case get out at your earliest convenience and alert your family outside, or if you don't have any, I think many people (including me) would be willing to put you up in an emergency while you sorted things out. DO NOT FEAR LOSING YOUR FAMILY: it has already happened, if they won't come with you. Instead, realize that you may be able to live freely and happily with some or all of your family if you communicate with them. If you don't, realize they will be encouraged to close ranks against you.

2) If you work with scientologists, realize that your job will be likely threatened or lost if you leave. Prepare for this. Spiff up your resume. Start shopping it around about a month before you go. Don't worry about what sort of job you'll get, too much. Take something solid that allows you to pay your bills and live independently of any supports in the Church. Consider writing to someone on this forum and asking for their help finding a good job. This is a huge network, and someone here probably knows someone near you that is hiring. It's worth a shot, and people who post here will understand the extremity or difficulties you face.

3) Realize that you are not the only person ever to have trod the path out of the Church. If you have questions, realize that probably 90% of the people who have ever been involved with Scientology are no longer involved with the Church. You are not alone. I, for one, understand what you are going through. Some here understand even better. I was only on staff two years, very young. Some here have left after 35 years or more involved, with their whole lives revolving around the Church. Don't be shy about asking people what their successful actions were, and what troubles they faced.

4) If you consider that the Tech is worth keeping, realize that you don't have to stay in the Church to have access to it. I'm not promoting the FreeZone, here, but I do think it's important for people concerned about "loss of Bridge" issues that these issues have been addressed outside the Church. If you don't give a hoot about the Tech, and you just want to be free, don't sweat that last. The FreeZone was incredibly helpful to me when I left the Church. I learned more about scientology through these people than I ever knew in the Church, because the secrets are bared, and the prices people charge are subject to market pressures, unlike in the fiat monopoly in the Church. I then decided I wasn't a scientologist, but not everyone makes that decision, and I respect people who decide that they remain scientologists, although they have left the Church.

5) DO NOT PAY ANY FREELOADER DEBT. This flows power to an organization undeserving of it. You will need your money in your new life. F/L debts don't hold up in court. The debt is not real. You don't owe the Church anything if you've been working for them. Very likely, they actually didn't deliver the services or training you wanted or needed, anyway, and perhaps inflated the costs of offering you the service. I paid my freeloader debt. I was a damned fool to do so.

6) KEEP ANY CORRESPONDENCE FROM THE CHURCH. Sometimes they slip up and say stupid things. Sometimes you are facing a divorce, as I was, and the documents that IJC sent me would have been very helpful in establishing a mental cruelty charge and increasing my access to my children, perhaps obtaining full custody instead of losing it. Declares are hard to come by, these days, and the actual physical order that you are declared is quite a collectors item. If you never need that correspondence, great, no harm done. If you do, but have thrown away something because it upset you or you didn't think you'd ever take action on it, you'll kick yourself.

7) If you feel the Church defrauded you or abused you, consider suing them. While you may feel that Scientology always wins every case, take it from me, and others here, that this is not only not true, its completely false. They lose cases quite frequently, although many times settlements are obtained instead of court victories. If they told you you'd be able to levitate an ashtray, and you did the drills and paid your fees, and you can't levitate an ashtray, I'd say they both lied to you and took your money from you. Generalize that to any claims of Dianetics or Scientology services that were used to sell you on exorbitantly priced services that almost never deliver what was promised. You have a right to hold them accountable for this.

This last I reserve for the feisty. It requires a willingness to fight, a little bit of resourcefulness getting lawyered up, but it is a tremendous moral victory if you do win, and lays stronger and stronger precedents with each person to do so. However, realize that the Church is structured to be a bit of a tar baby. They exist to fight with enemies real or imagined. The reason I encourage people to fight them, now (if they want to), although I've advocated against it in the past, is that critical mass has been achieved. The Church is overwhelmed fighting on more fronts than they can manage, and losing on all of them. Now is a time when you can pile on without much concern about their nasty tactics, as the people willing to employ them are getting caught on camera and put on youtube now, and what was once cloak and dagger is now just another chance to put the abuse on record.

I hope some of the above will be helpful to someone considering leaving. I stand by my words,
 gomorrhan


Additional Resources:

• Facing Your Doubts About The Church of Scientology
• Confronting Thought Reform & Coercive Persuasion
  
• “I don’t know why I couldn’t see it” by Jeff Hawkins
• Recovering from Scientology by Just Bill
• Captive hearts, captive minds : freedom and recovery from cults and abusive relationships by Tobias, Lalich & Langone
• Church of Scientology Repayments – Get your unused account balances returned by David St Lawrence

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13 ways Scientology just got creepier [Annotated]

Asked how high he got in Scientology’s levels
of study, Haggis said, “All the way to the top.”
Photograph by Mary Ellen Mark.

Lawrence Wright's penultimate essay on Paul Haggis in The New Yorker magazine entitled THE APOSTATE has unleashed yet another media feeding frenzy regarding the alleged human rights abuses the Church of Scientology inflicts upon it's Sea Org members.

However this time the media wave comes with with with and additional one-two punch that was long overdue: A celebrity bares his soul about what he experienced and the FBI have been investigating the claims of abuse.

Amongst the ensuing fallout a virtual tsunami of media articles and related coverage is currently flooding the internet, one of the best sidebar tidbits this blogger came across was the article featured on the backlink of this post from the Manage Your Life blog on Yahoo!Shine.

This gem struck me as not only well worth re-posting on this micro-blog for educational purposes, but also worthy of expanding each item listed with additional source materials that support the information highlighted The New Yorker expose.

13 ways Scientology just got creepier
[The Annotated Edition]

Originally by Piper Weiss, Yahoo!Shine Staff with additional hyperlinks, images and dox inserted after each item, and supplemental commentary by this blogger noted in accented text. Click on thumbnail images for additional reference on any of the visual annotations.

"Journalist Lawrence Wright interviews current and former members of faith, including Academy Award winning writer Paul Haggis, who denounced his three-decade affiliation with Scientology publicly. The 28-page investigation into the history and horror stories of Scientology is chock full of weird. Here are the highlights:"

1.   The FBI probe: The article reveals that the church is under investigation from the FBI for human trafficking. Former members have made claims of unpaid, forced labor and physical abuse from current head of the organization, David Miscavige.

See also:

• New Yorker Magazine Article Reveals FBI Probe of Scientology
• The Church Of Scientology, Fact-Checked
• FBI investigating Scientology, defectors say

2.   The founder's fake past: The church fabricated documents about founder L. Ron Hubbard's war heroism, claims The New Yorker.

The DocumentCloud from The New Yorker supports Wright's conclusions. Additionally, see the following classic body of work by Chris Owen, a British historian who studied Scientology extensively. (click thumbnail for further reading)
 

3.   The celebrities: A lot of them were siphoned by a Scientologist acting teacher at The Beverly Hills Playhouse. That's how Anne Archer joined the fold. Now her son, Tommy Davis, heads up the church's Celebrity Centre. In other news, bossman Miscavige was Tom Cruise's best man when he wed Katie Holmes.

Note the Tom & Katie photo from the original article below, and cross reference this bike to the motorcycle shown on the left in the photo added for clarifying item #12.

4.   The six-figure membership: Members can spend upwards of $100,000 on courses and training in the church.

The vast number of levels on the Scientology Grade Chart is seemingly endless, and the farther up you the more outrageous the costs become. The fee schedules in the following collection of dox illustrates how easy it is for membership in this cult to lead to financial ruin.

5.   The fenced-off boot-camp: If you don't have that money you can work for your faith as a Sea Org member at Gold Base, a compound in central California. Miscavige spends a lot of his time there and most high-level members make there way to the base at some point for brief, intensive stays.

The razor fence surrounding the cult compound from: Scientology Headquarters (Gold Base/Int Base).

6.   The fenced-off prison: There's also a re-education camp near Gold Base. Here's the description: "Sea Org members who have 'failed to fulfill their ecclesiastical responsibilities' may be sent to one of the church’s several Rehabilitation Project Force locations. Defectors describe them as punitive re-education camps. In California, there is one in Los Angeles; until 2005, there was one near the Gold Base, at a place called Happy Valley. Bruce Hines, the defector turned research physicist, says that he was confined to R.P.F. for six years, first in L.A., then in Happy Valley. He recalls that the properties were heavily guarded and that anyone who tried to flee would be tracked down and subjected to further punishment."

The following 1999 German documentary about Scientology's Rehabilitation Project Force ( RPF) was the first to expose the world at large to the cult's POW style abuses.



7.   The escape: Two former members claim to have escaped in the middle of the night. One drove a car through a fence.

Mark Headley's great escape was even more hair raising, check out his book Blown For Good for an unforgettable tale on escaping Gold Base.
 

8.   The punishment: According to a former Gold Base security chief, the church is not averse to using mental and physical tactics to bring escaped members back in the fold.

Amy Scobee's horror stories in her book Scientology Abuse At The Top goes into even more detail on the violence surround the cult's nefarious leader David Miscavige.

9.   The most bizarre game of musical chairs ever: A violent version of the kid's game set to Bohemian Rhapsody, mandated by Miscavaige, took place one night at Gold Base. It lasted all night, and by the ned people were punching each other. As full-time residents and workers at the Base, they were playing for their livelihood. Everyone who lost would be shipped off the Base immediately, deprived of their shelter and $50 a week income.

Marc Headley was the first to disclose the infamous Musical Chairs Incident, and his book listed above goes into further details. Since we already featured that reference, it seems apropos to note the gut wrenching story of torture, abuse and humiliation endure by Jeff Hawkins during his days at Gold Base as featured in the Counterfeit Dreams book.

10.   The most bizarre celebrity anecdote ever: Actor Josh Brolin claims to have witnessed John Travolta using his Scientology practice to heal the wounded leg of Marlon Brando at a Hollywood party. “I watched this process going on—it was very physical,” Brolin recalls. “I was thinking, This is really f------- bizarre! Then, after ten minutes, Brando opens his eyes and says, ‘That really helped. I actually feel different!’ ” (Travolta, through a lawyer, called this account “pure fabrication.”)

11.   The horror stories of Scientology kids: For kids who grow up in the church, there’s a thing called a ‘freeloader’ tab. If you want to leave the church’s fold, you’re charged with a six figure debt for unpaid coursework, according to ecclesiastical policy. Former underage members, including the niece of Miscavige who joined at 12, have formed an online support group called exscientologykids.com. They talk about how hard it is to leave the fold because they never received a formal education, and instead were put to work as manual laborers.

The article states: "In 2009, two former Sea Org members, Claire and Marc Headley, filed lawsuits against the church. They had both joined as children. Claire became a member of the Sea Org at the age of sixteen, and was assigned to the Gold Base. She says she wasn’t allowed to tell anyone where she was going, not even her mother, who was made to sign over guardianship."

The appalling treatment that Children in the Sea Org receive is unconscionable. The only words that can do this subject the justice it deserves, is the voices raised in unison from the kids who lived it.

12.   The horror stories of dealing with Tom Cruise: A former member claims he was ordered to pimp Tom Cruise's motorcycles, pro-bono, of course. Haggis claims Cruise reported him to the church when he joked about Scientology to Stephen Spielberg on the set of War of the Worlds. Another former member claims a botched project for Cruise resulted in a member being sent to the work camp for a stint.

From John Brousseau settles it, the personal account of the former Sea Org member who did the customization work to trick out Tom Cruise's favorite toys for $50 a week. Click the thumbnail to view the full-size image and notice the same motorcycle shown above with Tom & Katie is on the left:

Tom Cruise’s motorcycles flanking Miscavige’s Harley at his $70 million palace. [Source] This is Building 50 built for RTC and David Miscavige in Hemet, California
at Gold Base. [Source]
See also:

• Inside Scientology's Labor Camp That Benefits Tom Cruise: The Photos
• Tom Cruise’s Favorite Toys Were Built For Free by Scientology Slaves

13.   The horror story of Scientology chief's wife: David Miscavage’s wife, Shelly, hired several people for jobs at Gold Base, without her husband's permission. Shortly thereafter she disappeared. When the New Yorker asked Scientology spokesperson Tommy Davis of her whereabouts he said, “I definitely know where she is.” He didn't elaborate.

Nobody knows where Shelly is, but iy is widely hell DM is inseparable from his communicator Laurisse (Lou) Stuckenbrock as shown in the 2nd photo below from July 2008 when DM & Lou were seemingly on a double date with Tom & Katie at the Laguna Seca Moto GP in Monterey, California. The original photos by celebuzz.com recently disappeared but highlights captured here for posterity.

See also: Tom Cruise Katie Holmes Laguna Seca Moto GP & FreeKati.yuku.com

YES- Long post is long, but it needed to be said because the rabbit hole runs deep in Scientology. And considering the long history of insanity surrounding the Sea Org's Billion Year Contract, it needs to be said again and again. Until it stops.

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Steve Hassan & Tory Christman: Getting In & Getting Out of a Cult

The notable cult expert and author Steve Hassan, who is also the founder of the Freedom of Mind Center, recently gave a talk in Los Angeles in conjunction with an event hosted by the Sinai Temple.

Afterwards, he had the opportunity to tape the following 60 minute discussion with Ex-Scientologist Tory Christman on November 20th, 2010.

From the video description on the Freedomofmind Vimeo Channel:

I got the chance to sit down with my friend Tory Christman, a former 30 year Scientologist (OT7 and did it twice!), who was directed to do some of the very first "dirty tricks" on the internet, and who left the group and has been one of the most courageous, outspoken critics. Tory has a simply amazing experience to tell. She went all the way "up the bridge" to discover it was not what she ever wanted to be involved in. She knew John Travolta and other celebrities in the group.

 For additional reference on Steve's comments at 12:50 mark see:
Derren Brown - New Age Belief Systems-Voodoo Dolls, Reiki For additional reference on Tory's remarks at 18:05 mark see:ROAD TO FEBRUARY 10, 2008 - FINAL VERSION  For additional reference on Steve's comments at 24:29 mark see: Geraldo: Scientology vs. Prozac (Jentzsch vs. Hassan)
  For a good general reference on this discussion see:Is the Church of Scientology a Cult?
Looking for more information on leaving a cult? Then be sure to check out the Exit Zone Resources index and related Reading Lists.

Need someone to talk to? Tory is a fabulous resource to reach out too, and she helps many former members far and wide. Just stop by ToryMagoo.org to find her personal contact information.

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Open Letters for Open Minded Scientologists to Ponder

There is a long standing tradition on the internet and elsewhere in regards to outreach efforts to help current members of the Church of Scientology find their way free from the organization - Open Letters.

A search of the internet reveals a treasure trove of insights in these open letters ranging back for decades, all of which match the general pattern of opening with:

Dear Scientologist(s).., Dear Church of Scientology..., Dear Scientology Executive..., Dear Scientology Staff... or Dear Family Members Still in Scientology... and so on and so forth.

In fact, the tradition of open letters encouraging Scientologists to do what is right in regards to straightening out the problems within the orgs was seemingly started by L. Ron Hubbard in his HCO Bulletin of 27 May 1960 where the following paraphrased advice seems to have done no good in the long run.

Dear Scientologist: ... Clearing the executives, the auditors, the people of Scientology is your job now.

- L. Ron Hubbard  

A great new blog has recently been launched by Jim Little featured on the backlink of this post's title, which does an excellent job of archiving the most recently released open letters. However, the extended time line of open letters is just too valuable of a reference to miss.

Thus, we offer the following greatest hits list of links to other open letters that deserve to be remembered for posterity. There is lots of great food4thought here, all you have to do is look.

David Mayo 1983 Captain Bill Roberts 1983 Eric Townsend 1985 Lyle Stewart 1988 Indira and Manu Bajaj 1994 Steve Allen 1997 Jesse Prince 1999 Robert Vaughn Young 2000 R. V. Young 2000 [Cont'd] Michael Pattinson 2005 Michael Leonard Tilse 2005 George Kelly 2007 Anonymous 2008

Jenna Miscavige Hill 2008 Tory Christman 2008  AskTheScientologist 2008 Susan Lentsch 2008 Neo [on ESMB] 2008 Mac Stevens 2008 Reasonable [on ESMB] 2009 Carmel Underwood 2009 Resident of London 2009 Paul Haggis 2009 Christopher Eisenman 2010 David St Lawrence 2010 Jim & Meshell Little 2010

And lastly... because we're STILL here for you,
whether you like us or not - from Anonymous in 2010.

"To sin by silence when they should protest makes cowards out of men."

- Abraham Lincoln  

Do you have something to get off your chest in tune with this established tradition of Dear Scientologist(s)... letters?

If so, please consider doing so and releasing it publicly on your own coming-forth blog like Mr. Little did with LittleDoubt, or amongst the online community of your choice. Or post a comment on this article if you need help getting it online, and the anon-friendly human rights advocates managing this sector of the interwebz will be happy to help.

The more voices who speak up - no matter where they stand when they come forward - the easier it becomes to set others free.

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Facing Your Doubts About The Church of Scientology

For current members of the Church of Scientology organization that may be out there on interwebz lurking in silence, the backlink featured on this post's title is a must-read reference by Tom Martiniano on the scientology-cult.com website.

If you are struggling with coming to grips with all the troubling controversies becoming readily apparent these days with your church, there is an obvious solution for sorting out your upsets.

Accept that you have doubts, and then go looking for answers with an open mind - see for yourself how deep the accusations run and whether or not they have merit or ring true for you.

Then do as many others have done - run an honest doubt formula in accordance with the practice defined in the Introduction to Scientology Ethics book that looks at ALL sides of the issues. Open your mind to sources of information beyond the church's own propaganda, and evaluate their claims for yourself.

“By doubting we come at truth.”
- Cicero

Yes, there is a lot of information out there to absorb along the path of becoming fully informed. There is also a wide-range of ground to find commonality with: pro-church, pro-LRH but anti-church, pro-none-of-the-above (anti-everything), plus many shades of gray in between. The decision of where you personally stand is ultimately your own, but none-the-less we urge you to do your own doubt formula as so many others have done and become fully informed before coming to your own conclusions.

The following useful nuggets are offered as further food4thought on the matter. In the coming days, we will also begin indexing published doubt formulas from a range of source for further reading. With the goal being to build up a useful cross-reference under the related blog label on this post, with insights spanning multiple communities representative of the full range of opinions on the controversial aspects of the Church of Scientology.

Doubt -- Gathering facts for actual evaluation
 
Leaving Scientology Blog | Doubt Formulas
 
Scientology Doubt Formula in the Freezone

If you discover your doubts are justified, please considering sending a copy of your doubt formula to scientology-cult@nyms.net This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it to be posted online in response to the featured backlink on this post title.

Another alternative to consider is releasing your doubt formula in some other means amongst the online community of your choice. Or post a comment on this article if you need help getting it online, and the anon-friendly human rights advocates managing this sector of the interwebz will be happy to help.

The more voices who speak up - no matter where they stand when they come forward - the easier it becomes to set others free.

Click the title of this post or ob any other entries on this micro blog to visit the related link for a given announcement.