Here's some interesting information about Scientology - it has excellent descriptions of Scientology books. Haven't seen anything like this elsewhere.

Here you go.

FAQ: Books and Tapes on Scientology

I got notified I was "accepted" in blogsearchengine.com .

Reminds me of high school when getting accepted in clubs meant something.

Here I am a blogger wanna-be and something thinks my blog qualifies... Gosh!

Some very interesting audio files about Scientology here

http://www.goodnewsbroadcast.com/18fri/hjentzsch.ram and http://www.goodnewsbroadcast.com/18fri/billsharyn.ram
which you can find here Good News Broadcasting: Religion/Spirituality

Found this very nice little article about Scientology the other day. I always like to share information like this when I find it.
Scientology

Here's an interesting description of Scientology Basic Courses

This site is from New Zealand, but the basic Scientology courses he is describing are available at all Scientology churches and missions which can be found here:
Locate a Scientology Organization

See - the St Petersburg Times isn't all bad.  They did a nice article on Scientology before too:

Scientology reaches out to troubled

He calls himself stupidboy, but he got it right about Scientology

Funny about tests. You'd think we all did enough of them at school. But when you don't HAVE to take them it's different and they are very hard to resist. I'm always curious how I score, and even when I'm busy doing something important when a test pops up on the Internet I am prone to diverge from what I've been doing and jump right in.

So I took the Beliefnet.com test, and although I've been a Scientologist for 34 years, they found me to be a true believing Budhhist. Ah well. It's good to know I have "tradition".

I'm not the only one to take this test - seems like others have the same penchant to check themselves against some standard.

Here are others' sites/blogs I've found of people who have done the same thing:
Brian Lewandowski - L'il Kernels of Insight
No day but today
Verses in my Head: Brian Schroeder's personal weblog
Chronarchy.Com
David's very own Blog
Doe Rae Me
roost
A Heartfelt Love, don't you love me?
underdosed and writing the blues
So how do your religious beliefs stack up, exactly? (amusing)
Monileigh's Tuff Toe-Nail
all my tests
in theory
Pretty Shiny Bits
Robson Ryan's Rants
John R Chang: Blog: I guess I'm not Catholic
Underneath the Clothes
Andy And Lizette
rosencrantz*s musings: February 2003 Archives
BladeForums.com: The Leading Edge of Knife Discussion - O.T. Beliefnet. Has anyone seen this before?
Chronarchy.Com
My Little Piece of the Web
davblog: musings in April 2003
: Faith and Religion : Your beliefs
Dreamsmith's Forge - My Belief-O-Matic Results
Fatshadow
What I believe
I Am Pariah - Blog - Belief-O-Matic
Ya Gotta Believe
juju.org :: Belief-O-Matic
Kensho Godchaser: About Our Writers
Life's Reflection: Faith...
Post Comment
The Dealer of Death's Journal. Abandon Hope all ye who enter here..
z3p: a wallflower gone wild - April 27th, 2002

Now here's a nice site about Scientology that I just found in the Open Directory Project under "Church of Scientology".

TheTrueLight.Net - Scientology

It presents some of the basic facts about the Scientology religion in an easy-to-assimilate format. Good one!

Scientogy and the St. Petersburg Times

I was delighted to see the covered by the St. Peterburg Times about Scientology today.  It's such a good article and really gets the facts straight - not too usual for the media and certainly a nice change for the St. Peterburg Times!
 
 

Here's a link to iT: Scientology's town
  

This is a photo from the story - a view of Downtown Clearwater, with the large white buildings with the red roofs being the two main buildings of the Church of Scientology in Clearwater.

The only thing I would improve on this coverage is the fact that Scientologists really aren't "taking over" the city at all. There is so much room for people of all faiths to live and work together there that this attitude strikes me as being silly.

When I grew up in New York, as a Jewish girl living in Queens, the only people I knew were Jewish. One time I found out the father of one of my girlfriends wasn't Jewish and that was a shock to me as I didn't know anyone who wasn't. When I was in 5th grade a Catholic girl moved to town and she and her mother invited me over to trim their Christmas tree the week before Christmas. The fact that this happened almost 50 years ago and still stands out fresh in my mind tells something of the ethnic make up of the place.

It was a much larger city than Clearwater, population-wise. I went to high school with 5000 other students and it was just a 3-year highschool. There were so many people that I didn't even know the names of the people who lived on my own block.

But no one would ever have called this a "Jewish City".

So although I am really happy with the improvements in Clearwater, I would still like to see myself and other Scientologists viewed for the people we are, and I'd like us to be able to just get on with making Clearwater a premier city through community activity of all residents to improve the lives of everyone living there.

By the way, looks like they mostly got it right here too:

Tampabay: About Scientology

One of the more outspoken and well known Scientologists is Leisa Goodman.

There is an updated bio on her home page here:Church of Scientology International - Human Rights Director

Liesa is very active in promoting the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.















Here she is at a conference held in Los Angeles on the subject.
Some web sites of Human Rights groups the Church of Scientology International supports are:
Youth for Human Rights International (YHRI)
Information on how Scientology churches support Youth for Human Rights International
International Foundation for Human Rights and Tolerance
Scientology support for the International Foundation for Human Rights and Tolerance.

There is an interesting article of letter by Ms. Goodman on the web site of the University of Marburg in Germany in which she addresses religious desicrimination against Scientology and other faiths in that country.

Other intersting sites that take up this subject are:

The Source for truth on the Church of Scientology and its Members
Church of Scientology Human Rights Office - Germany: Religious Freedom
Church of Scientology - Religious Freedom in the New Millennium
Is Scientology a Religion?
US Navy Department of the Chaplain - Scientology

Scientology Volunteer Ministers

One of my favorite topics, because it's one of my favorite activities.

Here's a photo of
Scientology Volunteer Ministers at the new Church of Scientology of Harlem












And here are some Scientology Volunteer Ministers who have their own web sites:

Chaz Van Heyden's Volunteer Minister Page
Abbas & JoJo Zawawi - Volunteer Ministers

The President of the Church of Scientology of Austin Texas wrote an article about the Scientology Volunteer Ministers which is worth reading too.

L. Ron Hubbard Way is dedicated in Los Angeles

I found this photo and couldn't resist publishing it here. This was the day L. Ron Hubbard way was dedicated in LA. It was back on 1997, and I'm probably there in the crowd, although I can't spot myself in it -- I was off the the left toward the bottom of the photo.

It was such a terrific group effort, getting that street renovated for the grand opening. It's still one of the prettiest streets in LA, with the brick road surface.

One of the things I love about attending events like this is that people I really admire are there.

One such person is David Miscavige.

Many events, which are televised to Scientology churches and missions around the world, are MCed by David Miscavige.

Here's another shot of the dedication of L. Ron Hubbard Way, with David Miscavige and John Travolta leading the march down the street. And another shot of the same event here.

Every year there is an event commemorating the Anniversary of the publication of Dianetics where Mr. Miscavige is often present.

Other such events are
anniversary of the establishment of the International Association of Scientologists which usually takes place in the United Kingdom in East Grinstead where Scientologistswho have made stellar contributions to improving society are honored every year.

Another event that is televised internationally is the anniversary of the birth of Scientology founder,L. Ron Hubbard. David Miscavige usually gives the keynote speech at these events, in which he gives a brief overview of some of the most exciting news about Scientology around the world for that year. These events are held in Clearwater

Here are links to some other events like these:
David Miscavige | L. Ron Hubbard | Founding Church of Scientology
Groundbreaking Ceremony Clearwater Florida with David Miscavige

Scientology Volunteer Ministers in Boston

Found this great article today. Don't know how long it will stay on-line so I've added it to my blog.

They Blinded Crime with Science
Scientologists Tackle Bums, Gang Violence

by Paul McMorrow


After four homicides in the span of one May week, Boston Police Commissioner Kathleen O'Toole was in need of some serious anti-crime divine intervention. The Commissioner convened a meeting of 30 Boston ministers and pledged a redoubling of Boston's faith-based crime prevention efforts, but despite all the talk, the bodies continued to pile up.

Last week, God, the ministers and the BPD got a little help from an unorthodox source: old friend L. Ron Hubbard and the Church of Scientology.

The Scientologists, according to their Community Outreach Director, Rev. Robert Castagna, could not sit idly by while drugs, violence and illiteracy continued to rend Boston's social fabric; the city's year-to-date homicide count had just reached 29 (it had risen to 31 at press time), and something had to be done about it.

And something could be done, Castagna argued. At least, that was the message emblazoned on the side of the Scientologists' big yellow tent, which was parked on the Boston Common last week. Inside the tent, officially called the Scientology Volunteer Minister Cavalcade, Scientology volunteer ministers spoke with 2500 members of Boston's crime-loving public, urging them to please stop shooting each other.

“We realize that there is violence, illiteracy and drug use, but we want to put out some solutions,” explained Castagna. “Something can be done about it! In spite of violence, there are solutions. The public is distraught, they feel apathetic; we have solutions.”

Castagna likens the Scientologists' current outreach to the ongoing collaboration between O'Toole and the Black Ministerial Alliance, as well as to the partnership between the city's ministers and police that helped stem the tide of Boston's early '90s crime waves. The Scientologists, he says, are looking to establish “collaborations with clergy, police and civic groups. When you collaborate, you actually solve problems. We want to take our church in that direction.”

At this point, if it helps Boston's youths lay down their guns, O'Toole isn't ruling anything out. Although she could not get to the tent's ribbon-cutting ceremony, she sent BPD Night Supervisor Bobby Johnson in her place. Other dignitaries hoping that the Scientologists can “do something about it” included at-large City Councilor Maura Hennigan and child actor Patrick Renna (the big-boned, redheaded kid from The Sandlot).

BPD spokeswoman Beverly Ford said that there was “nothing sinister” about Johnson's appearance at the tent and that the commissioner welcomed the Scientologists' efforts in the context of the BPD's anti-crime “faith partnerships.”

Theodore Boddie, director of the new Codman Square Scientology Volunteer Ministry center, pledged to do anything he could to help Boston's hooligans turn their lives around. “We have a terrific new police commissioner in Kathleen O'Toole, who is aware that the police can operate much more efficiently when working with religious and community leaders,” he said. “The commissioner's goals of making Boston a safe and crime-free city align with The Aims of Scientology, and we intend to help her as much as possible.”

Renna sounded an equally hopeful note. “Boston's my home town and I don't feel that I can sit back after the 29th homicide of the year has just occurred. The works of Scientology religion founder L. Ron Hubbard regarding drug awareness, literacy and morality have made me successful and have kept me on the right path. This is what this community needs!”

According to Castagna, lives are being changed already. “One person came through the tent, drunk and homeless. One of the ministers helped him with what we call a 'locational' - he looked at the grass and trees until he became more oriented to his surroundings. He had a realization. He realized that he had no purpose in life; he went out and started helping others. He had actually found a purpose in life. Many, many people were helped there this week.”

Sharon Shenkar, a Scientologist volunteer minister who manned the tent last week, described it as a smashing success. “We had a great turnout, a real great cross-section of people. Scientology handles the root of a lot of the problems that cause crime. You can help one person momentarily, and six months later they won't be doing well. This week, we were teaching people that someone might have a problem with crime and drugs, and that can be traced back to literacy. Something happened to make them not feel good about themselves. You wouldn't normally put the two together. People feel frustrated, and that leads to drugs and crime. I've seen small miracles in that area alone.

“Several people came in with problems with study, technology and relationships. It's about having techniques that work, having a philosophy that works permanently. It's not a band-aid. It's the biggest relief to have help permanently. It just works.”