Church claims to answer life issues
Organization finds sponsor, free speech on UC campus
Ashely Jones and Tonya Brooks
Issue date: 4/13/05 Section: College Living
It's a rising trend among Hollywood stars such, as Tom Cruise, John Travolta and Kelly Preston. Now the religious group known as the Church of Scientology has made its mark on the Univesity of Cincinnati's campus.
You may have seen people in yellow shirts inside Zimmer auditorium or under the big yellow tent on McMicken Commons offering "Free Stress Tests." This is their way of recruiting college students to become members of their religious organization.
According to the Church of Scientology's Web site, www.scientology.org, L. Ron Hubbard founded the religion in 1954 and it has grown to "more than 3,200 churches, missions and groups in 154 countries."
The site defines Scientology as, "an applied religious philosophy," that is based on the motto, "Only those things which one finds true for himself are true."
T.J. Hensley is a local volunteer minister who works on McMicken Commons. "It would be great if we could get together a group of students to become volunteer ministers," he said.
Hensley explained that the certification procedure consists of reading a book of scriptures called The Way to Happiness, by Hubbard, and then taking a test.
One of the main principles of Scientology is learning to eliminate stress in one's life through the practice of Dianetics.
The purpose of the stress test being offered is to discover the "reactive mind - the hidden part of your mind that stores all painful experiences and then uses them against you," according to www.dianetics.com.
"The stress test, known as an audit, is designed to show us which areas of your life cause you the most stress. Once we identify those hidden stress points, we can figure out what areas need to be focused on to help you better function in society," Hensley said.
A device known as an "E-meter" (electropsyschometer), made of two metal cans attached to a gauge administers the stress test.
Ministers ask participants to sit down and hold one of the metal cans in each hand. The administrator sets the gauges so the needle is in the middle. The administrator asks participants a series of questions and told to think about words that the test administrator says, such as "Family," "Work," "School" and "Relationship."
You may have seen people in yellow shirts inside Zimmer auditorium or under the big yellow tent on McMicken Commons offering "Free Stress Tests." This is their way of recruiting college students to become members of their religious organization.
According to the Church of Scientology's Web site, www.scientology.org, L. Ron Hubbard founded the religion in 1954 and it has grown to "more than 3,200 churches, missions and groups in 154 countries."
The site defines Scientology as, "an applied religious philosophy," that is based on the motto, "Only those things which one finds true for himself are true."
T.J. Hensley is a local volunteer minister who works on McMicken Commons. "It would be great if we could get together a group of students to become volunteer ministers," he said.
Hensley explained that the certification procedure consists of reading a book of scriptures called The Way to Happiness, by Hubbard, and then taking a test.
One of the main principles of Scientology is learning to eliminate stress in one's life through the practice of Dianetics.
The purpose of the stress test being offered is to discover the "reactive mind - the hidden part of your mind that stores all painful experiences and then uses them against you," according to www.dianetics.com.
"The stress test, known as an audit, is designed to show us which areas of your life cause you the most stress. Once we identify those hidden stress points, we can figure out what areas need to be focused on to help you better function in society," Hensley said.
A device known as an "E-meter" (electropsyschometer), made of two metal cans attached to a gauge administers the stress test.
Ministers ask participants to sit down and hold one of the metal cans in each hand. The administrator sets the gauges so the needle is in the middle. The administrator asks participants a series of questions and told to think about words that the test administrator says, such as "Family," "Work," "School" and "Relationship."
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ken
ken
posted 4/24/05 @ 4:05 PM EST
If you really want to see how Scientology has answers to "life issues," log on to www.lisaMcPherson.org to see what Scientology did to her.
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