Posted on 08/06/2009 7:02:55 AM PDT by Schnucki
British diplomats investigating the qualifications of L Ron Hubbard exposed the Scientology founder as a fraud 30 years ago.
The science-fiction writer, who invented the religion now followed by celebrities including Tom Cruise and John Travolta, awarded himself a PhD from a sham 'diploma mill' college he had acquired in California.
British consulate workers in Los Angeles secretly gathered information on behalf of the government.
Whitehall officials launched the covert investigation after Scientologists threatened to sue over the government's 1968 decision to ban followers from entering the UK to visit the sect's headquarters in East Grinstead, West Sussex.
Britain needed to establish whether Hubbard was a charalatan to defend itself against any libel action.
The evidence was gathered during the 1970s and included the claim by a US official that the sect had sent bogus doctors to hypnotise a legal investigator, forcing him to retire 'due to his mental health'.
The Department of Health files, many of which were classified until 2019, were released to The Times by the National Archive following a Freedom of Information request.
The dossier includes a signed statement by former senior Scientologist John McMaster, who said Hubbard and others faked ‘qualifications’ in Dianetics, the spiritual ‘science’ founded by Hubbard to provide spiritual healing.
He said: 'I understand it is asserted that L Ron Hubbard was awarded the degree of Doctor of Philosophy by Sequoia University on February 10 1953, in recognition of his outstanding work in the fields of Dianetics and Scientology and that the said degree was recorded with the Department of Education of the State of California.
'The position is L Ron Hubbard [and others] acquired premises somewhere in Los Angeles which they had registered as a university called Sequoia and immediately awarded each other doctorates.'
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
The rumor is that John Travolta wants to leave the cult, because he blames them for his son’s death.
But the Church would release details of his homosexuality should he leave.
“hey anybody want to go in and start a “University” so we can award each other degrees?”
That is an often used “creation scientists” approach. No attempt to thread hijack; but it is common for “religious” organizations seeking to bamboozle the easily impressed to give themselves meaningless degrees from diploma mills that they own.
“I’ve been told by a very knowledgeable novelist friend that Hubbard, a sort of mid-level sci-fi writer, bet another writer that he could invent a religion and get people to believe in it. “
i heard that story too. no idea if it is correct but if it is this guy was a genius in his way. create a religion out of thing air - sell lots of books and religious items via a pyramid scheme - laugh all the way to the bank
He was lousy. His books practically unreadable.
He was far more successful as a founder of a ‘religion’ than as a sci-fi writer.
“PhD FreeRepublic University, 2002 “
i love it
ok i have a PhD from good ole FREEPER U 2001
Yeah, but when he died, all the money was still there in the bank, wasn’t it? If he was, in fact, a conscious fraud and mocker of God for a buck....well, I just wouldn’t want to have to try to explain that to Him.
Sci-Fi is not a genre I’ve ever been particularly fond of so I could only go by my friend’s words. He may have been speaking just in terms of the guy having had at least sufficient sales to pay his rent.
He seemed to have made up in quantity what he lacked in quality.
His “Battlefield Earth” series was a dozen books or so IIRC.
It always strikes me that scientologists, Jehovah’a witnesses and Mormons are so very much against what they call “organised religion”, when their own religion is FAR more organised than any Church I’ve ever been to...
crap film though...
You heard right: Hubbard won a bet with Robert Heinlein that he could not “create a new religion.” Knowing this helped me keep my sanity when I lived in Clearwater, FL, which is basically owned and operated by Hubbard’s “church.”
If ever I return to the faith, it would be me, some like minded folks, and the bible. Of course, we could then start getting more followers, and have to build a church, and get a bureaucracy to run it and then...
I didn’t even bother to see it.
But the review from some bad movie review site (I forget which) had me ROLLING IN THE AISLES. One of the funniest things I have ever read, and although I feel it would have been funnier if I HAD seen the movie, after reading the review I didn’t think it was worth it.
I really don’t mean to sound smug but this has been common knowledge for years. But then Xenu made me say that.
Hail Xenu!
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