Scientology as a Religion - Part 3

Scientology is Applied Religious Philosophy

Scientology is something rare in the field of religion, it is an applied religious philosophy. It is religious philosophy that is aimed at application in everyday life and in helping ones fellow man attain spiritual freedom. Unlike most religions it does not encapsulate its philosophy in allegorical stories or religious practices, instead it presents its spiritual ideas and practical methods for spiritual improvement directly.

That is not to say there is anything wrong with allegorical stories or religious practices because there isn't, Scientology simply takes another approach. In the religious field the earliest example of this approach that I know of was in the original form of Buddhism. Gautama Siddhartha developed a philosophy, a set of rules to live by, a set of techniques for spiritual improvement and taught them as-is with no embellishment.

The Scientology Logics, which I wrote a set of articles on over the past few weeks, are good examples of the religious philosophy of Scientology. They are very practical. Thus Scientology presents itself on a "take-it-or-leave-it" basis. A piece of practical philosophy is presented, the individual studies it, understands it and then uses it. In this way he can observe for himself if it is true by whether it worked for him or not. If he decides it is not true then as far as he is concerned it isn't true and no one is going to force him to believe it.

This method of presentation of the Scientology religion means that it can be approached by people of any religion without compromising their own beliefs.