Scientologist - When do you become one?

Jim Gatos asked some interesting questions:

Jim Asked: 1. When can someone say publicly, "I am a Scientologist"? When they read a book or two? When they get audited? When they get "Clear?".
Just curious.

My answer: A person can say "I'm a Scientologist" whenever they like, it's up to them, there are no rules about it. Personally my definition of a Scientologist is someone who knows what Scientology is and uses it to help themselves and others. So they would have studied some part of Scientology and learned how to use it successfully - and that doesn't require a lot. But that's just my own personal definition.

Jim Asked: 2. Could someone ever consider themselves a Scientologist without ever having had an auditing session? Would this be comparable to a "Christian Sacrement"?

My answer: Someone could consider themselves a Scientologist at any point. They don't have to have had any auditing.

On the sacrament questions, I looked up the definition and it said it was something that confers "grace" on someone, so I looked that up here: Grace, and it says a Christian expression meaning "the free and unmerited assistance or favor or energy or saving presence of God in his dealings with humanity". So I'd say, no, Scientology Auditing is not comparable to a sacrament. It could be compared to a confessional - there would be similarities to that (One on One, Parishioner telling troubles to minister, etc.).

Jim Asked: 3. Are "Communications Classes" taught ONLY at the churches?

My answer: The Scientology Communication Course is delivered at Scientology Missions and groups as well as Churches of Scientology. There are secular forms of the communication course. These are delivered by consultants in various industries and in some of the social betterment activities that have been started by Scientologists. As I said, they are secular versions so they don't step on anyone's religious toes :)