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What do Scientologists themselves have to say about Scientology? Based on six years of interviews, fieldwork, and research conducted among members of the Church of Scientology, this groundbreaking work examines features of the new religion's history, theology, and praxis in ways that move discussion beyond apostate-driven and exposé accounts.
List of contents
- Acknowledgements
- Introduction: Methods and Means of Researching Scientology and Scientologists
- 1. Preliminary Conclusions from Interviews and Fieldwork
- 2. Before the Religion: Episodes from the Advent of Dianetics and Scientology
- 3. "Keeping Scientology Working": Features of Systematic Theology
- 4. "We Come Back": Past and Present of the Sea Organization
- 5. "Build a Better Bridge!": From LRH to COB and Beyond
- Conclusion: Reflections on the Future of Scientology and its Academic Study
- Notes
- Bibliography
- Index
About the author
Donald A. Westbrook (Ph.D. Claremont Graduate University) has taught at UCLA, Cal State Fullerton, Fuller Seminary, and is affiliated with the Faculty for the Comparative Study of Religion and Humanism (FVG) in Antwerp, Belgium.
Summary
What do Scientologists themselves have to say about Scientology? Based on six years of interviews, fieldwork, and research conducted among members of the Church of Scientology, this groundbreaking work examines features of the new religion's history, theology, and praxis in ways that move discussion beyond apostate-driven and exposé accounts.
Additional text
Westbrook's treatment raises Scientology studies to an entirely new level.
