Thursday, January 31, 2008
Project Update
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Perspective
What Factors of the Evolving Religion Scientology Draws Followers from All Walks of Life to Join in Worship?
In modern society, many new age organizations have risen from obscurity, commanding followers with the promise of improving their lives. Many of these societies claim to be religions, seeking approval from those outside the walls of their beliefs, but many are judged to have clandestine goals, distant from aiding the wellbeing of followers. There is a constant debate over whether Scientology is a religion or a cult that will continue for decades. However, what is more interesting, is the search for how Scientology commands so many supporters and continues to grow and flourish among all of its criticism.
Scientology has garnered a substantial amount of media attention from the reality that so many celebrities are taking a vested interest in the teachings of L. Ron Hubbard and the practices of the religion. Just a few of the A-list celebrities included on this list are John Travolta, Tom Cruise, Kirstie Alley, and Lisa Marie Presley. Including celebrities the religion is growing at a steady rate. According to a U.S. Census study, there were 55,000 Scientologists in the
Potential Questions:
What does Scientology offer members different from typical religions to garner such a devoted following?
What is required of members upon joining the relgion?
How does Scientology appear to be growing and what methods are employed to do so?
Why does the organization insist on being so private and secretive if it offers members a life improving philosophy?
When creating Scientology, what were L. Ron Hubbard’s initial goals and does the current state of the religion resemble his image?
Scientology’s Foundation and the Mysterious Auditing Process
Scientology’s roots are in the science-fiction writings of L. Ron Hubbard. The organization came to existence in the mid-20th century upon the publication of his book Dianetics. Hubbard is widely considered the founder of the religion and his 5,000 writings and 3,000 tape-recorded lectures are used as the fundamental teachings in the religion. Scientology’s founder L. Ron Hubbard himself does not consider Scientology a religion, but instead an applied religious philosophy used to improve the state of one’s life. Hubbard laid the foundations of religion and guided its expansion until his death in 1986. Scientology churches basing their teachings on Hubbard’s teachings exist on 6 continents and continue to actively recruit new members.
Scientologist’s main form of prayer or self-meditation is called auditing. As instructed by L. Ron Hubbard, the goal of auditing is to restore beingness and ability in a person. The process by which this goal is attained includes eliminating the disabilities and magnifying the abilities of a person. Auditing is more a form of personal counseling than a type of prayer. A Scientologist uses the process to gauge their own existence and advance in the direction of how they would like to ideally be. Ministers in the Scientology religion are trained and qualified auditors, and better their members through the auditing process. The auditing process between a member, or a preclear, and an auditor, takes place during a pre-arranged auditing session. The auditor uses a specific process in such sessions to guide a preclear to find out things about themselves that can be improved.
Sunday, January 27, 2008
Comments to Poster from Classmates
From Seavy:
I think you are off to a great start. You obviously possess a vested interest in Scientology, which is shown in your poster. You seem to already know a good deal about Scientology, and your enthusiasm will serve as a catalyst. That being said, your analysis so far is very complete and you present a very clear depiction of Scientology and all of its elements. Your history of the new religion is very detailed, particularly the aspect of moral teachings. Everything looks good so far. The only advice I would give is to just dig deeper. Nice work, I look forward to learning more about Scientology!
Matt J:
Your poster seemed to have a really good focus on where you are going with your research as well you have a clear question that you are addressing. You have legitimate information about the background and protests of Scientology. All the information you had was convincing and added to the substance of your research. There will definitely be a lot of information and one thing you may want to hit on is how much Scientologists actually live differently than the average moral person and see how it affects different aspects of their life. A good point you had was how it costs a lot of money to join and how most religions don't have a fee for their followers. It seems you have a clear vision for where you want to go.
Wilson Jones:
- Good poster, very interesting topic, certainly a hot current event that many people are interested in
- You seem interested in the topic - you should try to visit the church in Charlotte
- Sounds like you have a good source with the Duke professor that recently wrote the paper you discovered on Scientology
- Lots of skepticism, uncertainty, lack of facts because of the secrecy of the religion; must make sure you find legitimate and reliable sources
- Maybe narrow your search to a few main scholars in the field and answer your topic question based on their ideas
Michael S:
William’s topic of Scientology as a religion or cult is a very interesting and captivating topic. He already has a lot of sources that are excellent and seems to have an incredible grasp of the subject. I think you should spread some light on past cults and their outlandish claims and how it has ended up (i.e. Charles Manson). You can also compare it to other major and growing religions. Your source with the religion professor can be a great asset as a primary source in your project.
William Nutt:
While your research question seems a bit broad, it accurately represents what you plan to study, and I don’t think it requires and specification. The content of your poster provides thorough background information about Scientology, but does not necessarily represent what you will be researching, which seems to be the structure and processes of the organization as a whole. You clearly stated your research objective and I believe it is neither too broad nor too specific. You should be able to find an appropriate amount of information to thoroughly answer your question, while remaining busy throughout the semester. While it is not so much apparent visually, it is obvious that you have established an appropriate course of action as far as beginning your research. I know very little about Scientology, and your topic seems fascinating. I look forward to following your progress.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Thursday, January 17, 2008
Defining My Information Need
How much information is needed?
- Specifically I will need at least 30 diverse sources to resource for my project. Ideally, these sources will allow me to develop a thorough and objective report. Background information on the North Carolina wine industry will be essential because the industry is fairly new and undeveloped. I will therefore rely on a good amount of background information as supporting information on the development of the industry.
How much detail is needed?
- Detailed evidence will need to be utilized in the paper to ensure I have fully covered the topic. My information should come from a wide-range of sources with varying topics and opinions on the development of the North Carolina wine industry and it's impact on the state economy as well as differing projections on the industry's future.
How current should the information be?
- Due to the relative newness of the emerging industry, background information will be fairly current and no less than 10 years old. However, most of the information I will rely on will be very current - most likely from the past year or so. Readers will expect both current and historic data to be relied on, with a focus on the newer information.
Should the information be facts or opinions or both?
- (See above) Information should be a good mix of both facts and expert opinions, as the wine industry itself relies heavily on the knowledge of experts. This mix of information is essential to best convince the readers.
