Scientology Trivia Quiz

Answer: Ron Hubbard

Described by his followers as a "writer and a humanitarian", Lafayette Ronald Hubbard (1911 - 1986) was a writer of both pulp and Science Fiction in the U.S. and a "professional in dozens of fields". He first became well known for his book "Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health", and the principles of Dianetics are fundamental to the creation of Scientology.
His resume is amazing, or would be if it were true. However the disparity between his accounts of his exploits in the Second World War and official Navy records throws doubt on many of his other claims. (He even claimed to have been awarded medals that never existed.)
Interestingly enough, in the late 1940s he was quoted as saying, "Writing for a penny a word is ridiculous. If a man really wants to make a million dollars, the best way would be to start his own religion." ("What is Scientology?" - reprinted from "Reader's Digest").

Answer: all of these things

If you go to the official website for the Church of Scientology you will find Scientology defined as "the study of knowledge" on the main page, with the further explanation that it is derived from the Latin word "scio" and the Greek word "logos", meaning "knowing in the fullest sense of the word" and "study of" respectively. On a different website, Scientologists define "logos" as "reason itself" or "inward thought". In another location of the website, under the Newsroom section, Scientology is defined as "knowing how to know".

In a 1952 interview, L. Ron Hubbard, founder of Scientology defined it as "the study of knowledge".

Answer: survival

This theory operates on the assumption that the basic goal of life is survival, a concept that they acknowledge is not new. They believe that survival can be accomplished with varying levels of success, using happiness and freedom from stress as a measurement.

It further posits that the primary function of the mind is to solve any problems that stand in the way of achieving successful survival.

Answer: the reactive mind

The analytical mind is believed to be that part of the mind that operates when a person is conscious, and is constantly processing what is going on around them. When a person is unconscious, Scientology feels that they are still able to take in stimuli but are unable to analyze them. Images, called engrams, are allegedly formed, recording everything that was felt, heard and physically experienced while unconscious. Later, similar stimuli are believed to be able to trigger these engrams, causing the person to relive all the negative feelings of the original experience.

The purpose of Dianetics is to rid a person of their reactive minds, which is credited with being the only source of all stress and unhappiness. People who have attained this state are referred to as Clears.

Answer: auditing

Auditing is a counseling technique where a counselor listens to a person talk, often identifying engrams, or areas of tension, by the use of an E-meter, a very simplistic version of a lie detector. Any changes that the E-meter measures are thought to be indications of tension, and are used to identify the engrams.
Although I have visited numerous sites, I was unable to find out exactly what went on between the listening proponent of auditing, and the wiping out of the reactive mind. This fact is not really surprising as the Church of Scentology gives very little away for free. Often, when researching their sites, you find a very shallow definition with advice to purchase various books or take suggested courses for more thorough definitions.
There have been claims from people who have undergone the auditing that the information revealed in these sessions was later used against them as a form of blackmail.

Answer: Communication

Unfortunately Hubbard sometimes defined the three elements in terms that related them back to each other, which is a little difficult to understand. The more conventional definition of affinity that he used was "the feeling of liking or love for something or someone", but he also defined it as "the relative distance and similarity of the two ends of a communication line", which I interpret to mean the similarities or differences in point of view between two people or groups. Reality also had a double definition according to Hubbard; it was "the degree of communication reached by two ends of a communication line and "is, here on Earth, agreement as to what is". Hubbard defined communication as "the interchange of ideas or particles between two points".

He cautioned that communication was by far the most important side of the triangle. References are made to the fact that the ARC triangle is used in the process of auditing, but not to how this is done.

Answer: Yes

If you do a search for Scientology and God, you will be told that they do indeed recognize the existence of a supreme being. Another, seemingly contradictory site might tell you that this is perceived as an individual belief, and that the Church is accepting of each individual's beliefs. What you are not likely to find on any official site is a reference to Xenu, the extra-terrestrial who is believed to have brought people to Earth in spacecrafts, 75 million years ago, and how some of those people were blown up by volcanoes. You have to go to unofficial sites to read that sort of information.

Many fledgling Scientologists will not be aware of the story of Xenu either, as the Church only shares some of its more unorthodox beliefs with members who have proven themselves to be truly devoted and have moved up the church hierarchy (after years of study and vast sums made in contributions).

In fact there have been cases of death threats (and even attempts) made to previous members who have stopped believing and revealed some of the secrets.

Answer: as little talking in the labour and delivery room as possible

The whole point of having a silent birth is to avoid creating engrams for the infant, that will someday come back and haunt them. The baby's reactive mind will be absorbing all the stimuli from the room, and associating it with the stress of being born. So if the infant hears the doctor yelling at the mother to push, those words heard later in life may trigger a negative reaction. Officials accept the fact that it is difficult for a mother to deliver a child in total silence, and feel that screaming is preferable to talking. Scientology also discourages new mothers from breastfeeding, preferring a formula of barley water, milk and corn syrup. Hubbard claimed that this formula was something he brought with him from a previous life in Roman times.

This is because of the toxins present in a mother's body.

Answer: Psychiatry

Scientology's attack on psychiatry is long-standing and particularly vitriolic. Depending on what article you read, Scientology has accused psychiatrists as being everything from simply useless, to agents of evil who deliberately perpetrate crime with their alleged treatments that distort the minds and actions of their patients, and all points in between. Tom Cruise has come forth and publicly referred to psychiatry as a "pseudo science" and stated the Scientology-held belief that there is no such thing as chemical imbalances.
The reason for this hatred of psychiatry is difficult to find, but some believe that it is because psychiatrists were critical of Hubbard's book "Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health" when it first came out.
Some of the less flattering sites claim that Hubbard has accused psychiatrists of being around when Xenu first visited Earth, and suggested that it was their control over him that caused Xenu to sacrifice some of his companions to the volcano.

Answer: Yes

Although the word reincarnation is not used, their belief in rebirth is very similar in concept. In fact some critics have cited this as an example of Hubbard's plagiarism of others' ideas.
The word thetan is used to describe what many religions refer to as the soul, and Scientology claims to be able to help people achieve awareness of this thetan throughout many lifetimes, and to help it regain a state of Operating Thetan, which is the immortality that comes with freedom from rebirth.