I am always just a bit sceptical about "new religions", which after all have not stood the test of time. As a religion I can't think of one much newer than Scientology. It also has to be said that there is nothing that Scientology has done to make me any less sceptical.
I'll give you an example. Scientology used to operate a centre on Duke Street in Brighton. They used to have people out canvasing people in the street, asking what to me seemed like questions a salesman would specifically ask if they were looking for the vulnerable or impressionable.
There were three questions, like "if you could be any one in the world who would you want to be?" "if there was anything you could change about yourself what would it be?"
I can't remember the third. Perhaps I was just born old, perhaps it is the cynical salesman in me, but I just knew those questions were a fishing trip looking for a "buying signal". I was only 18 at the time, and it has to be said that the foot soldiers of Scientology are not trained to look for 18 year old door to door salesman who know a pitch when they hear it.
However the most striking thing about the Panorama program was an interview with a critic of Scientology who was also an ex convict with a remarkable record of lewd crimes as well as drugs. Obviously it would have been wrong for Panorama to present what ever he said as being from a pillar of the community, and to be fair they didn't.
During the interview, which I presume the Church was not informed of, a representative of the church turned up, one Tommy Davis, with a dossier on the man being interviewed.
Just how did they know? Why did they care?
Were they following John Sweeney about?
However you can tip the whole Panorama program in the bin, in favour of a quote from my late father, Bernard, who said:
In 1947 L Ron Hubbard said that the best way to make a fortune was to found a religion, in 1948, he did.Nuff said.
The Panorama home page is here, and the article on the subject is here.
