Scientology: The Marks of Religion Frank K. Flinn, Ph.D. Adjunct Professor in Religious Studies Washington University Saint Louis, Missouri U.S.A.        Scientology sometimes describes itself as “an applied religious philosophy.” Some have used this phrase to argue that Scientology is not a religion. But as noted above, my research into the teachings of the Church and interviews with its members show that Scientology possesses all the marks which are common to religions around the world and throughout history: a well-formed belief system, sustained religious practices, and a hierarchical ecclesiastical polity. Furthermore, the word “philosophy” can have several meanings and is not at all incompatible with the word “religion.” Literally, the word philosophy means “love of wisdom” and every religion known to humankind preaches some sort of “wisdom” or insight into ultimate truth. My interviews with Scientologists showed that adherents consider the word “philosophy” to refer to the ultimate meaning of life and the universe in the religious sense of the term. Scientology’s “philosophy” is dependent upon the belief that the soul is immortal and has an eternal destiny. In making use of philosophical concepts and in stressing the application of its teachings, Scientology is certainly no different from any other religion known to me. Religion always links up with philosophy. In his great work the Summa Theologica, St. Thomas Aquinas, the greatest theologian in the history of Roman Catholicism, makes use of countless philosophical ideas, terms and constructs borrowed from the Greek philosopher Aristotle and urges the moral application of these “philosophical” notions, yet no one would classify the Summa as anything but a religious treatise of the highest order. The phrase “an applied religious philosophy” in no way detracts from Scientology being a bona fide religious faith in the fullest sense of the term.      Western religions – specifically, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam – traditionally have been exclusivistic in nature. Each faith claims to be the one true faith by virtue of its own unique religious law, savior, prophet, path to salvation, or interpretation of the ultimate meaning of life and truth. This exclusivistic trait is, on the whole, absent in Eastern religions such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Shintoism and Taoism. In the East, one and the same person can be initiated into life as a Shintoist, doubly married in Shinto and Christian rites, and finally buried in a Buddhist rite, without having to “choose” which religion is the “right” one. Today even Western Christianity is losing some it its exclusivistic character, as evidenced by various denominations deeply engaged in interreligious theological dialogue and intercommunal religious worship. Such pluridenominationality is not at all surprising and is fully understandable to scholars of religion who study current practices firsthand. Although Scientology has close affinities to both the Hindu and Buddhist traditions, it is not purely non-exclusivistic nor, for that matter, purely exclusivistic. Scientology does not require members to renounce prior religious beliefs or membership in other churches or religious orders. This is in keeping with the pluridenominational temper of our times. Nonetheless, as a practical matter, Scientologists usually become fully involved with the Scientology religion to the exclusion of any other faith. In any event, openness to persons from other religious traditions in no way detracts from Scientology’s specific religious identity.

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