Tag: scientology

Leah Remini testifies Church of Scientology faked rape claim against ex-member Paul Haggis

Actress Leah Remini testified Monday that the lawsuit accusing Oscar-winning director Paul Haggis of rape was fabricated by the Church of Scientology — telling Manhattan jurors “it is Paul who is the victim here.”

“The purpose of Scientology lawsuits is just to destroy your life,” Remini said, appearing via video link from Beverly Hills, with an Emmy Award statue visible in the background.

Lawyers for Haggis, 69, called the “King of Queens” star to the stand in his trial over the suit from former publicist Haleigh Breest, who alleges he raped her in his Soho apartment after a film premiere on Jan. 31, 2013. The “Crash” director has denied the accusation, claiming the encounter was consensual.

He claims the suit is part of a vendetta by Scientology for speaking out against the church when he broke with it in 2009 after three decades of membership.

Remini — arguably one of the most prominent ex-Scientologists — told the court about the repercussions of disavowing the church and acted as a character witness for Haggis.

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Russia Becomes First Country To Ban Scientology As A “Threat To National Security”

Russia’s Justice Ministry is waging a war on Scientology, this week banning the organization from operating on Russian soil. It’s not the first time Moscow has moved legally against the group, however, in an updated list released Friday two key Church of Scientology entities have now been blacklisted as “undesirable” – the most severe designation ever taken by the Russian government.

Calling the group a “threat to the security of the Russian Federation” a media statement described that that “On October 1, the World Institute of Scientology Enterprises International, L. Ron Hubbard Library as well as the ENEMO were added to the list of organizations whose activity is deemed undesirable in Russia by the Prosecutor General’s Office.”

The two entities named are California-based holdings and are said to be vital to Scientology operations in foreign countries. Being added to the “undesirable” list means all local offices are closed down by the state and assets frozen.

Moscow has long argued it’s a “business masquerading as a religion” – similar to arguments made by detractors in the West, who have also long lobbied Washington to revoke Scientology’s tax exempt status.

In most countries across the globe, the group is officially considered a religion and thus enjoys tax exempt status, with the major exception of Russia. In the US, where it was born over a half-century ago when American science fiction novelist L. Ron Hubbard wrote its foundational texts (numbering thousands upon thousands of pages), it’s attracted huge controversy.

The controversy and media spotlight has grown especially over the last decade in the US. After a number of high profile Scientologists, including celebrities like Tom Cruise and John Travolta (though there are rumors the latter has moved away from it), became outspoken public advocates – which included defending some bizarre practices like forcing women to “stay silent” during child birth – but which resulted in backlash as more and more documentaries emerged delving into the strange belief system. 

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FBI Files on the Church of Scientology

Developed by L. Ron Hubbard, Scientology is a religion that offers a precise path leading to a complete and certain understanding of one’s true spiritual nature and one’s relationship to self, family, groups, Mankind, all life forms, the material universe, the spiritual universe and the Supreme Being. Scientology addresses the spirit—not the body or mind—and believes that Man is far more than a product of his environment, or his genes.

Below, you will find FBI files related to Scientology, as released via the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).

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