dublin offlines: speaking out against the cult of scientology

7/31/2019 DUBLIN OFFLINES: Speaking Out Against the Cult of Scientology

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/dublin-offlines-speaking-out-against-the-cult-of-scientology 1/27

Speaking out against the cult of ScientologyJune 30th, 2012

The Teachers Club36 Parnell Square West

Dublin 1

10:00 AMJune 30th, 2012



2

Who are we? ........................................................................................................................... 4

Why are w e holding this conference?......................................................................... 4

What will the conference share? ................................................................................... 4

The Scientology beliefs ...................................................................................................... 5

The money aspect ............................................................................................................... 5

The PTS/SP concept ............................................................................................................ 8

Disconnection ........................................................................................................................ 8

Recruiting techniques ........................................................................................................ 9

The Sea Organizat ion ......................................................................................................... 9

Stephen Jones ..................................................................................................................... 12

Sharone Stainforth ............................................................................................................. 12

Jamie DeWolf ....................................................................................................................... 13

David Edgar Love ................................................................................................................ 13

Gabrielle Wynne ................................................................................................................. 14

John McGhee ....................................................................................................................... 14

Ann Robinson ...................................................................................................................... 15

Pete Griffiths ......................................................................................................................... 15

Martin Poulter ...................................................................................................................... 16

Gabriella Coleman ............................................................................................................. 16

Tory Christman ................................................................................................................... 17

Samantha Domingo .......................................................................................................... 17

Mary Abadi ............................................................................................................................ 18

John Duignan ...................................................................................................................... 18

Roger Gonnet ....................................................................................................................... 19



3

1956 ......................................................................................................................................... 20

1957 .......................................................................................................................................... 21

1958 ......................................................................................................................................... 22

....................................................................................................................................... 23

....................................................................................................................................... 23

...................................................................................................................................... 24

..................................................................................................................................... 25



4

Dublin Offlines is organised by ex-members of the Scientologyorganisation, Independent Scientologists*, critics of theScientology organisation and family members of those who have

been affected by the Scientology organisation.

* Independent Scientologists are Scientologists who practiceScientology outside of the Scientology organisation.

No matter where in the world the Scientology organisation hashad a presence, a trail of broken families and financial ruin hasnever been far behind. Ireland, through the Dublin branch of theScientology organisation, has experienced the same examples ofpressure selling and the same pressure on members to disconnectfrom loved ones.

This conference will share these stories fromboth the international perspective as well as accounts specific to

Ireland that speak to the harm caused by the Scientologyorganisation. Those involved in the conference, including thosewho continue to hold to the Scientology beliefs and teachings,have chosen to participate based upon a common desire to warnboth the public and the media about this dangerous and abusiveorganisation.

The conference will feature testimony from ex-members of theScientology organisation, both from abroad and from Ireland,describing their experiences within the organisation. Betweenthem the speakers have over a century of experiences to share.Testimony from family members who have been disconnectedfrom their loved ones will also feature.

This will also be the first time that Irish ex-members and Irish

family members have collaborated to collectively share theirexperiences to an Irish audience.



5

In order to understand the Scientology beliefs, we first need to- the precursor to

Scientology. The central idea of Dianetics is that traumatic

memories are the source of many of the problems which affect ustoday. These memories can be stored in a portion of our brainwhich L. Ron Hubbard, the founder of Scientology, dubbed the

thereby causing a person to behave irrationally. Through the

questions are asked to the person undergoing auditing, Hubbard

attempted to relieve the charge possessed by these engrams inorder to reduce their influence. Successfully relieving the charge ofall their a person incontrol of their own mental energy.

However, Dianetics only rids your physical body of engrams. The

you and is aware ofbeing aware, has also accumulated engrams throughout itsimmortal existence. Scientology auditing, which involves a device

-charge.

All courses within the Scientology organisation, bar two, have a

price attached. The two free courses teach you how to sellScientology to others. Prices for courses and materials start from

rise to as high as tens of thousands of euro for advanced courseslike the New OT IV & New OT V (see sample advertising materialoverleaf).

People who are unable to afford these prices can sometimes join

is often a means for the organisation to obtain free/cheap labour.

This will be described in the experiences of some of theconference speakers.



6

SAMPLE ADVERTISING MATERIAL SOURCE: AOSH THE ROUTE TO OT ISSUE 1



7

Reaching the very highest level within the Scientologyorganisation, the OT8 level, costs hundreds of thousands of euro.The pressure placed upon members to purchase courses andmaterials, as well as to make donations to Scientology-relatedentities such as the International Association of Scientologists, isintense. The following extract, taken from the Church of

Scientology International Management Bulletin No. 108 titled

management approach:

The most successful orgs have very hard selling registrars. They apply the LRHdata in the new Hard Sell pack and they are experts in Big League SalesTechniques.

The top registrars on the planet sell more services and get more people up TheBridge in one week, than others (who do not know and apply the LRH Hard Selldata and Big Leagues Sales) do in a whole year.

Fact!

And this is not just a question of making money, it is a question of gettingpublic contacted and onto and up The Bridge. The registrar can make all thedifference applying LRH Tech on Hard Sell.

The thing to do is:

Get a copy of the Hard Sell Pack to all your registrars and have them read itand USE it on post.

Implement daily drilling of Hard Sell for all registrars and call-in personnel. Read quotes from the Hard Sell Pack to all staff at staff musters.

Get your registrars trained in Big League Sales using LRH ED 236 INTREGISTRATION PROGRAM NO 2.

Cram anyone who fails to sell by being soft sell or not applying Big LeagueSales.

Get your registrars regularly briefed on Tech wins and the rave results ofauditing and training in your org. And keep them briefed on the servicesyour org delivers.

Keep the cases of your registrars and dissemination personnel flying. Theirhard selling depends on their ow n reality.

Get more registrars and train them in Hard Sell and Big League Sales.



8

anyone who seeks to damage Scientology or Scientologists by

The concept of an SP serves two important functions within theScientology organisation. Firstly, it acts as a thought stopper whenmembers encounter criticism directed at the organisation.

Secondly, the SP concept provides a source of blame for whenclaims of the organisation fail to match the results of what isactually delivered.

towards its critics and ex-members who expose it.

Probably the most well-known outcome of the PTS/SP concept isthat of disconnection. Family members and friends who expresscriticism of the organisation are deemed to be suppressive.Members often receiveand friends, in some cases being pressured into disconnecting (i.e.

to cease all contact) from them altogether.

Real-life examples of these practices will be described by theconference speakers. In one Irish example a family have had nocontact with their loved one since being disconnected in January

2002. In some cases the threat of disconnection is used ablackmail tool. One Irish example features a member who was

told that the reason she was unable to afford the course may be

due to her mother being a suppressive influence.

To fail or refuse to disconnect from a suppressive person not only denies the

PTS case gain, it is also supportive of the suppressive-in itself a Suppressive Act.



9

Whether it is through their Free Stress Test, through leadingquestions or through their Personality Test, the aim in each case isthe samemembers to buy books and courses. A ruin is an insecurity orpsychological button that can be used against a person to make

that person think they need Scientology.

recruitment policy can be seen on the next page. The following

The Sea Organization (or Sea Org or SO for short ) is the inner coreof the Scientology organisation, and where the most extremeabuses of the organisation occur including 100-hour workweeks and coerced abort ions (pregnancy gets in the way of work).

Members commit to the SO by singing a billion-year contract (youcan see this contract overleaf).

Ex-m embers of the SO will share their experiences of these abuses

at the conference.by an Irish ex-member sharing his two decades of experienceswithin the Sea Organization, will be provided to all attendees atthe conference.

should be used repeatedly during the evaluation for the sake of impingement.

A clever evaluator can surmise such things as domestic grief, trouble with

possessions, etc., much more easily than a fortune teller.



11

THE BILLION YEAR SEA ORGANIZATION CONTRACT



12

http://exscientologistsireland.org/sj/

Recruited at a low point in his life and seduced by the promise ofspiritual immortality, Stephen Jones signed a one billion yearcontract and joined the elite Sea Organization in 1986. Removedfrom the outside world he worked in the unit responsible for theday-to-left after becoming disenchanted with the chaotic and absurd

nature of the organization.

However, he had been hooked and stayed in the church as aBridge to Total

£100,000 and 22 years in the church, he came to realise that theChurch of Scientology was a cult and that Scientology did notwork as advertised. Further, that he had been mentally

department attempted to coerce him into silence regarding hisexperiences. He refused and has been commenting on the abusive

nature of this cult ever since.

http://exscientologistsireland.org/ss/

Sharone was about 6 years old w hen her parents got involved with

Scientology. Her father Michael worked as the regstrar at Saint HillManor near East Grinstead, the head office of the Scientology

organisation in the UK. As a 10-year old girl she signed a billionyear contract to join the Sea Organization in 1967 on board theirship the Royal Scot Man (later the Apollo).

She was one of the original Commodore's Messengers, workingsolely under L. Ron Hubbard, where she bathed his feet anddressed him. Her father left the ship in 1969, leaving Sharone alone

to work on the ship at the age of 12. An order was issued at thetime that she be thrown overboard the ship for not pulling herweight. She escaped this by secretly destroying the ethics chit. She

credits the Anonymous protests for giving her the courage tospeak out.





13

http://exscientologistsireland.org/jw/

Scientology, L. Ron Hubbard. To say that Jamie has things to sayabout his great grandfather would be an understateme

empire in the 1950s but later denounced him as a "fraud."

-girlfriend have been visited by Scientologyagents asking about his references to Scientology in his poetry. Itdoes seem as if his ginger hair was not the only thing he inherit iedfrom his great-grandfather. As he put in his own words - "In highschool, a psychiatrist asked me if I had a history of mental illness in

http://exscientologistsireland.org/dl/

David is a former graduate of Narconon Trois-Rivieres,

drug treatment program. He experienced first-handhow Narconon is used a recruitment tactic for

Scientology. More disturbingly, he also witnessed thedangers involved with the program.

-2009), people

were taken away in ambulances and had to spend daysin the hospital. People have died in the Quebec facility.The vitamin and sauna treatments are horrible. Patientsr

He has being speaking out about his experiences ever

since.







14

http://exscientologistsireland.org/gw/

Gabrielle walked into the Dublin Scientology centre as part ofa school project, and within months she was working onstaff. For all her time cold- calling, audit ing others, answering

phone as Dianetics (staff were instructed not to mentionScientology) and pushing flyers through letter boxes she was

While in the organisation she received coaching on how tohandle her friends and family. The final straw came when

course. Her ethics officer supposed that her mother might bethe suppressive influence that was holding her back. She left

soon after and, in hindsight, continues to wonder how shemissed all the warning signs.

http://exscientologistsireland.org/jg/

branch would duly

wrong. He regularly lent cash to senior members for food and was

People around him were running up debts, losing their temper andfalling illget anyone to see it that way, and eventually stopped questioningit .

more important than their children or mothers and fathers. They

even do it in the mission. There are lads there 20 years without apenny to their name who glorify Scientology. And I think, what did







15

http://exscientologistsireland.org/ar/

Ann works as a school teacher, and has been speakingout on the subject of Scientology for over decade. Sheand her family w ere featured on the Late Late Show in

1995 where she spoke about how her brother, TonyPhelan, had disconnected from the family. Since 2002the family have had no contact w ith Tony.

speak out about the impact that this organisation hashad on our family. If even one person hears that, and itsaves them from experiencing what our family has,

http://exscientologistsireland.org/pg/

Griffiths ran a mission in Cumbria, in northern England, evenwinning the birthday game (a competition between missions for

highest recruitment and sales) for his division. His weekly figureseventually petered out. When he moved to Westport in 1998 hehad planned to return to Scientology once his children weregrown and he could better afford it.

t until he heard of a protest in 2008 that he looked into-

Then a lengthy unravelling process began. I got so angry that I

burned any Scientology stuff I had lying around in a bonfire. I







16

http://exscientologistsireland.org/mp/

Martin first encountered skepticism while ateenager. He has a Philosophy and Psychologydegree from Oxford University and a PhD in

Philosophy of Science from the University ofBristol. He is also on the board of trustees forWikimedia UK.

He has been a Scientology-watcher since 1995,when he was threatened with legal action overmaterial he posted online. Since that time hehas been following the organisation closely,and sharing what he has learnt. He maintains

one of the best online media archives on theorganisation, with material going back as far as1966.

http://exscientologistsireland.org/gc/

Gabriella trained as an anthropologist and isan Assistant Professor and Wolfe Chair inScientific & Technological Literacy at theMcGill University in Canada, and an AssistantProfessor of Media, Culture, and

Communication at New York University.

Her research has included digital activism,particularly Anonymous, and she is currently

working on a book for this topic. Herexpertise on the topic has lead to herbecoming a regular media commentator, inaddition to her academic publications. Shehas made many presentations on the topic.







17

http://exscientologistsireland.org/magoo/

Tory was a member of the Church of Scientology for 30years. She joined in 1969 and escaped out in July of 2000(This will be her 12th anniversary out). She is going to

share some of the serious abuses committed by theScientology organisation behind closed doors.

Tory is part Irish and greatly looking forward to visitingIreland. She has spoken out in numerous media outletsand in the international media about her experiences. Shehas been working to help people within the organisationsince she escaped.

http://exscientologistsireland.org/sd/

Samantha spent 20 years within the Scientology

organisation, before finally quitting in 2009. When shebegan to speak out against its abuses her ex-husband,Placido Domingo Jr., was pressured to "disconnect"from her. He was instructed to communicate with theirthree daughters only via an attorney. He refused and

instead quit the organisation.

When in the Sea Organisation she fell pregnant and was

the Church ofScientology crumble. It is a cancer, rotten to the core. It







18

http://exscientologistsireland.org/ma/

Mary is better known by the fertit iunder which she has posted her testimony. While in the

a program reputed to redeem those whoparticipate in it.

Many ex-members who were in the RPF tell a verydifferent story about the RPF, involving severe abuse andgulag-

The poor woman looked so wretched. She keptmechanically repeating those sentences. She was quiteobviously disturbed. Her look was blood red out of fear

and out of distress

http://exscientologistsireland.org/jd/

John. While in the SeaOrganisation he worked 16-hours days for between £5 and

£15 a week. At 42 he feels he should have been married with

money, no qualifications or transferrable skills, no stateentitlements and no way non-

Scientologists).

After leaving the organisation John described himself as beingFour years on he says intensive

counselling and the ability to attend college as a maturestudent have helped him rebuild his life. John wrote the book

the organisation.







19

http://exscientologistsireland.org/rg/

Roger was an executive within the Scientologyorganisation. He established the Lyon branch inFrance, which he then managed. He became a criticof the organisation in 1982, and has been speakingour ever since.

He testified in the recent French court case whichfound the organisation guilty of defrauding recruits

out of their savings and practising medicine withouta license. His testimony described the manipulativepersonality test and how Scientologists are trained tolie to the court. He also provided the prosecutionwith numerous internal policy letters used by theorganisation.





20

This section is a collection of media articles, historical documents and otherreferences detailing the activities of the Scientology organisation in Ireland over

the years. Where possible we provide links to scans, text and videos of therelevant source materials that w e used to construct this timeline.

Founder of Scientology, L. Ron Hubbard, opens an office in 69Merrion Square Dublin. Hubbard also announces his plan toestablish the HASUK Atomic Energy Healing Division Emergency

Station in Dublin to act as a fall back for his British operationsshould atomic warfare break out. Ireland, according to Hubbard,was unlikely to be bom bed and w as thus a suitable location.

At the end of March 1956, Ray Kempaccompanied Hubbard on a trip to Dublin. 'He wanted to see if there was something he could

do for Ireland ,' Kemp explained. 'He felt that Ireland's troubles were based on the fact that it was a bit like a Third World nation and had never been able to apply the skills of its people. We were there for two or three days and he spent the whole time talking to people. We'd be walking down the street and all of a sudden he wasn't there. I'd look back and see him deep in conversation with someone, asking them if they had a job, what their skills were, things like that.

Believe it or not, he'd actually run a little process on them there and then and they'd feel better and he'd walk away. His idea was to open a Personal Efficiency Foundation in Dublin to teach people how to apply whatever skills they had got, but I don't think anything ever came of it .'

Source documents:http://exscientologistsireland.org/1956dublin/

http://exscientologistsireland.org/1956dublin/

http://exscientologistsireland.org/1956dublin/



21

Hubbard establishedAnthony Phillips describes his time working there on his website:


I WAS DR. PHILLIPS Director of the American College of PersonalEfficiency in Dublin, Ireland, from March 1957 to September 1957.

I did not know anything of the details of Ron setting up what was called

"the Dublin operation", which in itself was unusual for that time, as therewere only two, relatively large, Scientology Orgs (London andWashington DC) plus something in Berlin and Paris which appeared asthough they were more like field auditors who had gotten their names

on the lists of official organisations because of being in important townsin continental Europe. I was told that Dublin had 25% unemployment. Iknew (and know) nothing about how Ron had started the operation orwho had been helping. I knew that there had been an HPA (professionalauditor course) while he was there, and from that there were twograduates outside the org, Bernie Green and Gerry Boland (with perhaps

their wives, and in the org were Nuala Cowley, who was registrar in theevenings, and Bernard Duffey, who was evening Advanced courseinstructor. That w as about all I knew of what Ron had started, described

with enthusiasm in his PAB and lecture.

What I inherited was an organisation in debt, owing money for classifiedadvertisements in both newspapers, a system of putting in classifiedadvertisements in one paper, which we paid cash for (which got a fewpeople onto the free course) and a system where we recruited nurses fora Chicago hospital, and possibly got some commission out of that.



22

Bernie Green, who served as the Irish correspondent for theScientology publication Ability Magazine, describes his work withHubbard in a 1974 New York Magazine article:

In 1958, Green met L. Ron Hubbard and helped him found a school of scientology in Dublin. Things soured when Hubbard ran up bills, Green said "He only smoked Kools and

imported them from America at $3 a pack.He brought his Jaguar from London and rented an expensive house on Dublin Bay.He bought $5,000 worth of camera equipment. He bled us white, and left me holding the bag.

Despite his initial experience, Green rejoined the Scientology fold in 1966 and came to New York in 1967 to open a center. He soon

broke away.

refused to turn the center into a church,which was just a ta

opened up his own International Awareness Center and set up a private practice.

someone who has studied their methods and then strikes out on his own, a Hubbardite schismatic.




23

There is evidence that Hubbard moved back to Ireland in thelisted as

comes from a 1976 article in the Cork Examiner:

Mr. Hubbard is expected to visit Cork this week and view the prospective property where he hopes to live with his wife and family. He is staying in the Dublin area with some friends at the moment.

Scientology organisation presence until 1987,when the Mission of Dublin was founded. Thefollowing extract from a 1988 article in The Star

The Church of Scientology has set up shop in the heart of downtown Dublin.

A mind-bending cult based on science fiction, it

urt Judge.

In 1984, the Church of Scientology announced it was to open a centre in Ireland and claimed to have more than 1,000 members here. They opened the centre just before last Christmas.

Source documents:http://exscientologistsireland.org/1988star/



24

This decade featured two exposés of the Scientology organisationon national television.

The first exposé took place in 1995 on the

Late Late Show. It featured Peter Manselland Gerard Ryan representing theScientology organisation, while PJ Phelan

and Mary Johnson gave the counterview.

PJ described the impact that Scientologyhas had on his family, and how his brotherTony has become almost a stranger in hislife. Mary described her experiences within

the organisation, and in particular how she

The second exposé was broadcast in 1997 onRTE Primetime, and featured the case of

Odhran Fortune and the impact thatScientology has had on the Fortune family.

As of 2012 Odhran remains within theorganisation, although he does continue tohave contact w ith his family.

Source videos:http://exscientologistsireland.org/latelate/

http://exscientologistsireland.org/primetime/



25

featuring Mary Johnson. Mary, who featured in the Late Late Showepisode discussed previously, took a court case against theScientology organisation over her involvement. While thesettlement amount was not disclosed, the annual returns for the

Scientology mission in Dublin started to show a debt of hundredsof thousands of euro. The case was featured heavily in the Irishmedia.

Source documents:http://exscientologistsireland.org/2000case/



26

.

The next chapter in the history of the Scientology organisation inIreland will take place on June 30 th where for the first time Irishex-members and family affected by the organisation willcollectively present their experiences to the attending media.



All enquires, including scheduling interviews with speakers and

reserving a place at the conference can be made to Pete Griffiths:Email: [email protected]: 086 3703811

Part of the reason for hosting this conference is to let you know

that you are not alone. Many people have experienced the fraudand abuse of the Scientology organisation first hand, some ofwhich are now collaborating to organise this conference.

It is the hope of the conference organisers to share theirexperiences with the public, in the hope that such testimony mayhelp prevent others from suffering the same fraud and abuse. If

you, as an ex-member, wish to contribute your experiences oreven just to get in touch with other ex-members then please get intouch with us. We would very much like to hear from you.

Contact Pete Griffiths:Email: [email protected]: 086 3703811

dublin offlines: speaking out against the cult of scientology

Documents