46 ICSA TODAY 44
Scientology ramps up Going Clear smear campaign,
targets academy members
It appears that the Church of Scientology doesn’t want Alex
Gibney, the director and producer of the HBO documentary
Going Clear, to win an Oscar. Since the film aired, Gibney says
that “Scientology has dramatically ratcheted up its corporate
campaign against me and those in the film.” The Church has
approached a number of Gibney’s peers as they begin to make
a film about Gibney. A Scientology magazine will also do a
profile on Gibney. (Hollywood Reporter, 10/7/15)
Russian court bans Moscow branch of the Church of
Scientology
The Moscow City Court has supported a justice ministry
request to close the Church of Scientology in Moscow.
Authorities argued that the Church has registered its name as
a US trademark and therefore cannot be considered a religious
organization. “In August, Moscow investigators said separately
that they had opened a criminal probe after finding hidden
microphones and cameras on the Moscow Church’s premises.”
These decisions come despite rulings favoring the Church
by The European Court of Human Rights, which has accused
Russia of violating the Church’s “rights by refusing to register its
churches in various regions.” (The Guardian, 11/23/15)
Russia’s “temple for all religions”
Ildar Khanov said that Jesus Christ came to him by the
Volga River in the city of Kazan in 1994 and ordered him to
build the Temple of All Religions. For 20 years, Ildar and
his volunteers lived at the construction site where they built
the temple. The idea was not to “merge all religions in one,
because they all have their own history and their own cultural
necessity, but to bring them together, to give them a meeting
and communication place. It is not a place of worship, but of
culture.” Ildar told people he was blessed with clairvoyance and
healing powers, and the only way into the temple was through
an appointment with him. The temple became an attraction
for pilgrims seeking advice and healing. Ildar would see around
300 patients per day, and he would only get 4 hours’ sleep a
night. When he died at age 73 in early 2013, his funeral was
held in the church. (The Daily Beast, 09/06/15)
Work advances on “peace palace” in Rendlesham
Richard Johnson, the national director of the Maharishi
Foundation, is working on building a peace palace in
Rendlesham, United Kingdom. The palace is being built for
beginner and advanced courses in Transcendental Meditation
(TM) that include consciousness-based education and natural
health care known as Ayurveda and a program of community
events. The palace is scheduled to open in September of 2016.
(East Anglian Daily Times, 08/13/15)
Elder in Germany convicted of hitting child
In Southern Germany, a 54-year-old Twelve Tribes elder has
been convicted of abusing a child in his care by hitting him with
a 4-foot switch. He was sentenced to 6 months’ probation and
also fined 2,000 euros by the Noerdlingen state court in Bavaria.
In 2013, authorities raided the sect in southern Germany and
placed 40 children into foster care. The sect denied abuse
charges, saying that there was no “direct evidence against any
individual.” The group’s website, however, reveals that members
believe in spanking their children. (ABC News, AP, 11/23/15)
Survivor of Word of Life Church beatings testifies in
court
In New Hartford, New York, Lucas and Christopher Leonard
were brutally beaten at a counseling session at Word of Life
Church. The beating was initiated after Tiffanie Irwin, the pastor
of the church, announced that someone in the congregation
was practicing witchcraft. Lucas admitted he was the one who
had been practicing witchcraft because he wanted the church
elders to die, and that he had considered making a voodoo
doll of one of the leaders. Bruce Leonard and his wife Deborah
Sarah Ferguson, the boy’s half-sister and four other church
members then beat Lucas, 19, and Christopher, 17, for at least
12 hours as punishment. The beating was so severe that Lucas
died after arriving at the hospital Christopher survived and
recovered.
Daniel Irwin, a church deacon, told investigators about the
beatings: “Bruce Leonard, 65, and his wife, Deborah Leonard, 59
… were in court just a few feet from Mr. Irwin. Both have been
charged with first-degree manslaughter…. Four other church
members, including Sarah Ferguson, the victim’s half-sister,
and Joseph Irwin, who is Daniel Irwin’s older brother and also
a deacon in the church, have been charged with assault. All six
were in court on Friday, including two other congregants, David
Morey and Linda Morey, who have been released on bail.” (The
New York Times, 10/21/15) n
Scientology ramps up Going Clear smear campaign,
targets academy members
It appears that the Church of Scientology doesn’t want Alex
Gibney, the director and producer of the HBO documentary
Going Clear, to win an Oscar. Since the film aired, Gibney says
that “Scientology has dramatically ratcheted up its corporate
campaign against me and those in the film.” The Church has
approached a number of Gibney’s peers as they begin to make
a film about Gibney. A Scientology magazine will also do a
profile on Gibney. (Hollywood Reporter, 10/7/15)
Russian court bans Moscow branch of the Church of
Scientology
The Moscow City Court has supported a justice ministry
request to close the Church of Scientology in Moscow.
Authorities argued that the Church has registered its name as
a US trademark and therefore cannot be considered a religious
organization. “In August, Moscow investigators said separately
that they had opened a criminal probe after finding hidden
microphones and cameras on the Moscow Church’s premises.”
These decisions come despite rulings favoring the Church
by The European Court of Human Rights, which has accused
Russia of violating the Church’s “rights by refusing to register its
churches in various regions.” (The Guardian, 11/23/15)
Russia’s “temple for all religions”
Ildar Khanov said that Jesus Christ came to him by the
Volga River in the city of Kazan in 1994 and ordered him to
build the Temple of All Religions. For 20 years, Ildar and
his volunteers lived at the construction site where they built
the temple. The idea was not to “merge all religions in one,
because they all have their own history and their own cultural
necessity, but to bring them together, to give them a meeting
and communication place. It is not a place of worship, but of
culture.” Ildar told people he was blessed with clairvoyance and
healing powers, and the only way into the temple was through
an appointment with him. The temple became an attraction
for pilgrims seeking advice and healing. Ildar would see around
300 patients per day, and he would only get 4 hours’ sleep a
night. When he died at age 73 in early 2013, his funeral was
held in the church. (The Daily Beast, 09/06/15)
Work advances on “peace palace” in Rendlesham
Richard Johnson, the national director of the Maharishi
Foundation, is working on building a peace palace in
Rendlesham, United Kingdom. The palace is being built for
beginner and advanced courses in Transcendental Meditation
(TM) that include consciousness-based education and natural
health care known as Ayurveda and a program of community
events. The palace is scheduled to open in September of 2016.
(East Anglian Daily Times, 08/13/15)
Elder in Germany convicted of hitting child
In Southern Germany, a 54-year-old Twelve Tribes elder has
been convicted of abusing a child in his care by hitting him with
a 4-foot switch. He was sentenced to 6 months’ probation and
also fined 2,000 euros by the Noerdlingen state court in Bavaria.
In 2013, authorities raided the sect in southern Germany and
placed 40 children into foster care. The sect denied abuse
charges, saying that there was no “direct evidence against any
individual.” The group’s website, however, reveals that members
believe in spanking their children. (ABC News, AP, 11/23/15)
Survivor of Word of Life Church beatings testifies in
court
In New Hartford, New York, Lucas and Christopher Leonard
were brutally beaten at a counseling session at Word of Life
Church. The beating was initiated after Tiffanie Irwin, the pastor
of the church, announced that someone in the congregation
was practicing witchcraft. Lucas admitted he was the one who
had been practicing witchcraft because he wanted the church
elders to die, and that he had considered making a voodoo
doll of one of the leaders. Bruce Leonard and his wife Deborah
Sarah Ferguson, the boy’s half-sister and four other church
members then beat Lucas, 19, and Christopher, 17, for at least
12 hours as punishment. The beating was so severe that Lucas
died after arriving at the hospital Christopher survived and
recovered.
Daniel Irwin, a church deacon, told investigators about the
beatings: “Bruce Leonard, 65, and his wife, Deborah Leonard, 59
… were in court just a few feet from Mr. Irwin. Both have been
charged with first-degree manslaughter…. Four other church
members, including Sarah Ferguson, the victim’s half-sister,
and Joseph Irwin, who is Daniel Irwin’s older brother and also
a deacon in the church, have been charged with assault. All six
were in court on Friday, including two other congregants, David
Morey and Linda Morey, who have been released on bail.” (The
New York Times, 10/21/15) n
