20 ICSA TODAY
The Presence and Activity of the
Church of Scientology
in Romania
The first information about a
substantial presence of Scientology
missionaries in Romania appeared
during the 2006 floods. According to
the data posted on the official Web
site of Church of Scientology
International, Scientology volunteers
arrived in Craiova (in the south of
Romania) and were well received by
the local authorities, who allowed
them to install their famous “yellow
tent” in the center of the town. The
volunteers organized lectures and
training courses in cooperation with
the local Red Cross representatives,
and the volunteers and staff engaged
in first aid. The volunteers also
presented to the Red Cross staff
Ron Hubbard’s techniques, which,
according to the adherents of
Scientology, allegedly contribute to
the healing of the spiritual component
of a trauma. A festive celebration in
the town center, attended by the local
authorities and the Red Cross
representatives, inaugurated the
activity of the Scientology volunteers
in Craiova this was followed by a
folklore show.
Later, a major manifestation of
Scientologists in Romania was
occasioned by the Scientology
Volunteer Minister Goodwill Tour that
Scientologist missionaries in Eastern
Europe undertook. The Church of
Scientology estimates that more than
15,000 Romanians have been
introduced to Scientology through
the yellow tents installed in Bucharest
and other Romanian towns. Before
they reached Romania, the volunteers
already had visited Lithuania, Latvia,
Estonia, Russia, and Poland during a
tour whose declared goal was to
popularize Scientology in East
European countries.
In May 2008, the Scientologists
came to Iaşi and set their tent on
Independence Avenue, close to the
Students’ Cultural Center. The tour
started in Cluj on August 2, 2008.
Mihai Viteazu [Michael the Brave]
Square in the center of town hosted
the famous yellow tent where the
volunteering program was presented,
as well as an exhibition about various
aspects of volunteer work. Between
December 16 and January 20, the
Scientologists set their tent in the
Opera House/Victory Square in
Timişoara. According to the mass
media, 20 persons requested to attend
the training course in order to become
Scientology volunteers. Starting on
May 15, 2009, the course “The
Anatomy of the Human Mind” was
organized in Timişoara and, according
to the organizers, enjoyed “great
success.” The course, based on a series
of conferences held by Hubbard
between 1960 and 1961, focused on
a relevant topic for contemporary
man—namely, success and failure, and
how one can control these factors in
life. The course was organized by
Liliana Măndescu, CEO of Nexus DSI,
a Romanian-American company.
All these examples are visible aspects
of the recent activity the Church of
Scientology has carried out in
Romania they were publicized by
the press at the respective times. We
note that, to Romanian journalists,
Scientology is a curiosity, seen as
“the religion of Tom Cruise and John
Travolta,” as most headlines put it.11
Academic interest in the study of
Scientology is low in our country.12
This scarcity of interest, compared
to the rich bibliography dedicated
to the topic in the Occident, may
be a result of the general conviction
that Scientology has no significant
impact in România.
Admittedly, the Church of
Scientology does not yet have a
Romanian-language Web site, but
only a Web site exclusively dedicated
to the missionary volunteers in
Romania that provides “solutions” to all
of today’s world problems: stress and
uncertainty, drug addiction, family
problems, economic recession,
miscommunication, diseases,
emotions, conflicts, and the aggressive
environment (http://www.voluntari-
humanitari.co.ro/). However, several
publishing houses in Romania have
published the books authored by
Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard.
The solutions these books offer are
simplistic and presuppose resorting
to Scientology methods. In Romania,
as everywhere else in the world, the
Church of Scientology employs several
marketing techniques. Scientologists’
presence in Bucharest and other
cities was accompanied by the
distribution of promotional brochures
and thematic leaflets, or the
construction of billboards that
advertised Scientology books and
the humanitarian actions of the
Church of Scientology. However,
the impact of Scientology in
Romania is low in comparison with
its impact in the Occidental countries.
Reiki
Reiki is a Japanese healing technique
discovered and developed by Mikao
Usui. As it is known, this traditional
Reiki lost its original character and
received many theosophical additions
when it was transferred to the
Occident. In Romania, as an alternative
healing therapy, Reiki is acknowledged
by Law no. 118/2007. As a new spiritual
alternative with New Age origin and
missionary undertones, Reiki has not
The Presence and Activity of the
Church of Scientology
in Romania
The first information about a
substantial presence of Scientology
missionaries in Romania appeared
during the 2006 floods. According to
the data posted on the official Web
site of Church of Scientology
International, Scientology volunteers
arrived in Craiova (in the south of
Romania) and were well received by
the local authorities, who allowed
them to install their famous “yellow
tent” in the center of the town. The
volunteers organized lectures and
training courses in cooperation with
the local Red Cross representatives,
and the volunteers and staff engaged
in first aid. The volunteers also
presented to the Red Cross staff
Ron Hubbard’s techniques, which,
according to the adherents of
Scientology, allegedly contribute to
the healing of the spiritual component
of a trauma. A festive celebration in
the town center, attended by the local
authorities and the Red Cross
representatives, inaugurated the
activity of the Scientology volunteers
in Craiova this was followed by a
folklore show.
Later, a major manifestation of
Scientologists in Romania was
occasioned by the Scientology
Volunteer Minister Goodwill Tour that
Scientologist missionaries in Eastern
Europe undertook. The Church of
Scientology estimates that more than
15,000 Romanians have been
introduced to Scientology through
the yellow tents installed in Bucharest
and other Romanian towns. Before
they reached Romania, the volunteers
already had visited Lithuania, Latvia,
Estonia, Russia, and Poland during a
tour whose declared goal was to
popularize Scientology in East
European countries.
In May 2008, the Scientologists
came to Iaşi and set their tent on
Independence Avenue, close to the
Students’ Cultural Center. The tour
started in Cluj on August 2, 2008.
Mihai Viteazu [Michael the Brave]
Square in the center of town hosted
the famous yellow tent where the
volunteering program was presented,
as well as an exhibition about various
aspects of volunteer work. Between
December 16 and January 20, the
Scientologists set their tent in the
Opera House/Victory Square in
Timişoara. According to the mass
media, 20 persons requested to attend
the training course in order to become
Scientology volunteers. Starting on
May 15, 2009, the course “The
Anatomy of the Human Mind” was
organized in Timişoara and, according
to the organizers, enjoyed “great
success.” The course, based on a series
of conferences held by Hubbard
between 1960 and 1961, focused on
a relevant topic for contemporary
man—namely, success and failure, and
how one can control these factors in
life. The course was organized by
Liliana Măndescu, CEO of Nexus DSI,
a Romanian-American company.
All these examples are visible aspects
of the recent activity the Church of
Scientology has carried out in
Romania they were publicized by
the press at the respective times. We
note that, to Romanian journalists,
Scientology is a curiosity, seen as
“the religion of Tom Cruise and John
Travolta,” as most headlines put it.11
Academic interest in the study of
Scientology is low in our country.12
This scarcity of interest, compared
to the rich bibliography dedicated
to the topic in the Occident, may
be a result of the general conviction
that Scientology has no significant
impact in România.
Admittedly, the Church of
Scientology does not yet have a
Romanian-language Web site, but
only a Web site exclusively dedicated
to the missionary volunteers in
Romania that provides “solutions” to all
of today’s world problems: stress and
uncertainty, drug addiction, family
problems, economic recession,
miscommunication, diseases,
emotions, conflicts, and the aggressive
environment (http://www.voluntari-
humanitari.co.ro/). However, several
publishing houses in Romania have
published the books authored by
Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard.
The solutions these books offer are
simplistic and presuppose resorting
to Scientology methods. In Romania,
as everywhere else in the world, the
Church of Scientology employs several
marketing techniques. Scientologists’
presence in Bucharest and other
cities was accompanied by the
distribution of promotional brochures
and thematic leaflets, or the
construction of billboards that
advertised Scientology books and
the humanitarian actions of the
Church of Scientology. However,
the impact of Scientology in
Romania is low in comparison with
its impact in the Occidental countries.
Reiki
Reiki is a Japanese healing technique
discovered and developed by Mikao
Usui. As it is known, this traditional
Reiki lost its original character and
received many theosophical additions
when it was transferred to the
Occident. In Romania, as an alternative
healing therapy, Reiki is acknowledged
by Law no. 118/2007. As a new spiritual
alternative with New Age origin and
missionary undertones, Reiki has not
