Scientology 101

New Thought News Service

Mention Scientology and just see how long it takes for someone to chime in with references to well-funded cults, aliens and the mother ship and celebrities jumping on couches.
At the Parliament of World Religions this week, Scientology got equal time.
Rev. Bob Adams, vice president of the Church of Scientology International, discussed the 55-year-old tradition, which is a presence in 165 countries and operates a publishing house. Scientology also maintains several offshoot foundations that work toward a drug-free world, support a prison ministry and run educational programs that help challenged students learn.

Adams described a practical metaphysics based on the idea that each person has a primary urge to survive and will do so at the highest level he or she is capable of. Scientology rates eight levels of functioning, which range from being concerned solely with one's personal survival all the way up to the survival of consciousness as a whole.
Although people often function from the level of reactive mind, which might also be described as ego, they are actually spritual beings with much higher capabilities and levels of experience available, he told his audience. In Scientology, the ideal, or spiritual self, is the "thetan," derived from the Greek letter, theta.
L. Ron Hubbard, founder of Scientology and the theory of dianetics in the 1950s, authored many of the textbooks used by Scientologists. Best known as a writer of science fiction, he was also an engineer, with an engineer's pragmatic outlook, Adams noted.

Adams was not at the Parliament to address Scientology's public relations questions. Instead, with humor and a definite sense of pride, he discussed a worldwide religious movement that has positioned itself as "an applied religious philosophy which offers an exact route through which anyone can regain the truth and simplicity of his spiritual self."

Religions enhance African spiritual traditions

By Alexis Yancey Jaami
New Thought News Service

The King of Benin represents the African traditional religion of Vodun (Voodoo) on Interfaith Action for Peace in Africa.

Curious about the dominance of outside religions in Africa, I went to the seminar, "Interfaith and the Future of Africa," and found only one traditional African religion represented.
That prompted me to ask the panelists how they felt about outside religions being more prominent than traditional religions in Africa. Their answers were intriguing:

Ishamael Noko, general secretary of the Lutheran World Federation: "Athough we changed religions, we didn't change our culture, our relationship with spirit, nature. It's all part of the rich synergy of culture in Africa."

Lally Warren, Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'i in Botswana: "The Christianity I gained complements what I had before. I was raised in my African spiritual traditions and when I learned my new faith, I feel it added to the spiritual tradition I already had."

Margaret Lokawu, United Nations Forum on Indigenous Issues: "Africans still have strong ties to their African religions even though they may have Christian faith. Colonists thought our traditions were satanic, but they give us connection with our spirituality through Mother Earth."

   

Rev. Dr. Setri Nyomi, General Secretary of the World Alliance of Reformed Churches: "We build churches around the shrines of our old religions. You see our spiritual traditions at weddings, funerals, etc. We are Christians but in African clothing."

King Daagbo Hounon Houna II of Benin, of the Vodun or voodoo tradition: "We had to work hard and not lose faith to get our tradition recognized. Our National Day of Vodun is celebrated January 10. You don't have to be scared of this religion or Africa."

The panel members are part of Interfaith Action for Peace in Africa, established in 2002 as the result of an idea generated at the 1999 Parliament in South Africa.
Seven faith traditions are represented: Islam, Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Baha'i and the African traditional religion. The organization has helped to open churches, mosques and temples to other faiths, a first in Africa where most people have never been to other places of worship. The group is determined to bring peace to Africa.
"Our land has been troubled," Noko said. "Today we have to find again this peace.  We are born of the same sacred ancestors.  Why do we have to be separated?  We need to be together."
The organization's interfaith activities include communal prayer; the prayers come from all of the religions. And IFAPA has succeeded in preventing some discrimination; no religious tradition currently is banned from gathering in Africa.
IFAPA leaders are determined to reach ambitious goals.
"Africa is not going to be a launching pad for conflict," Noko said. "We're against using scriptures for enemy actions."

For their groundbreaking interfaith work in Africa, the Parliament honored IFAPA with the 2009 Paul Carus Award. The award is named for Dr. Paul Carus, a scholar, writer and publisher in the fields of religion, philosophy and science who was a key figure in the introduction of Buddhism to the West and a prominent organizer of the first Parliament of the World’s Religions in 1893 in Chicago.

Monks practice the presence in every sense

By Joe Murray
New Thought News Service


The Gyuto monks of Tibet are a multi-sensory experience. 
They are world-renowned for their unearthly, deep-voiced chanting, their creation of large, intricate sand mandalas and their mastery of Tantric ritual traditions.
As amazing as these practices may be, they are peripheral to the most engaging aspect of their character: their presence.
It is the monks' sense of kindness, compassion and unconditional love that permeates the Gyuto House of Australia. For Maureen Fallon, Gyuto House director, that feeling gives people the desire to want "to be around them all day."
Frog-like, entrancing and unbelievably deep, their chants blend complex harmonies; during their appearance at the Parliament, four monks in deep red robes sat cross-legged on a raised dais, chanting for 20 minutes.
The monks in Melbourne, who are visiting various venues across Australia from the Sydney Opera House to primary schools, are part of the Dalai Lama's community of Gyuto monks in exile from Tibet, and are the latest to be chosen from the monastery in Dharamsala, India, to tour Australia.
They are masters of Tantric ritual and are specifically sought-after for those skills. The personal secretary to the Dalai Lama expresses relief when the monks are present, knowing that the proper rituals, prayers and decorations will be performed.
Based in Dharamsala at the Gyuto Tantric University, the monks have been touring through Australia annually for the past 15 years. They travel to raise money, and have built a new monastery, a school, and a clinic in India with the revenue they've generated; they've also provided for solar power, refrigeration, and health services. 
The depth of their kindness is immediately apparent, and yet there is uncertainty when it comes to protocol. That's where Sonam the translator comes in.
Sonam Rigzin is the translator for the traveling group and is himself a former monk. Educated in India, Rigzin later moved to Australia, where he has lived for more than 15 years. He first encountered the Gyuto monks when his younger brother joined the community. They needed a translator, and he was uniquely suited to the job. Beyond translating, Sonam's job is to defuse the apprehension of first-time visitors and to serve as a bridge across cultures; having been born on the Tibetan-Indian border road in 1962, that seems always to have been his role. Regarding the Chinese-Tibetan situation, Sonam grew somber.                                      "China is Tibet's adversary," he said. "We are very clear that it is a fight." Yet the philosophy is to "fight with love and compassion. It is a fight of peace, love and justice." The approach of the monks is "to be themselves, practicing their religion." And so they do, throughout Australia, day in and day out.

Photographs by Ariane Davis. For more, see our "Photos from the Parliament" link in the left column.

Listening to the land

By Alexis Yancey Jaami
New Thought News Service

A Parliament participant thanks Miriam-Rose 

Ungunmerr-Baumann after her talk.

"We still wait for the white man to understand our ways. We certainly spent a lot of time learning theirs," said Miriam-Rose Ungunmerr-Baumann, quietly but firmly, in discussing injustices experienced by her people, the Aboriginals of Australia.

Ungunmarr-Baumann's people find strength in Dadirri meditation; her face shows that the strength sustaining the community is alive and well.

"I was born under a tree ... and that place has very special meaning for me. We have not lost our spirit of Dadirri. It's the way we strengthen ourselves."

During a Sunday workshop at the Parliament, Ungunmerr-Baumann demonstrated the practice, which involves listening deeply to the land and connecting to the Earth, which the Aborigines consider their mother.
"There are deep springs within each of us," she explained. "These springs are the Spirit of God, the sound of deep calling to deep. This is the sound of Jesus. Faith is in the feet. We have connection to the land. If you visit my community, we mostly sit on the ground and that's our connection."

The workshop, "Maori Custom Law and Listening to the Land – Australian Aboriginal Meditation," also featured Merekaraka Caesar, a Wahine Moria of Queensland, who echoed Ungunmerr-Baumann's observations. 
"I am sitting here with my shoes removed. That's my connection to Mother Earth," Caesar said.
She told attendees about Tikanga, or Maori custom law. Handed down from her Tipuna, or ancestors, the law is a practical, vibrant, living part of Maori culture.
"Tikanga is from our God and our ancestors and gives spiritual guidelines from the beginning of time when we stood as eternal brothers and sisters," Caesar said.

It has only been 10 years, she said, that the government has allowed her native language to be taught in schools. 
"In six months, the government will give back to us land we tended for Mother Earth and they are only charging us 2 percent," she said. "Some of my people are angry about that, but I say be grateful it's only 2 percent."

A gay man from Los Angeles asked Ungunmerr-Baumann what he could do to stand up for himself when facing discrimination in America.  
"The first thing is finding out about yourself," she advised. "Find out who you are. I feel confident in who I am and where I come from. I just keep walking."

"Unite with those who think the same and then build up the numbers of those who think the same," Caesar said. "This is the right season in the world for change. It's the people's turn.  Put up your hand if you agree with me."  
The visibly moved participants raised their hands.

Maori Merekaraka Caesar meets 
with workshop attendees.

Youths plant roots of service, community

By Olivia Ware

New Thought News Service

When presented with the opportunity to plant trees at the Quang Minh Temple in Melbourne, young people attending the Parliament jumped at the chance. 

Who wouldn't want to provide a service to a temple community, get some fresh air and have an enlightening educational experience, all at the same time?

The volunteers, one of several groups of youths who signed up to work at different community service projects Sunday, dressed in work attire and boarded a bus. Upon arriving at the monastery, we were greeted, offered hats and gloves and given a tour of the grounds.

Along with the breathtaking view, including an immense statue of Buddha looking down over a green valley that dips into a river, the environmental orientation of the temple community was awe-inspiring. The monks have been deeply involved in a 10-year upkeep project. Using soil reclaimed from a municipal construction project, they have planted native vegetation on one slope and transformed an area into a garden. They regularly plant trees to contribute to the health of the land.

The planting and land projects, however, are only a few of the environmental efforts made by the community. The temple has a worm farm that transforms waste from the kitchen into compost for the garden. Worms feed on the waste, transforming it into fertilizer. When a certain level in the worm tank is reached, the fertilizer is released into the garden. The worm farm reduces the volume of waste produced from 3 cubic tons to 1 cubic ton, and helps to reduce the monastery's garbage collection and water expenses.

Once we'd planted the trees, the monks treated us to a vegetarian meal of sushi, soup, spring rolls and fresh fruit. We left the Quang Minh Temple filled in many ways, knowing that a piece of each of us will take root and grow on the grounds of the monastery in the form of trees.

At left, New Thought News Service reporter Olivia Ware and photographer Ariane Davis prepare a tree for planting. At right, the volunteer crew works on a slope in an industrial part of Melbourne. Photos by Wes Yarborough.

Update on the hijab debate

By Alexis Yancey Jaami
New Thought News Service

"What's a mother to do? A mother in the U.S. should not have to have a stranger disrespect her daughter because she loves her faith and wears a head scarf. Or have strangers tell her, 'Your God is not our God. Go back to your country.'"
Powerful testimony at a Sunday Parliament workshop from Janaam Hashim, a Chicago attorney who runs a criminal defense and civil rights law firm with five other Muslim women lawyers. Amal Law Group is the first of its kind in the U.S.

                               Attorney Janaam Hashim explains how U.S. 
                               laws protect religious freedom such as women 
                               who wear hijab.

Hashim says that since 9/11, the U.S. Department of Justice has successfully prosecuted 42 cases of religious profiling against Muslims, Sikhs and Arabs.
The First and 14th Amendments protect religious freedom in the United States, as does the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.
Hashim noted that some states once banned religious garb in public schools, not due to hijab, but because some did not want nuns wearing habits to enter public schools.

"The number one reason I love my country is because I can practice my faith the way I want to," Hashim said.

                               Hijab isn't always black. More and more 
                               Muslim women are wearing bright headscarves.

"Dialogue is the key to moving forward against Islamophobic issues," Musheed Ansari of Australia emphasized in the workshop, titled, "The Headscarf Debates: Religious Dress and Secular Fundamentalism."
Ansari told how an Australian woman expected to be spit on when she wore the hijab, but found the opposite was true, and regretted she thought her people would not respect her.

Australia has made progress on the issue; Ansari showed pictures of a group of Muslim female lifeguards who wear covering from head to toe and of Muslim women wearing the Australian flag as hijab.