Erika Christensen was on Parenthood, which aired on NBC from 2010 to 2015. I watched it when it was on and it remains one of my favorite series. It was poignant without being too schmaltzy and it really captured the joy and trials of middle age, raising kids, and family relationships. You can watch all six seasons on Netflix or Hulu.
Anyway Erika co-starred with Dax Shepard, who played one of her brothers on the show. Erika has been a lifelong Scientologist, her parents are in Scientology, and she talked to Dax on his podcast about growing up in the cult, only she didn’t call it a cult she acted like it was just any other religion and like all the criticism of Scientology and its human rights abuses doesn’t matter. Her reasoning was questionable, which is pretty typical from a Scientologist:
“I was a kid, I was like sounds cool to me, fine,” Erika recalled. “When I was 12, I started doing a bunch of the little introductory courses that they still have now that are maybe a few hours each.”
As pop culture fans know, the Church of Scientology has been put under the spotlight thanks to programs such as Leah Remini’s Scientology and the Aftermath and Going Clear.
When asked why she doesn’t watch the documentary or other programs critical of the church, Erika shared her point of view.
“It honestly doesn’t have anything to do with…anything that I’ve ever learned about the group or organization. To be specific about [Going Clear], if somebody has read a book, read Dianetics or some Scientology book and wants to philosophically tell me what they disagree with, cool. That is a totally different thing. But specifically with that documentary, the documentary was based on a book. The book was not even published in some English-speaking countries because the libel laws are stricter than they are here,” she shared. “There’s so much that is actually…talking about sources. They have proved themselves to be irrelevant…There’s no relevance in what they’re saying.”
Given what we’ve learned from Leah Remini about how people get cut off from their families when they leave Scientology, I understand the urge by former cult members to stay silent about it or just say very little. It’s known that Jason Lee has left, but all he’s said is that “we no longer practice Scientology.” When someone defends it with nonsense like this though, they’re still in COS. Elisabeth Moss has parroted Scientology talking points like this, and she’s similarly made it sound like it’s an accepting and open religion. I don’t think there’s any other way that Scientologists are allowed to talk about it. At least Erika isn’t attacking anyone like Kirstie Alley regularly does, but that bar is set very low.
Also Erika is pregnant with her second child. She married cyclist Cole Maness in 2015 and they have a daughter, Shane, who is two.
photos credit: WENN and Instagram
I read “Going Clear” and watched the documentary a few times. Both sought to be as fair as possible to Scientology and L. Ron Hubbard. Unfortunately for these diehard members, a thinking person could only conclude after reviewing all of the evidence unearthed that Scientology is not a real religion but a dangerous cult.
I have the book too, and I don’t doubt any part of it, especially the parts detailing how Nazanin Boniadi was treated. “Irrelevant?” lol Their “fair fame” policy and the fact that they fully endorse lying and “suppressive” people and ruining families are as far away from “beautiful” as you can get. Yes, Tom Cruise says “it’s a beautiful religion.” It’s insane, abusive and it’s run by a violently abusive psycho, David Miscavige. Plenty of documentation out there to back it all up. When I hear that any celebrity is a Scientologist I am always disappointed.
Even if only half of “Going Clear” is true… it’s terrifying.
““It honestly doesn’t have anything to do with…anything that I’ve ever learned about the group or organization.”
so, basically, she ignores the reports of slavery and missing family members/”disconnection”, the stalking and harassment of former members, and the “prison” out in the desert to focus on what she’s “learned about the group”. willful ignorance.
whatever, cult-member.
and Rachel in August, I totally agree about being disappointed. when I found out Beck was in the cult, I was so sad.
I know, I hear you.
The difference between a cult and a religion is super simple
If I go to a Christian/Muslim/Buddhist/Jewish church/temple and ask what they believe, I will receive a complete answer. For no money. They will accept money but do no require it in exchange for information and instruction.
This is not true of Scientology.
If you have to pay and the information is offered only in increments until you pay some more, it’s not a religion.
yes, exactly this. you can KEEP going to church services, too, without having to donate to the church.
and you don’t get stalked/harassed if you stop going.
Also, if you decide you want to stop attending services, they don’t run you down and force you to stay. Or encourage you to cut of friends and family members that believe something else.
@whatWHAT? – I have heard of some Mormon congregations that do that. But otherwise, you are right.
Am currently reading ‘Terror, love and brainwashing: Attachment in cults and totalitarian systems’ by Alexandra Stein. She mentions how, unlike Richard Dawkins, she distinguishes between cults and religions. Anyone interested in why people stay in Scientology, become terrorists, or go along with what’s happening under Trump should give it a read.
Yes, I know a couple of Mormon families cut off from the rest of relatives because the dad and/or mom moved away from the church. I also know families who lost contact with their adult kids after adult kid joined the church. I think there is something like that going around in Amish, Mennonite, and other super fringe religions, sometimes, too. Some religions are just very … insular. I think it’s garbage behaviour, but it muddies the distinction between cult and religion because it’s a complicated one.
Oops, double post.
Scientologists are not known for their critical thinking skills. She knows about disconnection. To deny or not acknowledge it is despicable.
They ALL know about that policy from childhood but lie about it, but are taught that lying is okay. I’ve seen Tom Cruise lie through his teeth on camera about his relationship with Nicole Kidman. He averts his eyes, his voice changes and so does his body language. An interviewer asked what his relationship with her was like, and he said, “Good … easy.” BS!! You don’t HAVE a relationship with her. He won’t even utter Katie Holmes’ name anymore, just “Suri’s mom.” Coward. How can anyone respect a liar?
Well he isn’t involved in Suri’s life anymore either. Katie made darn sure when she divorced him, she would retain custody of Suri. He was seen with her for a few months following the divorce but he unsurprisingly disconnected from her as Katie is a Suppressive Person now and by extension Suri since he didn’t win custody like he did when he divorced Nicole Kidman. He hasn’t seen Suri in years (and he was forced to admit that in court for some reason I forget why that happened) or probably been in contact with her and he won’t say Suri’s name in interviews either. I’m pretty sure that topic is forbidden in interviews now.
I also think his daughter Isabella has tried to distance herself from him. Why else would she move to England and then get married?
I’ve read Isabella might have reconnected with her mom. I hope so. I hope she got out.
He didn’t win custody with Kidman. They had shared custody and there are afew pictures post divorce of Kidman with the kids.
Several ex-Co$ people assigned to Cruise at the time have now confessed to a deliberate policy of poisoning the kids against Kidman such that the kids disconnected from her. One of these people was one of MissCabbage’s enforcers. When you watch him talk about what he did to separate Cruise and Kidman and then to separate Kidman from the kids, it’s chilling how dispassionate and matter-of-fact he is about it. He may have left the organisation and is it’s chief critic as well as being exhibition A, but he was in for over 30yrs and still has the habits and philosophies indoctrinated.
it’s sad for Suri that her dad is such a brainwashed tool, but she’s better off that she doesn’t spend time with him.
It’s still amazing to me that one of the biggest stars out there basically ditched his kid, and NO ONE ever calls him on it.
@ LAK, yes, I believe you’re talking about Mike Rinder. Many have come forward to confirm this. I think this is what sent Katie over the edge, too, knowing what had been done to separate Nicole from her adopted children. How hateful, how cruel. And even the phrase “assigned to Cruise” is scary. Yes, handlers assigned to Cruise to keep their star child/poster boy/exemplary Scientology member on track and to make sure he doesn’t stray. He’s only a f*cking commodity to them and he doesn’t even realize that. Miscavige only cares about his money. I’m pretty convinced the cult depends heavily on Cruise’s millions because he is foolish enough to donate that much and further foolish enough to disregard the suffering of the Sea Org slavery. Blown for Good by Marc Headley was very, very telling and very gripping. I also read somewhere that Shelley (I think it was Shelley or another exec) carried a small first-aid kit to tend to execs when Miscavige beat the piss out of someone. It happened a lot. I mean hello? This is a church and a beautiful religion? Laughing my ass off here!
lucy2, I suspect this is because Cruise has deliberately surrounded himself with yes-people, who dare not put a foot wrong or ever say the wrong thing, lest they be cast aside by “Mr Cruise” and suffer the consequences. As for his interviews, as has already been stated, there are topics that are completely off limits – Katie Holmes, Nicole Kidman, Suri, his relationship with Mc Scabbage etc. I’d say he simply will not agree to any interview unless these conditions/riders are set in stone. I remember one of our Aussie journalists once having the temerity to ask him about an off-limits topic. Cruise immediately stopped the interview by berating the interviewer, unhooking his microphone and walking out. He thinks he’s untouchable, and lives his life that way. I’d love to see a gutsy journalist really stick it to him. I’ve never, ever liked him, long before his ugly, despicable character showed itself.
AnnaKist: He has always had an ugly personality, but he also had a publicist so powerful that she scared most of hollywood. She could ruin careers / organisations by blacklisting anyone and their organisation for displeasing her. Everyone. From studios to the mailman. She’s a legend.
Around the time of his divorce from Kidman, he fired her to go with his Co$ publicists. Without her protection, he was exposed. Under her watch, nothing negative about him leaked. No one dared.
“He may have left the organisation and is it’s chief critic as well as being exhibition A, but he was in for over 30yrs and still has the habits and philosophies indoctrinated.”
LAK I rarely disagree with you but on this point I believe you really are wrong. Have you watched the entire series? Mike Rinder is not indoctrinated. Far from it. I follow his blog as well as watched both seasons of Leah Remini’s and Mike Rinder’s show. I am curious as to your reasoning.
Natalia, i didn’t name Mike Rinder, that was @Rachel in August. When i wrote my comment, i was thinking of Matty Rathburn. A few years ago he ran a blog that didn’t just encourage Co$ to defect, but stated very clearly that he still follows the principles sans the abusive practises.
He has taken part in several docs where it’s quite clear that he is both critical and Exibition A because he was in the inner circle at the top and was frequently chief enforcer until they turned on him and threw him in the hole.
Both Mike & Matty have stated several times what they did to Kidman and her children. The goal was to keep Cruise in Co$ at all costs and Kidman was marked as a troublemaker who was influencing Cruise out of Co$ and had to be removed.
They also say that a third person, that Tommy guy, was also involved in poisoning the kids. A daily undertaking until goal was achieved.
Btw, i’ve never watched Leah Remini’s docu-series. My comments are based on a barrage of docs / blogs that were released long before she left.
And Tony Ortega confirmed their role too.
I didn’t know that, so thanks for the info, LAK. It makes me despise him even more.
@ LAK, yes. If it wasn’t Mike Rinder it was Marty Rathbun, both were top execs. And it’s Tommy Davis, whose mother, Anne Archer is also still in. Not sure about Tommy Davis though. I’ve seen him in action on YouTube, what a nasty, hateful, unhinged individual, ugh. I believe he’s married to Jessica Feshbach (sp), who was Katie’s “handler” while she was married to Cruise. Yes, to keep Cruise in Scientology at all costs, mainly because they can’t do without his money. I shudder to think what Katie witnessed and went through. Mike, Marty and Tommy all knew about and participated in poisoning Cruise’s children against their mother. It would turn ANY sensible person’s stomach and it certainly made Katie blow the pop-stand in grand style. I was SO proud of her when the news came out, and her father was brilliant!
LAK I stand corrected… Rachel I dont believe that Mike Rinder has not changed. Just because he’s rational and circumspect doesn’t make him still attached to the crap mentality he took in, and perpetrated while in the cult. Far from it. It was a long process of being disenchanted and wanting to get out.
@Rachel in August: Katie’s dad is the parent we all wish we have and or want to be. What a hero.
When I read her interview, what struck me is that she really doesn’t present thoughts very clearly and that she sounds like she wasn’t properly educated. Then I looked her up on Wikipedia and learned her Scientology parents homeschooled her. You can definitely tell they didn’t do a good job. (And before anyone jumps on me, lots of homeschool kids are very smart!)
Well, it could be said that Scientology parents don’t home-school their children to provide a thorough, wide and well-rounded education. Their agenda is to completely immerse and indoctrinate the children in the dogma and ways of COS crappe; how to be the perfect COSplayer, so to speak.
Hubbard believed that kids were actually just small adults. Formal education was something he scoffed at. Scientologists are told not to comfort their children physically, or even take them to doctors when sick. Even little kids are subjected to “security checks” and rewarded for spying on their parents and friends. We will never know, for instance, what really happened to John Travolta and Kelly Preston’s son to cause his death.
Hi, adastraperaspera. God, it’s actually quite horrifying, isn’t it? Keep them all ignorant. That way, they’re so much easier to control.
She was born into it and has been indoctrinated her entire life. But I hope, like Leah and some of the many people she interviewed, Erika takes a good look at what goes on there, and realizes it’s not good.
Scientology is not much different then any other religion, they all have Good and bad people involved. How much bad shit have Catholics done, included all the sexual abuse of children and the cover ups that follow. Jehovahs witnesses kick out members and separate families for ridiculous reasons. Pretty much all churches and religious groups are judgemental and ask for money from their congregations. I judge all religions equally and none of them are very good for society.
Now if someone wants to be a part of a religious group and have faith in a higher power that helps them in life..more power to them. But I think they are all cults
It’s a cult. There are a LOT of things that make it different from other mainstream religions.
Yes, it certainly is a cult, but no more dangerous than any other religion.
Agreed. And it’s only a “religion” because it so desperately wanted tax-free status, and employed horrendous means to achieve it. I wish more people would also read Blown for Good by Marc Headley on what he and his wife went through. Religion my ass.
Funny how you don’t mention that it happens in the secular movement as well. I have a few friends who were into the skeptic/atheist thing and used to like saying the same stuff you say above. Then Michael Shermer happened, and they don’t really bring it up anymore. (For the unaware, Shermer was a prominent guy in anti-religion circles who got caught sexually assaulting multiple women at sponsored events – one woman alleged rape, he also attempted to sexually assault Pamela Gay in front of several prominent individuals, none of whom reported it). It wound up being a huge mess.
So if you want to criticize groups that seek to protect themselves and their members at all costs, that goes way beyond religion. It goes anywhere power exists and people seek to preserve it.
I don’t know much about atheist, but I do know a lot about people. Good and bad people in every place in the world, in every job, in every religion.
Oh FFS here we go again. I’m gonna guess that you’re religious because religious folks are the only ones that consistently draw a parallel between atheism and religion. Atheism is NOT a set of beliefs, it is not a doctrine, it has virtually NOTHING in common with religion. Atheism is a lack of belief in God, period.
As a blonde atheist I share no more in common with another atheist than I do with another blonde woman.
There are MANY people in this country that don’t believe in God. Some are very good people and some are not. If, for instance, a Nazi wants to tie his/her beliefs to his/her atheism, then that’s on that individual, NOT on atheism.
Movement Atheism is for atheists that share the same beliefs and want to build a community with like-minded people. Those beliefs are not contingent upon nor are they precipitated by a shared lack of belief in God. The community they form has nothing to do with the rest of us who just happen to not believe in God.
Also, atheism is not inherently “anti-religion” so stop perpetuating that sh*t. It is incredibly harmful and FALSE. Most atheists don’t GAF what anyone else believes in as long as you keep religion out of government (still waiting for that to happen).
So don’t @ me with that “atheism is as destructive as religion” BS. It is not. My lack of belief in God doesn’t inform every decision I make or every thought I have. My atheism doesn’t “guide” me or provide moral cover. My atheism doesn’t spur me to deprive others of their basic rights. It is simply one small aspect of who I am.
It does not define me in any way.
It is not my identity.
I don’t believe in God so I am an atheist. It starts and ends there and how other people who don’t believe in God choose to live their lives has virtually nothing to do with me.
@Kitten – Exactly. Couldn’t have said it better.
Kitten:👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏
To be somewhat fair, JW’s don’t force people to get baptized, it’s a personal choice and is done only after a lot of studying and counseling. If someone who has been baptized goes against beliefs, then yes they are disfellowshipped, but still allowed to attend and work their way back to the congregation. They don’t “kick peple out” for no reason, and it only applies to those who have chosen to make the commitment of being baptized. They also do not ask for money, they have a contribution box that sits out but no one is asked to put money in.
All that said, I don’t agree with any one religion myself.
There’s a lot of “oh well it was there choice” but there’s also a horrible mob mentality in this. When you do something that they don’t agree with, they don’t have an issue with making your life hell. Leaving is ‘your choice’ and being baptized is ‘your choice’ but there’s a lot of things they can do to force your hand.
They also more often than not refuse to report child abuse because it’s more of a sin than a crime in their eyes.
And shunning is pretty legit. Someone in our town had a drinking problem, and they shunned her. Maybe it would have been different if she was a man because the sexism isn’t subtle with a lot of JWs.
It’s a lot more dangerous than actual religions. The difference between a religion and a cult is that you can leave a religion. And what religion is founded on an active, written principle of using illegal tactics and even murder to control people and get money? Yes religion has been exploited to wage war, but that’s a far cry from what Scientology does. Scientology was invented as a money-making scam, period.
AND as a tax haven for LRon.
Don’t make me defend the Catholic church or any other religion. The beliefs themselves aren’t crazier but they don’t hide them. Read the bible and you’re halfway there. No need to pay money. I guarantee you if you have questions a priest will answer them at no charge. You can join or not, it’s not a fraud and when I left the Protestant church, I wasn’t stalked. There are MANY issues with organized religion but CO$ ruins lives.
My oldest brother was raped by our Catholic priest when he was nine, he told another priest who proceeded to cover for the one who raped my brother. Long story short, my brother killed himself at 15 years old because of what happened to him. Not just scientologists ruining lives
Kitty, so sorry this happened to your brother. That is so very sad.
The Catholic church. When that faith first came to my country, they cut your ears and nose off if you refused to join. Second round, it was your lands and/or your life. Then, they managed to aquire 40% of all land ownership in about 300 years. Largely by scaring old and sick people with hell, unless they were generous with the church. You could buy absolution, of course. That went on forever. There were tithes, a heavy tax which was mandatory. They burned “heretics” well into modern times, and scientists too. No person was corrupt and evil enough not to be Pope. Then there was the crusades, which were started by the church, and cost hundreds of thousands of lives. And the religious wars that wrecked Europe for centuries, and cost even more lives. And the damn near institutionalized sexual abuse, the slavery in work houses and laundries, the crooked finances. I could go on and on. The Catholic church is better today, but a violent money magnet through almost all of its history.
You can practice Christianity without joining a church. You do not habe to pay. They do not stalk you or your family if you leave. There are differences.
If anyone thinks I needed a history lesson, I don’t. And I’m the first to sh*t on most organized religions. But a cult is NOT the same thing.
Oh Kitty, how awful. I’m so sorry :'(
I don’t agree that Scientology isn’t more dangerous than other religions. I’m Catholic and I have my issues with the Catholic Church (priests being forced to be celibate, women not being able to be priests, their stance on homosexuality, contraception, divorce, the sexual abuse of children etc.) and I no longer attend church apart from major holidays/weddings/funerals. But I never had to shell out thousands of dollars for bogus auditing sessions. The Church didn’t try to separate me from my family or alienate me from my loved ones. The Church doesn’t impose a million rules on my lifestyle or who I can associate with and doesn’t have an organization that contracts you to billion year servitude (Sea Org). Nobody at my home parish is trying to smear my name or stalk me because I no longer actively attend church. I’m not punished for questioning the Church’s teachings or beliefs. I’m well aware the Catholic Church has a problematic history and it still has major issues today. I saw Spotlight and I fully remember when that story broke when I was around middle school and it broke my heart. Both my parents went to Catholic schools and my father remembers shady behavior between the priests and the young boys (nothing ever happened to him thankfully). But I don’t think I’ll ever agree that both should be lumped into the same category.
And there are so many non-religious groups you can classify as cults. Just read up on that crazy self-help group Nxivm and the role actress Allison Mack played in that. It’s just as bad (maybe even worse) than what Scientology inflicts and it’s not a religious group.
“But I never had to shell out thousands of dollars for bogus auditing sessions. The Church didn’t try to separate me from my family or alienate me from my loved ones. The Church doesn’t impose a million rules on my lifestyle or who I can associate with and doesn’t have an organization that contracts you to billion year servitude (Sea Org). Nobody at my home parish is trying to smear my name or stalk me because I no longer actively attend church.”
thank you for making these points. I was raised RC (I refer to myself as a “Recovering Catholic” as I’m still spiritual but don’t go to church) and $cientology is a money making cult, pure and simple.
I knew someone that had been fostered by Mormons in Utah for a while. Completely backwards, so many things that happen in that religion in certain regions. Apparently, likely depending on economic and social status, the rules can vary greatly. Those that are in more remote areas are kept from and/or severely discouraged from viewing mainstream media so that there’s no challenge to the indoctrination that’s enforced in those communities. I don’t know how the internet and smartphones have changed things. Seemed like children and women would be subjected to having their cyber activity monitored by the family patriarch or any male authority in the church/community.
Yeah Mormonism is a cult too.
Kitty, I’m very sorry for what happened to your brother.
IMO, usually when there is a combination of money and power, there is corruption and evil. There are atrocities and abuse in many religions. I do think Scientology is one of the worst out there though, and its many abuses have hurt so many people. I applaud anyone who seeks to expose such things, in Scientology and beyond.
Kitty, these are people who force members into slave labour. For next to nothing in way of wages. They subsist on a diet of rice and beans and have to pile up in trailers like sardines, 30 sharing one bathroom, when they’re working on building projects. Women are forced to have abortions. People are routinely beaten by their superiors. If you do ONE thing wrong you’re “disappeared”. If you try to leave you’re chased down; you’re harassed by the “squirrels” outside your home; your phone is tapped; your audit tapes are released to the public (that’s why Nicole Kidman has remained quiet and basically has no relationship with her 2 kids with Cruise). That is not a religion and to compare it what the Roman Catholic church has done is simplistic. All religions have shameful pasts but the cult of Scientology continues to have a shameful present and future – they prey on people who are too uninformed or troubled to know what they’re getting into. Years ago I had a room-mate who was a Scientologist and she pestered me to go to a meeting with them one evening. After a short while I realized that they were a bunch of loonies but when I returned home my room-mate continued to harass me, I got unending calls demanding that I come in for another meeting because they knew I was emotionally needy and they could help, the harassing never ended. I finally moved out and got a new, unlisted number. No real church would be doing that. Please don’t confuse what amounts to a dangerously unhinged and predatory cult with religion.
I admire everyone’s incredible restraint for not immediately commenting on that last instagram shot.
I gather she’s not a huge fan of bras 😉
Oh honey.
She’s been brainwashed since she was a child and probably knows if she leaves she lose her family. That’s why I hold such great admiration for Leah Remini because she was in the same situation and still chose to break away from the CoS knowing what it could cost her.
I agree, and by the same token I have a lot of compassion for a person raised in a cult, poorly educated, and actively taught to not think critically. I think it’s very sad and hope she wakes up one day for the sake of her children.
Sorry, but I’m not very familiar with her. Do you know if her husband is a Scientologist too?
Do you realise that you are using the standard defense of Co$ which always starts with whataboutism, swiftly followed by the Catholic church. And when challenged you’ve gone on the attack, attack, attack and doubled down on the whataboutism regarding the Catholic church?!
Standard co$ defence strategy and talking points.
I’ve seen you comment on several threads so i don’t make my accusation lightly, but on the evidence of your comments here……🤔
Disclaimer: The catholic church has well documented issues and history, but Co$ always defaults to whataboutism with the Catholic Church unlike other religions / cults which when challenged defend themselves using their own doctrine whatever that might be, and don’t immediately bring up the Catholic church.
Urgh….wrong spot. This is for @Kitty above.
Do Scientologists tend to use the Catholic Church as deflection? It sure happened in that interview.
I grew up Catholic and went to Catholic school, I was confirmed and even was married in a Catholic church. Then I decided the church wasn’t for me and I didn’t agree with many things that it stood for. I have never been harassed or cut off from my family (I know some aren’t so lucky) but it seems like you couldn’t leave Scientology so easily.
Bea: Yes they do.
I don’t think that abuses don’t exist in other religions, but the scientology deflection is ALWAYS deflect to catholicism and it’s abuses. Always. It’s a tell.
Did Going Clear reveal horrible activity related to CoS? Yes, definitely. Do other religions also have negative attributes, yes. As an atheist, I am not saying that all religions are bad or anything. I think it is ok for Erika to practice what speaks to her and does not harm others in doing so (like Kristie Alley). This is a hard topic to broach.
I guess I should be heartened that Scientology members are now prepped with statements like “Going Clear is libelous” and etc. She is parroting practiced talking points, because no one new is joining. Leah’s shows and Tony Ortega’s reporting are helping break their hold. Of course the organization still has untaxed billions to squander on lawyers, so it will be a while until they fade. But like all cults, fade they will.
Yeah the trendy new religious cult seems to be Hillsong these days smh
Neither are you, darling.
My thoughts and prayers go out to her.
The major religions can tell you the basis of what they believe in a couple of minutes. Scientologist have to pay upward of $500,000 or more, to get to the top of the bridge for their OT levels. I think that fact that they are literally selling their members a bridge says it all. They can’t and won’t tell you what they believe and lie about the fact that they do, in fact, believe in Xenu, the galactic overlord. They practice something called “acceptable truth”, which means they lie constantly about their cult, disconnection, believing that victims of abuse pulled it in on themselves etc. She isn’t allowed to read or watch anything that criticizes her cult, so her opinion of a documentary that she’s never watched is what’s actually irrelevant.
Not only has she paid that amount in “classes” but she and her family have “donated” more than $500,000 to the religion. They just received an award for that. If you are donating that kind of money to an organization or religion, you sure better be ready to answer for the sins of the organization.
Exactly. Dax Sheperd is extremely irresponsible for allowing her to BS her way through the interview. I saw her award photo on Tony Ortega’s website. She’s clearly thrilled to support her cult and it’s abuses.
I’d never listened to Dax Shepard’s podcast before, but I listened to the entire thing to hear what she had to say about Scientology. I was so f’ing angry when those 2 hours were finished. The interview was irresponsible, and Dax Shepard is insufferable. I’ll never waste my time with that “entertainment” again. He is a hack. Having said that, I woke up this morning still thinking about it and my anger has turned more towards pity and sympathy. Clearly, Dax Shepard has some serious mental health issues. It’s hard to believe he’s been in therapy for years because he seems to be struggling with many problems.
As for the podcast itself, there were some pretty egregious errors in the “reporting” part of the interview. Erika Christensen came off as a robot spouting the same old lines Scientologists always say. She said “Going Clear” was not published in England because of libel laws. False. It was published there. She and Shepard said all religions force you to “pay” to be part of them. False. Many ask for donations, but many/most do not require tithing. (Mormons are required to tithe, but most religions are “voluntary” donations.) Christensen and Shepard agreed that if you can read (and have a dictionary) you should be able to understand (religious) texts without a leader or guide because texts don’t need to be “explained” because people are able to comprehend written language on their own. (All teachers listening just shook their heads in shame at that exchange.) Christensen said the only people who are questioning Scientology aren’t questioning the “teachings” of LRH but are disgruntled personalities. Shepard compared and Christensen agreed that the amount of work the Sea Org members do is comparable to the amount of work altar boys do. Yeah, not even close. Shepard implied and Christensen seemed to agree that Scientology is not “patriarchal,” but it was founded by a white male and is still run by a white male. Thus, it is patriarchal.
Shepard seems to have a real hatred or bias towards the Catholic Church. He referenced the corruption/abuses more than once. (In general, I don’t have a problem with that and wish someone would have the guts to ask Stephen Colbert why he is so vocal about supporting a church with so many issues.) He also talked about growing up Southern Baptist in Michigan. He seems to have no other reference points about religion other than his own and what he’s read or watched about the Catholic Church. His experience in Southern Baptist is not the experience many people have in some of the other Protestant branches of religion.
Perhaps one of the most disturbing points Shepard made was that if a person is happy in their “religion” then it doesn’t matter if other people suffer. His “producer” questioned him on that after the show and said that if a person was happy being a Nazi and had not experienced any negatives being in the Nazi Party (in the 1930’s and 1940’s), was it OK for them to have been a Nazi. Shepard called her out as using an extreme example. He followed up by saying that it’s better to be “happy” than to be questioning.
He also made the claim that Amy and Ryan Hansen are “good” people and parents specifically because they are Christians. Their abilities as parents and humans are based on their specifici religious beliefs. Now that implies that anyone who is not a Christian cannot be a good or as good of a parent as those with those same beliefs.
(Finally, just a brief mention that his producer/fact-checker claimed women cannot get pregnant while breastfeeding. Clearly, she needs to learn how to use Google ’cause that just ain’t right.)
Again, what struck me most about that interview was how Shepard seems to be in a crisis. He kept talking about how Erika and his producer should do drugs (and he made mention in a Conan interview recently that he hopes his daughters will try mushrooms) to experience what life has to offer. He talked (again) about how hard the entertainment industry is. He came across as insecure, searching, narcissistic, histrionic, and stubborn. I’m telling you, this guy at the very least is going through a midlife crisis if not something more serious. He must be exhausting to live with. I can’t imagine being the children of him and Kristen Bell. Wow. That home must be in utter chaos all the time.
the standard defences of Co$ is whataboutism of the Catholic church. It’s a tell. They all use it when they defend Co$.
All other religions will point to their own texts to defend their religions, but Co$ always deflects to the Catholic church and it’s abuses. ALWAYS.
It’s their standard OM. And unknowingly outs them.
Interesting, thank you.
Yes, I remember when Katie left Tom, the Co$bots came into the gossip forums like this one and always deflected to the abuses of the Catholic Church. It’s like a talking-point thing with them.
I listened to a few episodes when it first came out but haven’t listened to this one. I find him annoying but likeable. He admittedly has extremely low self esteem and has issues with that. I do, however, think that his issues do not come across well in the podcast. I also think that he speaks without thinking too much and if he’s doing a podcast he needs to check that shit at the door.
Who? 🦉
I love it when celebs misuse words. It’s amusing.
Dang, I’ve just been rewatching Parenthood and forgot she was a Scientologist. This is going to make it harder to watch.
It really sounds like she has the talking points down for ‘Going Clear’ without ever having read it. Odd that she expects others to actually read ‘Dianetics’ before forming an opinion. “They have proved themselves to be irrelevant” how exactly? To whom and in what way?
I think Erika Christensen is what is “not relevant” here. Um, who? oh, an actress on a failed network TV show that ended years ago? BYE
Well, hardly “failed.” It ran for six seasons to great reviews.
And was not canceled. It ended as scheduled.
No hun. You’re not relevant.
I’ve found her creepy ever since her role in the movie Traffic. She seems unhinged and now I know why.
Have never been able to understand why he never married a scie woman, were none of them attractive enough or good enough for him , he is the ultimate scie” big being” what is his problem with them.
What bothers me every time is when Nicole talks so fondly about a man who dumped her while pregnant, for another woman in this case Pen Cruz, and when talking about her miscarriage , she uses the word, we were devastated , we this and we that, most women would have just said I felt all these emotions, why include him in the article, paticularly when you have another family and husband. Him and NK lasted for so long because they were 2 venus in leo show ponies, although KH taught him a lesson he will never forget. Karma, always gets you in the end.
Look how this man has turned his back on a child , that supposedly loved so much,
Suri is on summer holidays, now isn’t she , big being just started shooting Top Gun.
Nobody calls him out, because he makes money for a lot of people, producers , directors, big companies, very much like in the way with Weinstien, money talks!
Everyone knows, but says nothing, yet people have a go at Ben Affleck, that guy is a saint next to Tom Cruise, and greatly loves his children, bought a house down the road from them, while AH Tom Cruise left hid daughter behind and moved to UK and now in Miami.
He had to choose, his child, or Scie, everyone knows which one he chose.
Poor excuse, of a man, on all levels.