SCIENTOLOGY:
THE MARKS
of
RELIGION
ABOUT THE EXPERTISE
What is a religion? How—objectively and subjectively—do we know one when we see it? In this article from 1999, Professor Frank K. Flinn lists three marks, or characteristics, of religion: beliefs or doctrines about the nature of life; religious practices, including rituals and norms for behavior; and communal life that emerges out of these beliefs, doctrines and practices. “On the basis of these three markers and of my research into the Church of Scientology,” Dr. Flinn states, “I can state without hesitation that the Church of Scientology constitutes a bona fide religion. It possesses all the essential marks of religions known around the world: (1) a well-defined belief system, (2) which issues into religious practices (positive and negative norms for behavior, religious rites and ceremonies, acts and observances) and (3) which sustain a body of believers in an identifiable religious community, distinguishable from other religious communities.” In support of his conclusion, Dr. Flinn examines numerous features of religiosity, including the Creed of the Church of Scientology, the scriptural canon of the Church, the theology of the Church, and the place and purpose of delivering spiritual counseling known as auditing—and training others to do the same. Today Dianetics and Scientology services are delivered in over eleven thousand Churches, missions, and affiliated groups in countries all over the world.
BIOGRAPHY
Frank K. Flinn, Ph.D., (d. 2015) served as professor emeritus of religious studies at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, where he specialized in the study of new religions, Catholicism and church-state relations. His numerous publications include Interreligious Dialogue: Voice from a New Frontier (1998, edited with M. Darrol Bryant); Christology: The Center and the Periphery (1999); Religion in the Pacific Era (1999, edited with Tyler Hendricks); Encyclopedia of Catholicism (2007); and many articles on the academic study of religion, including several on the theology and practices of Scientology. Dr. Flinn graduated from Harvard Divinity School and received his Ph.D. in special religious studies from the University of St. Michael’s College, Toronto School of Theology. He was a Fulbright Fellow at the University of Heidelberg (Germany) from 1966 to 1967 and, over a career of five decades, taught at numerous colleges and universities, including Boston College, the University of Toronto (Ontario), Newton College of the Sacred Heart, and Maryville College. Dr. Flinn was a prolific lecturer and active member of the American Academy of Religion. Prior to his career in academia, he was a member of the Roman Catholic Order of Friars Minor, popularly known as the Franciscans.
Scientology, Social Science and the Definition of Religion
by James A. Beckford, Professor of Sociology, University of Warwick, England
Social Change and New Religious Movements
by Bryan R. Wilson,
Emeritus Fellow in Sociology, Oxford University
The Church of Scientology
by Juha Pentikäinen, Marja Pentikäinen, University of Helsinki, Finland
The Relationship Between Scientology and Other Religions
by Fumio Sawada, Eighth holder of the secrets of Yu-itsu Shinto, the oldest religion in Japan; President, Ahlul-Bait Center
The Religious Nature of Scientology
by Geoffrey Parrinder, Methodist minister, Professor, Comparative Study of Religions, University of London
Religious Philosophy, Religion and Church
by G.C. Oosthuizen, Professor of Science of Religion, University of Durban-Westville, Natal, South Africa
Scientology a New Religion
by M. Darrol Bryant, Department of Religious Studies, Renison College, University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada
Apostates and New Religious Movements
by Bryan R. Wilson,
Emeritus Fellow in Sociology, Oxford University
Scientology: An Analysis and Comparison of its Religious Systems and Doctrines
by Bryan R. Wilson,
Emeritus Fellow in Sociology, Oxford University
The Reliability of Apostate Testimony About New Religious Movements
by Lonnie D. Kliever Ph.D., Professor of Religious Studies
The Sea Organization and its Role Within the Church of Scientology
by Frank K. Flinn Ph.D. Adjunct Professor in Religious Studies
Brief Analyses of the Religious Nature of Scientology
by J. Gordon Melton, Baylor University, Samuel Hill, Gary Bouma, Irving Hexham
Congregational Services of the Church of Scientology
by Bryan R. Wilson,
Emeritus Fellow in Sociology, Oxford University
Is Scientology A Religion?
by Alan W. Black, Associate Professor of Sociology, University of New England, Armidale, New South Wales, Australia
Is Scientology a Religion?
by Dean M. Kelley, National Council of Churches
Religious Toleration & Religious Diversity
by Bryan R. Wilson,
Emeritus Fellow in Sociology, Oxford University
Scientology A Religion In South Africa
by David Chidester, Professor of Comparative Religion, University of Cape Town, South Africa
Scientology: A True Religion
by Urbano Alonso Galan, Professor of Philosophy and Theology, Gregorian University of Rome
Scientology: A Way of Spiritual Self-Identification
by Michael Sivertsev, Moscow Academy of Sciences
Scientology: A Worshipping Community
by Lonnie D. Kliever, Southern Methodist University, Dallas, Texas
Scientology and Contemporary Definitions of Religion in the Social Sciences
by Alejandro Frigerio, Professor of Sociology, Catholic University of Argentina, Buenos Aires
Scientology and Islam an Analogous Study
by Fumio Sawada, Eighth holder of the secrets of Yu-itsu Shinto, the oldest religion in Japan; President, Ahlul-Bait Center
Scientology and Religion
by Christiaan Vonck, Rector, Faculty for Comparative Study of Religion, Antwerp, Belgium
Scientology: A Comparison with Religions of the East and West
by Per-Arne Berglie, Professor of History of Religion, University of Stockholm
Scientology Its Cosmology, Anthropology, System of Ethics and Methodologies
by Régis Dericquebourg, Professor of Sociology of Religion, University of Lille III, France
Scientology – Its Historical-Morphological Frame
by Dario Sabbatucci, Professor of History of Religions, University of Rome
Scientology: Its True Nature
by Harri Heino, Professor of Theology, University of Tampere, Finland
Scientology: The Marks of Religion
by Frank K. Flinn, Adjunct Professor of Religious Studies Washington University