Neil deGrasse Tyson on Scientology, Aliens, and Religion Classification - JRE #1347

Join us for an intriguing discussion as Neil deGrasse Tyson shares his experience being questioned about Scientology's classification as a religion due to its connection to aliens. Discover his perspective on the protection of free expression of faith-based systems and the humorous headline that followed his comments. Tune in for more fascinating insights!

[pooryorick]

I really hate seeing organized crime getting tax exempt status by posing as a religion.

[BC-nyzb]

"Youre not supposed to talk about that"

South Park: lol k.

[sabinela]

"Youre not supposed to bring that up" dead serious and not joking joe. Joe going to get sued if he keeps talkng about Scientology

[dboy]

it's not even a faith tho it's literally a cult.

[thepickleisstrong]

"Provided they don't subtract from the rights of others..." but manipulating, harassing, and trafficking their followers is legit, eh? Because they "consented." Just an FYI: You cannot give consent if what you're consenting to is a lie. That is harmful.

[betaylor]

If they are aliens from space, they need to pay some Heavy Taxes.

[famousutopias]

“The difference between a religion and a cult is the amount of real estate they own” - Frank Zappa

[ShadowDemon_]

"Provides they don't subtract from the rights of others."

That's like... one of the main things they do.

[bossman-sdoi]

Well the head guys wife hasn't been seen since 2007 so let's see if he's a murderer before we see if the "religion" is fact

[ralBurebsuos]

I am going to create the worlds largest podcast just to get neil on and try to talk over him the entire time

[Moving_Target]

I would have used a different words to express the controversy of Scientology.

"We live in a free country where people can be stupid. So long as they do not use their stupidity to oppress others, or enact tyranny. The first amendment is the basic fundamental human right of expression and the right to disagree with stupidity."

[AChippendale]

In reality the scientologists are asking how Alex Jones knows the truth 😂😂😂😂

[chrisstewart]

If they don't believe in Jesus, why do they have a cross on top of their church?

[BravoCheesecake]

Since I was actually intrigued by the question I did some more research. In a study that Berliner Dialog (Heft 1-97) translated into German, and in another study, L. Ron Hubbard (Scientology's founder) claimed that Scientology was a religion because he saw the claim as a marketing device to make money and avoid taxes (Kent, 1997b: 25ff; Miller, 1987: 199-203, 220) as well as a way "to reduce the likelihood of governmental interventions against it for allegedly practicing medicine without a license" (Kent, 1996: 30). Moreover, Scientology denies its reputedly religious nature if it is attempting to enter a country that might react adversely to religious proselytization (such as Japan or Greece [Kent, 1997a: 18-19]). Nevertheless, the historical reasons behind Scientology's religious claims, as well as the organization's selectivity in making the claims, do not diminish the probability that many Scientologists view their commitment as a religious one.

From a social scientific perspective, and probably from a legal one as well, the objective "truth" of an ideology is not the determinant of a group's "religious" designation. Mere belief in supernatural beings or forces may be enough to get an ideology designated as religious, even if the origins or doctrines of the belief system are highly suspect. Along these lines, the inspirational figure in the sociology of religion, Max Weber, refused to exclude charlatans from his identification of charismatic figures, since the devotion of followers was a far more salient fact than authenticity. After mentioning two types of charismatic figures, Weber added that "[a]nother type is represented by Joseph Smith, the founder of Mormonisn, who may have been a very sophisticated swindler (although this cannot be definitely established)" (Weber, 1968: 242). Similarly, from a social scientific perspective, a belief system is religious if it contains supposedly supernatural elements, regardless of the accuracy of those elements. Perhaps unlike Joseph Smith, Hubbard's sophisticated swindle has been definitely exposed by a number of critics (for example, Atack, 1990; Kent, 1996; Miller, 1987) who have shown that his religious alignment was purely expedient, but now many of his followers see their lives in the context of the doctrines that he developed.

[briannat]

One of the most brilliant minds . Lucky to have this man. Much love, Peace from AZ

[busstopboxer]

Joe sounds like he's mad at Neil for giving the scientologists something to chew on, instead of supporting Joe's thesis on how bears would make the best Spec Ops team.

[potatop]

Y’all calling it a cult as if Christianity, Catholics, Jews, Muslims etc aren’t a cult too lol

[brendanmichael]

Joe hahahahah those people must be a serious pain in the ass to amyone

[douglas]

They asked you because you will talk ad nausea about any subject like an expert.

[CaptainCat]

Sorry Joe, but we live in a world where South Park made Scientology a joke