I never reported back -- however, the grand opening of the Church of Scientology Madrid was spectacular, with guest speakers Mr. David Miscavige of the Religious Technology Center and Mr. Tom Cruise, who needs no introduction.



Mr David Miscavige has officiated at many openings and very often is the Master of Ceremonies at international Scientology events.

Guess what I just found out! (I'm probably the last to learn, because it was all over the news last week). Tom Cruise (my favorite) is coming back to Madrid to attend the grand opening of the new Church of Scientology of Spain.

He was in Madrid last week for the premier of Colateral (terrific film) and announced he'd be back for the grand opening.

I have friends who have gone over to help. What an exciting time.

This is great news for Spain and Madrid, because Scientology has so much to offer the community and the individual in Spain.

Here's an invitation in Spanish for anyone in Madrid who has found my blog. I hope you can attend!


Cordialmente tengo el honor de informarle que Tom Cruise va a estar en la apertura de la nueva Sede de la Iglesia de Cienciología en España en Madrid Iglesia de Cienciología en España en Madrid. Esta será el próximo 18 de septiembre de 2004 a las 4:30 de la tarde.

Todas las personas que quieran asistir a la apertura están corodialmente invitadas.

Recursos de Web Sites de Cienciología

Cienciología: soluciones eficaces
Cienciología: soluciones eficaces - fomentando la alfabetización y la educación
La Iglesia de Cienciología en España: Etica y Libertad
¿Es Cienciología una religión?
L. Ronald Hubbard, Fundador de la religión de Cienciología - Cienciología

Another area of the world where there is rapid expansion is the Church of Scientology of Madrid, Spain.


NEW BUILDING FOR THE CHURCH OF SCIENTOLOGY MADRID


Scientology Spain is an area where a lot is happening. For those who speak spanish here are some web sites that will be of interest:

Cienciologia Links

Fundador de la religion de Cienciologia

Dianetica y la Iglesia de la Ciencologia


There are also some sites about Dianetics in Madrid:

Dianética: La Ciencia Moderna de la Salud Mental

Asociación Civil de Dianética Madrid

Dianetica y la Iglesia de la Ciencologia


In English, here are similar sites for Scientology in Spain:

Legal Win for Church of Scientology Spain

Human Right Office Servicing Scientology Madrid




Captains of the Church of Scientology Madrid Soccer Team.

Soccer Team Supports Scientology Madrid

Location of Current Church of Scientology Madrid

Scientology Madrid, Spain Homepages:

How to find Members of Scientology Spain

José Manuel Iglesias Moreno - Cienciologia en Madrid

Carmen Veiga en Cienciologia en Madrid, Espana

Pilar Guiterrez Teixeira

Carmen Valero Lázaro

Herminia Toral de Perez

Other Church of Scientology Locations in Spanish:

Directory for Scientology Churches in Spanish Speaking Countries

Directorio de la Organizacion de Cienciologia

A Directory of web sites to many Church of Scientology sites, including Scientology Madrid

Scientology in Europe and the Advanced Organziation and Saint Hill AOSHEU)

AOSHEU (AOSH EU) is located in Copenhagen, in the heart of the downtown area - just a few blocks from the magnificant Tivoli gardens. You can see the nightly fireworks display from the fourth and fifth floors of the beautiful AOSH EU building.

The church was established in the late 1960's and was completely refurbished a few years ago. It is a stunning building. Clean Skandinavian design and with a warmth that is also typical of Copenhagen and it sister Scandinavian states.

Many of the staff at AOSH EU are bi-lingual or mult-lingual, which helps when you are ministering Scientology training and counseling to people throughout Europe.

More Information on AOSHEU (AOSH EU)

Scientology on Two Coasts
AOSH EU posting
Fortgeschrittenen Organisation für Europa - AOSH EU
Organizzazione Avanzata per l'Europa - AOSH EU
Advanced Organization & Saint Hill Europe - AOSH EU
はじめに - AOSH EU
Elôszó - AOSH EU
Предисловие - Что такое Саентология?
וא - AOSH EU
Avancerede Organisation for Europa, København - AOSH EU

The Freewinds motor vessel, while sailing the Carribean also hosts conferences,
conventions, concerts and other community events.

Here is more information about the Freewinds:

Freewinds

Here are some photos of the Freewinds:

Freewinds
More Freewinds Photos

The "Freewinds" sails the Carribean and with her home port being Curacao. The "Freewinds" contributes to the colorful environment of this part of the world:

Freewinds Jazz

Freewinds Jazz Concert

Freewinds Curacao Jazz

The ship also call in at Bonaire Freewinds in Bonaire

and Barbados Freewinds in Barbados

Freewinds in Bridgetown

Here are details of this motor vessel's important function for Scientologists --being the place they can attain the highest levels of spiritual advancement.

Freewinds

The Freewinds, the Flag Ship Service Organization

Freewinds Virtual Tour

Not to be confused with a British yacht charter company:

Freewinds
The Freewinds

More information can be seen on my blog specifically about the Freewinds:

Freewinds

I have been asked what Scientologists believe about God.

The Scientology religion is non-denominational and doesn't tell people what they should believe.

I think one of the best descriptions is in this article here:

Scientology Belief in Diety

Personally, I have no preconceived idea. The concept of God is a very personal thing and I believe people should be allowed to have their own opinions.

When was the last time you wanted to help someone. Did you know how to help them? Were they willing to accept your help?

Scientology applied religious philosophy deals so much in the subject of help. Scientologists learn how to help others by studying the technology. These courses are available at Scientology churches, and it is described in this web site:

Scientology Principles. How to Learn about Scientology.

I just ran across this story. It's a few years old, but I thought it bears repeating as it talks about Scientology and Chairman of the Board of Religious Technology Center, David Miscavige in such a different light.

By ALAN CABAL
Apr. 02, 2001

Angels and Scientologists

St. Patrick’s Day in New York City is a day to be avoided at all costs. It has nothing to do with the Irish: they’re no better or worse than any other ethnic group in this town. It has to do with the fact that, like New Year’s Eve, the occasion serves as an eldritch sabbat for a teeming, gibbering horde of drooling amateur drunks, their hideous batrachian forms shambling from one dimly lit tavern to another, puking and picking fights at every opportunity. As a professional drunkard, I find these festivities deeply insulting and often threatening, so I usually stay home.

This year, I decided to break with tradition and venture out to partake of the celebratory spirit. I carefully selected two venues that I thought showed promise and arranged to pick up my date at 6 p.m. sharp. Having spent the morning hours recuperating from an indescribably painful migraine headache, I was well-rested if a little shaky when I picked her up. Fortunately, she had rolled a couple of joints, so the possibility of a relapse was unlikely, and we headed downtown to party. I found a great parking space on 47th St., just west of 8th Ave., and we smoked a joint and shared a couple of bottles of beer in the car before debarking and making our way over to the Church of Scientology on W. 46th for the belated celebration of L. Ron Hubbard’s March 13 birthday.

We were warmly received by our friends there and escorted through the large but very polite crowd to our front-row seats in the auditorium. After a few introductory remarks by Jerry Indursky, executive director of the church’s New York foundation, we were treated to a big-screen presentation of a live feed from Los Angeles of David Miscavige addressing the assembled membership worldwide via satellite.

David Miscavige is an interesting guy. He grew up in the church, and rose swiftly through the ranks, starting as a minister and an auditor and working his way up to becoming chairman of the board of the Religious Technology Center, which maintains the integrity of the copyrights and serves as the final authority on quality control within the church and its affiliates. He’s telegenic and possessed of an extraordinary charisma. He comes across through the screen like a cross between Miguel Ferrer and David Bowie in his prime.

It was mainly an in-house affair. My date and I were among perhaps a half-dozen non-Scientologists in the room, which held somewhere between 500 and 600 people. Lori Alpers from the Celebrity Center kindly translated some of the more arcane references for us, but most of it was pretty easy to grasp. The Scientologists are actively engaged in a wide range of secular activities aimed at helping to solve such pressing social issues as drug addiction, criminal recidivism and illiteracy. Their enthusiasm for these projects is amazing, a buoyant, friendly, nearly irresistible optimism coupled with an intensity of focus that understandably unsettles those whose lives revolve around cheap thrills and loose ethics. It’s a very results-oriented group effort. It’s Hubbard’s church, but the whole event had a very Robert Heinlein feel to it, and the history of the church reads more like Don DeLillo than Hubbard. My affection for them stems from their emphasis on ethics, their commitment to community service and my belief that they are the last and greatest of the buccaneer communities.

My date and I hung around for a while and chatted with our friends over a nice spread that was brought out after the broadcast, and then we split to head downtown to the John St. Bar & Grill, where the Hells Angels were throwing their St. Patrick’s Day bash. We got there just before midnight, smoked the last doob and headed inside.

We grabbed a couple of beers at the bar and wandered through the crowd. I’m not big on bars. I prefer to do my drinking in quiet, residential settings. It was a big crowd, and it was the best-behaved crowd I’ve ever seen in a bar. People were dancing, everybody was mellow, there wasn’t any evidence of any unpleasantness at all. The floor was clean. Midnight on St. Pat’s in NYC, and I’d be willing to bet that the John St. Bar & Grill had the cleanest linoleum in town. Nobody bumped into me, and nobody gave me any shit about the fact that I was wearing a tie. My date commented that she’d never felt safer in a saloon.

People don’t really get the Hells Angels. The Angels don’t care, as long as nobody fucks with them, but founder Sonny Barger is a man’s man and a true survivor. I got a sticker for the car that reads "Support 81 NYC-LI" with a nasty-looking fanged skull on it that should keep a certain category of miscreant from swiping my hubcaps, and my date got a nifty cloisonne pin with the same message. They’ve got a website that the women handle where you can get all kinds of cool HA swag. It’s at www.bigredmachine.com. Their block on 3rd St. is widely known as one of the safest blocks in the city, and they are an asset to the community.

It was my best St. Patrick’s Day in many years, maybe ever, and it all had to do with choosing the correct venues. Life is short, and it’s not about what you do or how much you make: it’s about who you’re with. My only complaint about the Scientologists is that they don’t smoke pot, so they never have any. I have no complaints at all about the Hells Angels, and if I did, I’d keep them to myself.

Here are some links for:

More information about the Scientology Religion

Scientology Effective Solutions
Scientology - Effective Drug Solutions
Church of Scientology - Foundation for Religious Tolerance
Church of Scientology

More information about Mr. David Miscavige

Angels and Scientologists
David Miscavige Profile - in Dutch
David Miscavige Profile - in French
David Miscavige Profile - in German

I justs found this site and think it's great.

EUpolitix - Scientology effective solutions

It gives information about all the various ways Scientology applied religious philosophy has been used to help with problems individuals and communities have in today's world.


There is also a page on this site which suggests related sites about Scientology that may be of interest:
EUpolitix - Related Sites

I found an interesting article about the Narconon center that opened last year in Clearwater.

At Tampa Bay's newest alternative to mainstream drug treatment, the license issued by the state hangs next to commendations from the Church of Scientology.

Narconon, a controversial drug treatment program based on techniques developed by Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard, has opened its first Florida facility in Clearwater in a commercial park off U.S. 19.

Past the meticulously clean lobby are classrooms where recovering addicts take a series of life improvement courses incorporating the same concepts and principles one encounters in introductory Scientology courses at a church mission.

Farther back are treadmills, stationary bikes and two saunas. This is where clients work through a detoxification program mirroring a Scientology ritual called the purification rundown. It purports to remove from fatty tissues toxic substances and drug residues, which can cause cravings for more drugs, according to Narconon literature.

The facility's client list, its director said, is mostly mid- to upper-level executives - doctors, lawyers and business professionals - who are recreational drug users. The staff of five includes a certified addictions specialist and a registered nurse.

Critics contend that Narconon - a program now 37 years old with 11 treatment facilities nationally - is a recruitment tool for Scientology. Narconon International president Clark Carr calls the charge "baloney," but concedes 10 to 15 percent who complete the program become Scientologists.

The director of the new Clearwater Narconon, Cheryl Alderman, a Clearwater resident and a longtime Scientologist, sank $100,000 of her own money into the venture and opened it quietly 10 months ago....

The rest of the article can be found here:

Detox center seeks acceptance - St. Petersburg Times

Other Scientology Sites

Church of Scientology Advanced Organization & Saint Hill in Copenhagen (AOSHEU or AOSH EU), Denmark

Scientology Churches from Around the World: AOSH UK, AOSH EU, AOSH ANZO and the Advanced Organization and Saint Hill in Los Angeles

Scientology Religion

A brand new site has gone up that very clearly describes the Scientology religion, with a lot of interesting information so that a person can make up his or her own mind about the subject.

This is it:

New Scientology Religion Page