Scientology Volunteers

People helping people all over the world.

 

Scientology Church Women's Auxiliary Blog

The Women's Auxiliary groups of Scientology churches support the activities of Scientologists to make a difference in the world. They have just started a new blog.

posted by: jbasoon at 18:48 | link | |

Scientology Volunteers

I found this letter from Nancy Cartwright (the voice of Bart Simpson. on her web site today. She actually published it some time ago, but I found it extraordinary. It bares sharing...

A Letter from Nancy: Huricane Katrina assistance

Some of you may already know this but I recently joined a group of Scientologist Volunteer Ministers and spent 5 days in Baton Rouge. It was both heart-wrenching and heart-warming. Without the help of so many good people, we would never have been able to handle the thousands of lost, displaced and desperate people. Here is more information to consider:

* This was by far the worst natural disaster in the U.S. in over 100 years so most of us have never seen anything like this in this lifetime... but something can be done about it and it is being done!

* The International Disaster Response Team (aka "Volunteer Minsters") worked at Ground Zero during 9-11, assisting the rescue workers by giving vitamins, Dianetic Assists*(see reference below) to help get their bodies in better shape to keep working the long hours and assisting with mental stress due to the losses

* Similar teams of hundreds of Volunteer Ministers went to Sri Lanka and other cities in the hard-hit area of the tusunami disaster last spring in Asia

* The Volunteer Ministers have been a major force of "help" at every hurricane to hit Florida in the last three years

* As of Sept. 1, the Volunteer Ministers were officially assigned the job of helping a government agency in the relocation of hundreds of people to new shelters. We have been given clearance to provide counseling and assistance to people through Scientology techniques

* The Volunteer Ministers have been operating in the State of Louisiana and as of Sept. 8th was THE ONLY organization allowed to cross into New Orleans to assist the army, sheriff's department, SWAT Teams, National Guard and local fire departments

* Through many phone calls and using all our contacts, the Volunteer Ministers provided 10,000 units of tetanus to make sure that the recovery teams were physically stable in order to go into the belly of the disaster without jeopardizing their own health. NO OTHER ORGANIZATION PROVIDED THIS INVALUABLE SERVICE.

After countless e-mails from friends across the country going into more and more detail of the need for help, I decided to just stop everything I was doing and GO! My assistant, Janelle, got on the internet and the only way we could arrive in Baton Rouge was via Houston. (No rental cars in the entire state of Louisiana!) So off we went to Houston. We picked up another Volunteer Minister, 16-year-old Chafee Graham- a free-spirited lad whose willingness to help others sets the bar for the rest of us (Plus, with all our "camping gear"--backpacks, food for 4-days consisting of protein bars, beef jerkey, trail mix, apples, bananas and peanut butter, we also lugged sleeping bags, change of underwear, flashlights, waterproof hiking boots and socks--having a buff 16-year-old was definitely helpful!)

Read the whole letter on Nancy's web site.

posted by: jbasoon at 02:11 | link | |

In his speech titles This is Scientology Mr. David Miscavige covered many of the programs Scientology volutneers participate in, in their communities. Mr. Miscavige covers, for example, the work of the Scientology Volunteer Ministers and goes into the human rights campaign the Church sponsors (to bring about full implementaion of the 30 articles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights). The Scientology community is very active in the volunteer sector. Most Scientologists participate in one form or another to help their communities. This has to do, in part, with one of the basic principles of Scientology called "the Dynamics." L. Ron Hubbard discovered that life is comprised of 8 urges toward survival. There is a good description of this on the Scientology web site, but excerpting just part of it:

"There could be said to be eight urges (drives, impulses) in life. These we call dynamics. These are motives or motivations. We call them the eight dynamics." "The third dynamic is the urge toward existence in groups of individuals. Any group or part of an entire class could be considered to be a part of the third dynamic. The school, the society, the town, the nation are each part of the third dynamic and each one is a third dynamic. This can be called the group dynamic. "The fourth dynamic is the urge toward existence as mankind. Whereas one race would be considered a third dynamic, all the races would be considered the fourth dynamic. This can be called the mankind dynamic. "The fifth dynamic is the urge toward existence of the animal kingdom. This includes all living things whether vegetable or animal. The fish in the sea, the beasts of the field, or of the forest, grass, trees, flowers or anything directly and intimately motivated by life. This can be called the animal dynamic."

As one moves up the line in Scientology one gains a personal understanding of this. Once it becomes apparent to the individual that he is responsible for more than just his own personal welfare or that of his immediate family he becomes more involved in helping in humanitarian causes. Throughout the year there are international events that Scientologists from all over the world attend. Mr. David Miscavige is often the master of ceremonies and speaks of the most stellar volunteer activities Scientologists have done over the past few months. These events are open to anyone to attend. The next event will take place the second weekend of May, and is a yearly event commemorating the publishing of the first book in Dianetics and Scientology -- Dianetics: the Modern Science of Mental Health.

posted by: jbasoon at 23:09 | link | |

Youth of Pondicherry Gaining Self-Sufficiency

Scientology Volunteer Ministers

This story about a group of French Scientologists who went to Pondicherry (the French-speaking part of India) really caught my eye.

I particluarly like the fact that they are working with youth to make them more independent and help them leave any trauma from last year's tsunami behind them.

Here's the story:

A team of French Scientologists, who flew to Pondicherry, India on hearing of the tsunamis in December 2004, have stayed on to work with community leaders to help the people of the region.

Starting with a small group of French Scientologists, the Pondicherry Volunteer Ministers team continues to grow, with local residents joining in the work as they themselves experience the results of Scientology technology in their lives.

The beautiful city of Pondicherry, known as the French Riviera of India, was transformed instantly from a prosperous resort to a scene of devastation when tsunami waves drove water 24 feet above the normal high-tide mark, killing 600 and leaving 30,000 homeless. The Volunteer Ministers have been providing basic Scientology and Dianetics training and counseling to help people overcome the trauma they experienced. >> more

posted by: jbasoon at 05:31 | link | |

Story of a Volunteer Minister

On the Scientology Volunteer Ministers site today there's a story about two exceptional sisters and the work they did in Sri Lanka last year as part of the tsunamai relief for that country:

Over the past 18 months, the world has been shaken by natural disasters never before seen by this generation; from the South Asian tsunami to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, the Pakistani earthquake to the cyclone in Northern Australia. Never before has help been so vitally needed and never before have so many people been willing to give up their time to help their fellow man. This was made clear when thousands of volunteers from all over the world arrived at the tsunami affected areas last year offering their help. Sisters Alissa and Sarah Sears from Santa Barbara, California, are active Scientology Volunteer Ministers. This is the first of two stories on their experiences over the past year.

Last June, the Chairman of the Board of Religious Technology Center, Mr. David Miscavige, spoke of the incredible work of the Scientology Volunteer Ministers Disaster Relief Teams in South East Asia. These were clearly two women who were very much a part of the help that was provided.

posted by: jbasoon at 22:17 | link | |

Scientology Volunteer Ministers Helping Sort Out Relationships

I have a friend who is a Scientology Volunteer Minister, and she spends time on the weekend at her Church's Volunteer Ministers tent, where people come in for help to handle various aspects of their lives. She told me the story of a woman who had had trouble for years with her mother. They just couldn't get along with one another at all. It was very upsetting to this woman, and she had given up on being able to resolve this. My friend had her get a copy of the booklet "How to Resolve Conflicts" by L. Ron Hubbard.

posted by: jbasoon at 05:14 | link | |