The Prison of Belief
Posted: 06 Jun 2015
A new documentary currently screening at the Sydney Film Festival is "GOING CLEAR: SCIENTOLOGY AND THE PRISON OF BELIEF” (what a great title!) which has been mentioned in other posts on this forum.
I heard an interview with its director, Alex Gibney.( Oscar winner for " Taxi to the Dark Side” and nominee for Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room). Discussing his most recent film, he said that [cults] get people in by showing interest in their well-being, giving time for face-to-face discussion and offering a basic form of therapy, all free initially, then enticing them in further with more and more classes. Either classes and materials cost or ”donations” are ”recommended”.
He made a point of saying that the symptoms & dynamics of cult membership are not that different to what many [non-cult] people show in their lives, only more extreme - hence the title ”Prison of Belief” is about more than just Scientology or religious beleifs, Scientology here is emblematic of the deeper theme being explored, the tendency for us to become trapped by whatever beliefs we have chosen.
That is, people reach a point where they can’t imagine themselves without their set of beliefs, identity becoming so intertwined with the beliefs that any objective or rational challenge to the beliefs is felt a mortal threat to the believer.
His thesis reminded me of me, or rather, of a humble turn of phrase invented by yours truly - that there is also a ”cult of the mainstream”.
I for one look forward to seeing this film.
I heard an interview with its director, Alex Gibney.( Oscar winner for " Taxi to the Dark Side” and nominee for Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room). Discussing his most recent film, he said that [cults] get people in by showing interest in their well-being, giving time for face-to-face discussion and offering a basic form of therapy, all free initially, then enticing them in further with more and more classes. Either classes and materials cost or ”donations” are ”recommended”.
He made a point of saying that the symptoms & dynamics of cult membership are not that different to what many [non-cult] people show in their lives, only more extreme - hence the title ”Prison of Belief” is about more than just Scientology or religious beleifs, Scientology here is emblematic of the deeper theme being explored, the tendency for us to become trapped by whatever beliefs we have chosen.
That is, people reach a point where they can’t imagine themselves without their set of beliefs, identity becoming so intertwined with the beliefs that any objective or rational challenge to the beliefs is felt a mortal threat to the believer.
His thesis reminded me of me, or rather, of a humble turn of phrase invented by yours truly - that there is also a ”cult of the mainstream”.
I for one look forward to seeing this film.