Glossary

(Note: words used in the definitions which have special meaning in Scientology are marked in italics and are separately defined in this glossary.)

aberration: used in Scientology to denote any form of departure or deviation from rational thought or behaviour.

ABLE: Association for Better Living and Education – a theoretically secular management entity responsible for the social betterment activities of Scientology, with four subsidiaries under its umbrella (Narconon – drug prevention
and rehabilitation; Criminon — crime prevention, rehabilitation of criminals; Way to Happiness Foundation — handling the moral decline in society; and Applied Scholastics — providing tools for educators and educational institutions.

Advanced Org(anization): upper level Scientology organizations, which deliver the OT levels I, II, III, IV and V as well as various advanced Scientology training courses. There are Advanced Organizations in Copenhagen, Denmark; St. Hill, England; Los Angeles and Sydney, Australia.

auditing: in Scientology, it is a general term denoting any and all personal therapy sessions, delivered by a practitioner of Scientology (called an auditor, a term derived from the Latin audire to listen). There are many types of auditing, ranging from finding and relieving the effects of past painful incidents to so-called Confessionals, where the patient is supposed to disclose his wrongdoings in detail.

battle plan: all daily, weekly and weekly production plans were called “battle plans”, in alignment with the (somewhat faux) naval tradition of the Sea Org.

Birthday Game: a competition in which all Scientology organizations around the world participate. It is basically a year-long production contest, starting and ending on Hubbard’s birthday (13th of March) each year. It was launched by the man himself in 1983. The production and performance of  Scientology organizations is measured on a weekly basis (which ends and begins at 14:00 every Thursday). Points are awarded for rising statistics (1 for small, 3 for large increases). The calculation is based on the degree of expansion happening locally. All continental Sea Org bases have a person responsible for calculating the weekly points and sending the standings to each org. In addition to that, they are also responsible for getting the org staff members enthusiastic about the game and to produce more.

Bridge to Total Freedom, The or simply “The Bridge”: a chart that contains the exact sequence of Scientology services that must be completed to achieve “total spiritual freedom”, the advertised end product of Scientology.

case: the totality of issues, psychological problems, aberrations etc. plaguing someone.

Case Supervisor: the person responsible for supervising all auditors and auditing actions (see also case in this glossary).

Clear: a state of spiritual awareness in Scientology, described as being completely rational and having no personal aberrations. It is theoretically achieved by erasing one’s reactive mind through auditing.

Committee of Evidence: a kind of a Scientology trial by jury, which is supposed to be impartial, establish all the facts and come up with a ruling.

Continental Liaison Office (CLO): a management organization responsible for the management and expansion of all Scientology organizations and groups on its continent. The CLO for Europe is located in Copenhagen, Denmark.

DB: an abbreviation for degraded being.

degraded beings: spiritual beings who were under suppression for a lengthy period and were wrecked by it in this or in an earlier lifetime, and were unable function normally. They always felt an internal compulsion to disobey any orders given and were unrepentant “alterers” – incapable of doing exactly what was asked of them and if they were to pass information along, they would surely alter it. Additionally, they had an inherent hatred of “big beings” like L. Ron Hubbard (and presumably, the better Scientologists).

downstat: Having downward trending production statistics and/or performing badly.

E-meter: short for Electropsychometer, an instrument used in auditing. It measures electrical resistance and skin conductivity. According to Scientology, “the static field” around one’s body is reflective of one’s mental state, and therefore
such a device can be used to detect or locate areas of spiritual distress and to ascertain whether or not someone has been relieved of the effects of such past traumatic moments during an auditing session.

EstO: short for Establishment Officer, an executive responsible for hiring, training and correcting staff members.

Field Staff Member: a public Scientologist who sends people for Scientology services to Scientology organizations and receives 10-15% commission for his or her work.

Finance Network: a separate network inside the Church, responsible for monitoring finances and collecting the management and licensing fees for top-level Church organizations.

Fitness Board: Every Sea Org base has such a board for reviewing eligibility for Sea Org membership, theoretically operating according to the relevant policies of Hubbard. Sea Org members are required to appear before this board after
completing their basic training, or any time circumstances warranted it. The committee usually consisted of three members, chaired by the head of the qualifications (quality control) division.

FSM: an abbreviation of Field Staff Member.

Flag: a short name for the Flag Service Organization.

Flag Service Organization: located in Clearwater, Florida, it is one of the top Scientology service organizations, responsible for delivering OT levels VI and VII as well as other special training and auditing services.

flap: serious issue or problem

HCO Executive Secretary: the executive over Divisions 1 (personnel, communications, ethics & justice matters) and 2 (sales and marketing of books, lectures and courses to existing public). “HCO” stands for “Hubbard Communications Office”, the name of Division 1 in Scientology Churches.

little brown church in the vale, the: a reference to an L. Ron Hubbard writing  of 23 March 1985, where he condemns the kind of image where a Scientology Church is portrayed as a place “where people can get together, sing and are not too unhappy.”

major service: a Scientology course or auditing action listed in the main central area of The Bridge to Total Freedom.

mission: 1. the most basic type of Scientology Church organizations, responsible for delivering introductory courses and sending people to services to the nearby org; 2. also called Sea Org mission; a team of Sea Org members sent to complete a special task or resolve an emergency situation.

missionaire: member of a Sea Org mission.

New Era Publications: the European publishing corporation of the Church located in Copenhagen, Denmark.

off-policy: contrary to or not in alignment with any of Hubbard’s administrative policies.

Office of Special Affairs: the legal, intelligence and PR arm of the Church. It is a separate network inside Scientology. Its functions included monitoring the enemies of Scientology as well as suspicious members of the Church. They work with the attorneys and sometimes employ Private Investigators for
certain operations. They also supervise the Citizens’ Commission on Human Rights, an anti-psychiatry organization founded by the Church.

on-source: in full adherence with the written and spoken words of L. Ron Hubbard (the self-appointed “Source” of Scientology.

Operating Thetan: enhanced states of spiritual awareness, which are theoretically attainable after one achieves the state of Clear.

Operation & Transport Liaison (OTL): a management unit in Scientology, responsible for managing a certain part of a continent. In essence it is a small CLO.

Operation Snow White: a project during the 1970s to purge unfavorable records about Scientology and its founder L. Ron Hubbard. This project included infiltration and thefts from 136 government agencies, foreign embassies and consulates, as well as private organizations critical of Scientology, in more than 30 countries. This program included the single largest infiltration of the United States government in history.

org: short for organization, a local Scientology Church where services up to the level of Clear on the Bridge are delivered.

Organization Executive Course: a course teaching the entirety of LRH’s admin technology. It consists of the study of the so-called OEC Volumes or Green Volumes. OEC Volume 0 contains all the policies and know-how about being a staff member in general, and each division (from 1 to 7) on the organizing board of Scientology has a volume dedicated to it, containing all LRH writings about the operation, rules and know-how of that division.

OSA: an abbreviation of Office of Special Affairs.

OT: an abbreviation of Operating Thetan.

OTL: an abbreviation of Operation and Transport Liaison.
overt/withhold writeup: an enforced confession of all harmful acts of commission or omission, to be submitted in writing to the officer ordering it; it has a specific format, containing the time, place, form and event of each act committed.

particle: in Scientology, everything is considered a “particle” that travels on communication lines (including people).

Potential Trouble Source: someone currently or formerly connected to a Suppressive Person, and this association still affects him or her in some way.

preclear: someone who has started to receive Scientology auditing, but has not achieved the state of Clear yet.

PTS: an abbreviation of Potential Trouble Source.

public: someone who is not a staff member, just a regular member of the Church of Scientology, a “parishioner.” It is used as a singular noun in Scientology.

reactive mind: a Scientology term for the subconscious mind. According to L. Ron Hubbard, it is a collection of moments of pain and unconsciousness as well as various other mental mechanisms and is the sole source of nonoptimum behaviour.

reg(ister): collect money for Scientology purposes (services or projects). Derived from Registrar (salesperson) and registration (sales).

RTC: short for Religious Technology Center; in theory, this corporation is the holder of all Scientology trademarks and copyrights, and has no management duties or rights. In actual fact, it is the top organization in the Scientology hierarchy; its Chairman/CEO is David Miscavige, the de facto leader of
the Church.

Saint Hill (St Hill): L. Ron Hubbard’s home in the 1960’s. Located near East Grinstead about 50 miles south of London, the estate was home to the international headquarters of Scientology when Hubbard lived there from 1959 to 1967. Today it is an Advanced Org.

Sea Organization: the elite of Scientology staff. It is theoretically the religious order of the Church. Sea Org membership is mandatory for filling any upper-level management position or holding a position in all higher level
Scientology organizations. It was founded by L. Ron Hubbard in 1967 and originally operated aboard a small fleet of ships in the Mediterranean (hence the name).

second dynamic: Hubbard claimed that the command “Survive!” was the lowest common denominator of all existence, and the primary purpose of all life forms.
He divided this urge into 8 subdivisions (self, sex&family, group, mankind, all life, the physical universe, spiritual beings, and God or Infinity). The second dynamic covers all sexual activity and anything related to raising children and having a family.

Security Check: metered interrogation not protected by priest-penitent privilege; everything the suspect says is actionable.

SMI: Scientology Missions International – a Scientology management entity responsible for the management of missions

SP: an abbreviation of Suppressive Person.

Suppressive Person: an evil, antisocial person. Also used to denote people who are critical of Scientology or considered to be enemies of the movement.

tech / technology: the term used in Scientology to describe the application of Hubbard’s methods.

theta: as an adjective, it means something aesthetic, causing good feelings or spiritual joy; cute and charming in case of a person. As a noun, it means “life force” in Scientology.

thetan: a Scientology word for a spiritual being. According to Scientology, every human being is a thetan, inhabiting a body, which he or she controls with the mind.

upstat: having upward trending production statistics and/or performing well.

whole track: also referred to as time track, and refers to the duration of the entire physical universe.

WISE: World Institute of Scientology Enterprises – a theoretically secular membership organization for Scientologist business people which also licenses Hubbard’s administrative methodology for a fee.