Are many self-described Christians in fact Pagan?
Representatives of the Church of Scientology reportedly asked Google to show only nice links whenever people search for ‘Scientology.’
Also: a pastor bilks a woman with dementia. And a church is ordered to pay $3.6 million to a woman assaulted by its former pastor.
Former businessman Ephren Taylor, who describes himself as a ‘Social Capitalist,’ has been charged with fraud by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for an alleged $11 million Ponzi scheme that targeted socially conscious churchgoers.
Among the victims are members of Atlanta’s New Birth Missionary Baptist Church. They are suing their pastor, Eddie Long, for promoting Taylor’s scheme.
A former Los Angeles church pastor, who owned and operated several fraudulent durable medical equipment supply companies with her husband, was sentenced today to serve 3 years in prison for her role in a $14.2 million Medicare fraud scheme.
Last January her husband was sentenced to 15 years in prison.
Updated A French appeals court on Thursday upheld the Church of Scientology’s 2009 fraud conviction on charges it pressured members into paying large sums for questionable remedies.
The case centered on the complaints of several people who spent huge amounts of money for the cult’s ‘purification packs’ and other alleged ‘cures.’
The appeal for the Church of Scientology’s conviction on fraud has opened in a Paris court.
The cult’s defense lawyersh plan to argue during the appeal that the conviction curtails freedom of religion and association.
A doctor and evangelical minister who used bogus herbal medications to offer false hope to dozens of people suffering from diseases such as cancer and Alzheimer’s was found guilty of nearly a dozen federal charges.
Twenty-eight victims or family members of victims who died while taking the products testified against Christine Daniel.
The Australian Independent Senator Nick Xenophon has used a speech in Parliament to raise allegations of widespread criminal conduct within the Church of Scientology.
Senator Xenophon says he’s received letters from former followers of the religion detailing claims of crimes and abuses.
The family of Winston Churchill has asked the Church of Scientology to stop using images of the former prime minister in its recruitment literature, The Times reports.
The controversial religious organisation has been circulating promotional material to recruit staff in the UK which includes photographs of Churchill along with quotes from some of his most famous speeches.
It has also used Churchill’s image to promote speaking engagements by its members and campaigns to raise money to create new Scientology facilities in Britain.
The church defended its use of Churchill in its materials and accused detractors of “trying to stir up mischief”.
The cult apparently sees aligning itself with respected causes (e.g. human rights), celebrities or respected personalties (e.g Einstein as an effective recruitment tactic.
Another favorite ploy is the use of the impressive sounding — but basically useless — Oxford Capacity Analysis test.
The St. Petersburg Times is continuing to expose the Church of Scientology to daylight — by reporting on the destructive cult‘s unethical tactics.
Billed as The Truth Rundown, its series of special reports highlights the alleged abusive behavior of current Scientology leader David Miscavige, as well as other criticism leveled at Scientology by a number of high-level defectors.
French judges said they did not order the church offices closed because they did not want to drive Scientologists underground, where they could not be monitored.
At least five other cases involving complaints against the church are under investigation by courts around France, according to press reports.