Going Clear

Going “Clear” in Scientology is a state in which a person strives to be in. Attainable by all and free of the burdens of past traumas and emotions. Scientologists describe this state as free from the reactive mind, which is “the portion of a person’s mind which works on a totally stimulus-response basis” and is “the hidden source of irrational behavior, unreasonable fears, upsets and insecurities”. Without the reactive mind, “individuals regain their basic personality, self-determinism and, in essence, become much, much more themselves”. This is done through auditing, which is a process where an auditor asks someone a series of questions and acknowledges their answers. This is a core practice of Scientology and is done with a tool called an E-Meter. According to Britannica, an E-Meter “measures the strength of a small electrical current that passes through the body of the person undergoing auditing; the strength of the current indicates changes in emotional states that allow stored engrams to be identified”. This is very basic definition of auditing, a Scientologist’s definition of auditing can be found here, while another explanation of auditing can be found at this Wikipedia site.

Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief is a documentary by Alex Gibney, released in 2015, based on the book Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief by Lawrence Wright. Although this documentary was released over three years ago, it remains relevant to this day. It has received three Emmy awards and much praise from critics. The documentary was so controversial, HBO hired 160 lawyers before it even aired. The main draw of this film is the stories of ex-church members that are revealed within the documentary. It also evaluates the relationship between the church and its famous clients, namely John Travolta and Tom Cruise. The church’s reaction to the film was very critical, but it has received praise from movie critics. It has won the Emmy for Best Documentary, the 2015 Peabody Award, and a Best Documentary award from the Writers Guild of America, according to this Wikipedia page. However, if you had a dad like mine, Rotten Tomatoes is the only way to tell if a movie is any good, and according to Rotten Tomatoes this movie is “certified fresh” at 94%. If you didn’t have a dad like mine, 94% means it has great reviews from top movie critics.

Videos/Further Reading:

If you would like to read more about Scientologist’s reactions you can read this article by The Wrap.

If you would like to hear more about Scientologist’s view of this documentary, you can watch this video that they released about it.

If you would like to read further about Going Clear, the Washington Post has an article that highlights the celebrity’s involvement in the church.

A trailer for the documentary can be watched here.

An interview of Gibney and Wright on CBS This Morning can be watched here.

If you would like to watch Going Clear, you can stream the documentary on HBO here.