The Sea Org

The Sea Organization is possibly the most controversial aspect of Scientology. It is a level of Scientology in which members join by signing a one billion year contract. Scientologists believe in reincarnation, so signing the contract guarantees that member will serve throughout all of his/her lives. This is a fact that the church has also confirmed. Often times, those who join are either long-time members or children. There is no definitive number of members in the Sea Org, but different sources claim between 5,000 and 20,000 members. It is called the Sea Org because it was originally founded by L. Ron Hubbard (Scientology’s founder) in 1967 as a group of Scientologist’s which assisted him in his sea voyages to advance his spiritual research.

The Sea Org is criticized for many reasons. Many people who have left the Sea Org have revealed horror stories of what goes on inside. Nothing can be known for sure, all that the public can rely on are stories from possible ex-Scientologists. The church is consistent with adamantly rejecting all of these claims.

Scientology’s Explanation of the Sea Org:

Scientologists explain the Sea Org as an organization of the “singularly most dedicated Scientologists—individuals who have committed their lives to the volunteer service of their religion”. Even though the Sea Org was originally based on a ship, it’s current members serve mostly on land. They categorize Sea Org members as “volunteers” of the church. While in the Sea Org, members are required to “work long hours and live communally”, with all needs paid for and an allowance, as well as continue their studies of Scientology. They explain their mission as “the forefront of spearheading the Church’s massive social mission, including the world’s largest nongovernmental drug education campaign, the largest human rights education campaign and many another global program that touches the lives of millions”.

Some criticisms of the Sea Org include the long working hours and hard labor, paired with the small pay and communal living, which equates to an unsubstantial lifestyle. Supposedly, Sea Org members marry young just so they can have their own room and a little privacy.  However, as of 1986, Sea Org members are no longer permitted to have children within the Sea Org, as a child would interfere with their work and frequent travel. If they have become pregnant, they are allowed to have the child but must leave the Sea Org. This supposedly leads to some forced abortions as members in the Sea Org feel an immense amount of pressure to stay in the organization and keep fulfilling their mission of “helping humanity”.

One interesting thing I learned while reading stories of ex-members is that whenever a Sea Org member gets sick, it is supposedly their fault for sinning in their life. Therefore, when a member is sick, they are punished and sometimes sent away. I choose to believe that this is true because of the detail and consistency of this fact in many stories.

Videos/Further Reading:

An explanation of the Sea Org and a compilation of criticisms of the Sea Org can be found in this article by Ex-Scientology Kids, a website founded by three women who grew up in, then left, Scientology.

Ex-Sea Org Articles:

Derek Bloch wrote this article about some things that he learned during his three years in the Sea Org.

Tracy Ekstrand spoke out about her experiences in the Sea Org for eleven years to the Washington Post in this article from 2015.

Here is a public discussion on the Sea Org contract and responsibilities, contributed to by some former Sea Org members, with multiple different viewpoints of the time they served.