Hubbard set up the Church of Scientology in Hollywood in 1954 for a reason. He understood that celebrity was increasingly a feature of American public life, and celebrities themselves were going to be worshiped as minor deities were in the ancient world. The idea was: if you could get them, think how many people would follow.
Interpretation
The quote discusses how celebrities are viewed in society and the power they hold over the public.
Lawrence Wright's quote highlights the understanding of L. Ron Hubbard that celebrities possess significant influence and control over public perception. By establishing the Church of Scientology in Hollywood, he aimed to harness this power of celebrity, suggesting that just as ancient societies revered their deities, modern society tends to idolize famous individuals. This reflects on the dynamics of fame and belief in contemporary culture.
In practice
In a discussion about the role of celebrities in shaping culture, this quote can be used to illustrate the historical context of fame.
The 2003 invasion of Iraq by U.S. and coalition partners stands as one of the greatest blunders in American history. The Islamic State, also known as ISIL or ISIS, rose out of the the chaos, throwing the region into turmoil that hasn't been equaled since the fall of the Ottoman Empire.
When I was trained as a journalist, as a race-relations reporter in Nashville covering the end of the civil-rights movement, we were strictly forbidden to use the first-person pronoun. There was kind of an electric charge around it. To come out from hiding and use the word 'I' carried a lot of fright for me.
See, if you look at the drug war from a purely economic point of view, the role of the government is to protect the drug cartel. That's literally true.
Where can I find a man who has forgotten words so I can have a word with him?
Power is not brute force and money; power is in your spirit. Power is in your soul. It is what your ancestors, your old people gave you. Power is in the earth; it is in your relationship to the earth.
Anyone who speaks in the name of others is always an impostor.
We, Equality 7-2521, were not happy in those year in the Home of the Students. It was not that the learning was too hard for us. It was that the learning was too easy. This is a great sin, to be born with a head which is too quick. It is not good to be different from our brothers, but it is evil to be superior to them. The Teachers told us so, and they frowned when they looked at us.
Out of the Indian approach to life there came a great freedom, an intense and absorbing respect for life, enriching faith in a Supreme Power, and principles of truth, honesty, generosity, equity, and brotherhood as a guide to mundane relations.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.