Drug-Free South Announces Event for International Day Against Drug Abuse

The Truth About Drugs program provides teachers, law enforcement and community groups with effective drug education materials.

Drug-Free South (DFS) is the Tennessee Chapter of the Foundation for a Drug-Free World, and is planning an Open House and event to honor International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking on June 26. The group will be bringing in guest speaker Melanie Safka, best known for her musical hits “Brand New Key,” “Ruby Tuesday,” “What Have They Done to My Song Ma,” and her song about performing at the 1969 Woodstock Music Festival, “Lay Down (Candles in the Rain).” Melanie is glad to be able to speak out on this important topic, “You don’t have to experience drugs to experience life. That’s what imagination is for,” she says.

The Foundation for a Drug-Free World provides the Truth About Drugs booklets, the “They Said, They Lied” public service announcements, and the 100-minute documentary, The Truth About Drugs: Real People, Real Stories which all work together to provide students the facts on drugs. DFS helps kids understand the truth about drugs, so they don’t get caught off-guard when a dealer is trying to talk them into doing something they will always regret.

Melanie continued: “I see people who are my grand daughter’s age who feel they have to apologize for not doing drugs. They’re being pressured into it.” It is for this reason that she is speaking out.

June 26 is known as the United Nation’s International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking. The day was created by the UN General Assembly in December 1987 to encourage all sectors of society to work together to tackle drug abuse and addiction.

Drug-Free South is celebrating the day by showcasing its materials for educators and hosting a forum to discuss community problems and ways to address them.  “We’re excited to reach out further to help all children in Tennessee,” says Rev. Brian Fesler who pastors the Church of Scientology and helps coordinate the local Drug-Free program. For more information on the Truth About Drugs program or upcoming events, visit drugfreesouth.org. 

Church of Scientology Hosts Celebration to Honor Retiring Military Chaplain

This past weekend, the Nashville Church of Scientology hosted a special celebration to honor a retiring military chaplain who had served more than thirty years.

It takes a special calling to serve as a military chaplain – not just to serve the nation, but deliver the hardest news to loved ones when a soldier has fallen. So the Church of Scientology was pleased and honored to host the celebration of a military colonel retiring after more than thirty years of service.

Guests came from across the country to the celebration which began in grand style with a full-blown marching band performance as the colonel arrived by limo.

The program which followed in the Church of Scientology community hall was packed wall-to-wall with people, several standing at the doorway unable to get a seat in the crowded auditorium.

The Nashville Church of Scientology often hosts events of this nature because of its special mission to help leaders in the world. “Those who have served this nation with dignity deserve to be recognized,” said Rev. Brian Fesler who pastors the church, “our founder, L. Ron Hubbard, served in the navy during the second World War. Men and women who dedicate their lives to our nation for times of crisis deserve to be recognized.”

To learn more about Scientology or upcoming events at the Nashville Church, visit scientology-ccnashville.org.

The Nashville Church of Scientology Wants You To Know

In early April, World Religion News published the “10 Things You Should Know About Scientology,” with key points brought up about the modern religion. The Nashville Church of Scientology is sharing this as a public service – here are ten things to know about the Scientology religion.

First: Scientology comes from the Latin Scio ("Knowing") and Greek logos ("Study Of"). At its core, Scientology is literally the study of knowledge. The religion is embodied by knowing oneself as well as one’s family and friends, the world, life, the universe, the spirit, and God. It is the study of truth, drawing on 50,000 years of wisdom, mathematics, and nuclear physics to reach its profound conclusions. Scientology is a new kind of religion: Not just something you believe in but something you do, not merely posing questions but supplying answers. It provides practical solutions to real life problems: Relationships, work, parenting, creativity, self-respect, motivation, inspiration, and spirituality—helping people to understand each other as well as themselves.

Second: It’s represented by more than 11,000 Churches, Missions and groups across 184 nations, welcoming millions of new visitors to our sites each year. The worldwide community that comprises Scientology spans 193 languages, employment in 3,200 professions, and 2.8 million community volunteer hours annually. Scientology is a movement with grassroots groups starting up every 24 hours and new Churches and Missions opening on every continent, today growing faster than at any time in its history. In Nashville, the church has welcomed more members through its doors within the last five years than the twenty-five years prior. Hundreds in the Middle Tennessee region call this church home.

Third: L. Ron Hubbard founded the Scientology religion. He was a beloved friend and mentor and a singular visionary whose creation continues to change the world for the better. Smithsonian magazine last year recognized Mr. Hubbard as one of the 10 most influential religious figures in American history and one of the 100 Most Significant Americans of All Time. In his celebrated 1965 essay “My Philosophy,” Mr. Hubbard offers, “The first principle of my own philosophy is that wisdom is meant for anyone who wishes to reach for it.” In keeping with this philosophy, Mr. Hubbard recorded and made available the full chronicle of his research and discoveries through more than 5,000 writings and 3,000 recorded lectures.

Fourth: Scientology has a concept of God, which is expressed as the Eighth Dynamic—the vision of an infinite existence. This is also identified as the Supreme Being. As the Eighth Dynamic, the Scientology concept of God rests at the very apex of universal survival. Unlike religions with Judeo-Christian origins, the Church of Scientology has no established dogma surrounding God that it imposes on its members. As with all of its tenets, Scientology does not ask individuals to accept anything on faith alone. Rather, as one’s level of spiritual awareness increases through participation in Scientology auditing and training, one attains his own certainty of every dynamic. Accordingly, only when the Seventh Dynamic (spiritual) is reached in its entirety will one discover and come to a full understanding of the Eighth Dynamic (infinity) and one’s relationship to the Supreme Being.

Fifth: Scientology postulates that nothing in Scientology is true for you unless you have observed it and experienced it personally – i.e., nothing in Scientology should be accepted just because the church says so. This concept is expressed in the essay “Personal Integrity,” in which L. Ron Hubbard observes, “What is true for you is what you have observed yourself. And when you lose that, you have lost everything.” Scientologists apply this principle in studying Scientology. In learning Scientology, students are not expected to memorize and parrot answers. Rather, they are prompted to understand and utilize its concepts and techniques and to conclude if they ring true for them —try them out, make them their own, apply them to their own lives or use them to enlighten and assist others.

Sixth: Scientology deems that man is an immortal spiritual being. His experience extends well beyond a single lifetime. His capabilities are unlimited, even if not presently realized. In his famous essay “The Golden Dawn,” L. Ron Hubbard wrote, “For countless ages a goal of religion has been the salvage of the human soul. Man has tried by many practices to find the pathway to salvation. Man can save his soul. Like the bright cool dawn after a night of prison and of thunder, Man can taste that freedom sought so long... You are a spirit. You are your own soul. You are not mortal. You can be free.”

Seventh: A fundamental tenet of Scientology is that mankind is basically good; that it is seeking to survive; and that man’s survival depends upon himself, upon his fellows, and upon his attainment of brotherhood with the universe. However, mankind’s experiences in the physical universe, through many lifetimes, have led him into evil. He has committed harmful acts or sins which further reduce man’s awareness and innate goodness as a spiritual being. Through Scientology, one confronts these acts, erases the ignorance which surrounds them, and comes to know and experience truth again. All religions seek answers. Freedom of the spirit is only to be found on the road to truth. Sin is composed, according to Scientology, of lies and hidden actions and is therefore lacking in truth.

Eighth: Scientology was founded on the principles of human rights. The Creed of the Church of Scientology states, “We of the Church believe that all men or whatever race, color or creed were created with equal rights.” Scientologists subscribe to the Code of a Scientologist and pledge “to decry and do all I can to abolish any and all abuses against life and mankind” and “to support true humanitarian endeavors in the fields of human rights.”

For more than 40 years, Scientologists have championed the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). In 1969, L. Ron Hubbard reprinted the UDHR in the Church’s Freedom Magazine and wrote: “The United Nations came up with the answer. An absence of human rights stained the hands of governments and threatened their rules. Very few governments have implemented any part of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. These governments have not grasped that their very survival depends utterly upon adopting such reforms and thus giving their peoples a cause, a civilization worth supporting, worth their patriotism.”

Ninth: Scientologists believe in helping others and taking responsibility for our communities and the world. Help is a primary concept and orientation of a Scientologist. In Nashville, Scientologists work to bring drug education to schools, they help organize events to promote human rights, and tutor neighborhood children.  

Tenth: Scientology is a practical religion. In keeping with his philosophy, Mr. Hubbard made the basic principles of Scientology broadly available so people of any faith can gain a greater understanding of their place in the universe, and can benefit from the practical application of these principles. Moreover, the Church has made this training available to everyone through free online courses in 19 subjects that span improving relationships, salvaging marriages and resolving conflicts as well as helping those plagued by a drug or alcohol problem or balked by barriers to learning. These are available at the Scientology website.  The Scientology Volunteer Ministers program brings this technology to every corner of the globe through on-site seminars and Scientology Volunteer Ministers Goodwill Tours.

The Way to Happiness Promotes a Clean and Beautiful Environment for Earth Day

The Way to Happiness is working to inspire all residents of Nashville and Middle Tennessee with messages to safeguard and improve the environment.

According to a report by the U.S. National Park Service, it takes an average of 50 years for the environment to break down a tin can, 450 years to break down a plastic bottle, and a million years to break down a glass bottle. This is why the group, The Way to Happiness, is preparing a series of community cleanup projects in the Nashville area.

“Every little bit helps,” says a volunteer for the program, “Plus, we are setting a good example for others who can then decide to do something to improve the environment.”  

The Way to Happiness Campaign is centered around the book of the same name by L. Ron Hubbard, which is comprised of 21 precepts, each one predicated on the fact that one’s survival depends on the survival of others—and that without the survival of others, neither joy nor happiness are attainable. In the two decades since it was authored, some 80 million copies of the book passed hand to hand, thus inspiring an international movement.

One of the concepts in the booklet is “Safeguard and Improve Your Environment,” and it is this message which is broadcast during cleanup events.

In Nashville, the local chapter of The Way to Happiness Foundation offers seminars and free copies of the booklet. The group also organizes events and cleanups around the city to help make Nashville a more beautiful and clean environment. For more information, visit thewaytohappiness.org.

Religion Communicators Council Visits American Center for Outreach

The Religion Communicators Council exists to spread the good news to the world. Its members come from all religious groups and work in various public relations arenas.

Throughout our history, America has been a land defined by religious faith and freedom. Religious freedom is our first and most fundamental, God-given right deemed so precious that our Founding Fathers enshrined it in the U.S. Constitution, according to the website Alliance Defending Freedom.

So what does a religious group do when its right to practice is threatened in the United States of America? Exercise its right to freedom of speech and organize a non-profit organization to address the situation. That is exactly what happened in 2011 when the American Center for Outreach was formed by Muslim leaders in Nashville, Tennessee.

This week, ACO Executive Director Paul Galloway was happy to host the Religion Communicators Council (RCC) for its April meeting. Galloway spoke about the mission, purpose and history of the center. RCC members were glad to hear from Galloway and plan ways to work together in the future.  

RCC hears regularly from a variety of organizations and groups which better the community, promote messages of faith or give tips on how to spread the good word.

The American Center for Outreach works to promote religious liberty and faith-based social justice through advocacy and issue-based coalitions. Its principles are religious freedom, mutual respect, and interfaith cooperation, among others.

Galloway has been called “the Yoda of interfaith affairs” while he was with Interfaith Ministries for Greater Houston, where his work was honored with a Jefferson Awards Certificate of Excellence for Public Service.

“This country was founded on principles of religious freedom and I appreciate anyone who makes that a priority,” says president of the Nashville RCC chapter and pastor of the Church of Scientology, Rev. Brian Fesler. RCC is open to members from all denominations, and the Nashville group includes Baha’is, Christians, Jews, Muslims, Scientologists, and more.  For more information about the RCC, visit www.religioncommunicators.org.

For more information about the American Center for Outreach, visit acotn.org. 

Church of Scientology Hosts SEO Guru for Seminar to Help Artists

The Church of Scientology Celebrity Centre Nashville recently hosted Tony Rockliff for a seminar geared toward helping artists advance in their careers.

Many churches incorporate music into their services, but the Nashville Church of Scientology & Celebrity Centre takes it a step further, working diligently to help artists succeed in their respective fields.  This past weekend, successful artist Tony Rockliff returned to Nashville to deliver a seminar all about increasing artists’ prosperity using the Internet.

Rockliff is an Internet marketing expert and successful artist himself. In 1995, he created “Cybertown,” an online community of people from 155 countries interacting in a 3D Virtual Reality off-world town set about 100 years in the future.  Cybertown grew to 1.3 million members, was receiving 1.5 billion hits a year and was listed in the top 2500 sites of the world. This was all before Facebook and Twitter even existed.

Completely aside from his success online Rockliff has decades of experience as a record producer, recording engineer and composer. He has worked with artists including Cat Stevens, Beck, Elton John's band, Regina Bell, the Temptations, Sir George Martin, Brian Johnson from AC/DC, David Pomeranz, David Campbell, Nicky Hopkins, members of Yes and the Doors and many others. 

During Rockliff’s seminar for artists, he went over exactly what is being done by the musicians who are successful expanding their careers with the Internet and discussed step-by-step strategies that can be used by others.

The seminar was hosted by the Church of Scientology Celebrity Centre Nashville, a church with a mission to help artists. President of the church, Corinne Sullivan, says, "Our founder, L. Ron Hubbard, made it clear that our role is to help artists as they shape the future and the culture around us.”

This is not the first time Rockliff has delivered such a seminar and won’t be the last. For more information about future artistic seminar, events or church activities, call Julie Brinker at 615-687-4600. For more on Tony Rockliff, visit his website www.indietrak.com.

Church of Scientology Hosts SEO Guru for Seminar to Help Artists

The Church of Scientology Celebrity Centre Nashville recently hosted Tony Rockliff for a seminar geared toward helping artists advance in their careers.

Many churches incorporate music into their services, but the Nashville Church of Scientology & Celebrity Centre takes it a step further, working diligently to help artists succeed in their respective fields.  This past weekend, successful artist Tony Rockliff returned to Nashville to deliver a seminar all about increasing artists’ prosperity using the Internet.

Rockliff is an Internet marketing expert and successful artist himself. In 1995, he created “Cybertown,” an online community of people from 155 countries interacting in a 3D Virtual Reality off-world town set about 100 years in the future.  Cybertown grew to 1.3 million members, was receiving 1.5 billion hits a year and was listed in the top 2500 sites of the world. This was all before Facebook and Twitter even existed.

Completely aside from his success online Rockliff has decades of experience as a record producer, recording engineer and composer. He has worked with artists including Cat Stevens, Beck, Elton John's band, Regina Bell, the Temptations, Sir George Martin, Brian Johnson from AC/DC, David Pomeranz, David Campbell, Nicky Hopkins, members of Yes and the Doors and many others. 

During Rockliff’s seminar for artists, he went over exactly what is being done by the musicians who are successful expanding their careers with the Internet and discussed step-by-step strategies that can be used by others.

The seminar was hosted by the Church of Scientology Celebrity Centre Nashville, a church with a mission to help artists. President of the church, Corinne Sullivan, says, "Our founder, L. Ron Hubbard, made it clear that our role is to help artists as they shape the future and the culture around us.”

This is not the first time Rockliff has delivered such a seminar and won’t be the last. For more information about future artistic seminar, events or church activities, call Julie Brinker at 615-687-4600. For more on Tony Rockliff, visit his website www.indietrak.com.

Expanding World Health Day into a Weeklong Community-based Anti-Drug Initiative

Scientology Churches turn World Health Day April 7 into a week of activities to counter drug abuse, working with civic, community and religious leaders to create a groundswell of community support for drug prevention and education.

With the World Health Organization reporting 3.3 million alcohol-related deaths each year, 15.3 million people addicted to drugs, and 120 countries suffering from HIV caused by injected drug use, Scientologists are marking World Health Day with an entire week of activities April 7-14 to rally their communities to counter drug abuse.

“Our goal is a drug-free world,” said Fabio Amicarelli, coordinator of the social reform activities of the Church of Scientology International. “Drug abuse is so pervasive in our world, it is only by community groups working together at a grassroots level that we can handle the epidemic. But more than 25 years of experience has proven to us that we save lives every time we reach out to youth with factual information about drugs.”

While Scientologists are active in drug education throughout the year, on World Health Day in April and the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking in June, they pull out all stops, organizing open houses, drug education seminars, conferences, and workshops featuring educators, law enforcement officers and community leaders—the leading proponents of drug prevention in their zones.

This week’s programs include training in the Truth About Drugs initiative, with materials based on nearly three decades of hands-on work helping youth understand the consequences of using  the most commonly abused substances. Study of these materials helps young people make their own firm, self-determined decisions to live drug-free.

An overview of the week’s activities include a conference at the Church of Scientology of Johannesburg, where Bishop Ogbu of Impact Africa Network spoke of the role of churches in fighting drugs. The World Health Day program in Pretoria, South Africa, concentrated on the relationship between drugs and crime.

The Nashville Church of Scientology held a forum with community police representatives, and local non-profit groups who work with children to plan a series of events to address the drug problem in surrounding communities.

The Founding Church of Scientology in Washington, D.C. held a drug prevention open house, and the Church of Scientology of Buffalo, New York, held a community-based forum, where a racecar driver explained why he promotes the Truth About Drugs program through his racing.

The National Director of MAD DADS (Men Against Destruction, Defending Against Drugs and Social-disorder) was the guest speaker and the World Health Day Open House at the Church of Scientology of Twin Cities, Minnesota.

In Denver, Colorado, the keynote speaker was an officer of the Rocky Mountain HIDTA (High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas)—a program created by U.S. Congress to provide help in critical drug-trafficking regions in the U.S. He gave an overview of the impact the state’s legalization of marijuana has had on Colorado and beyond.

At the Church of Scientology of Los Angeles, a retired deputy sheriff, a specialist on the subject of synthetic drugs, gave an in-depth presentation on these substances, their effects, and how dealers skirt the law by creating new versions of drugs through minor chemical alterations that make them no longer “technically” illegal.

Those attending the forum at the Church of Scientology of Pasadena were briefed on proposed anti-drug legislation.

In Phoenix, the highlight was the personal story of a woman who described her teen years separated from her incarcerated heroin-addicted mother and how she and her mother have turned their family’s tragedy into a program to help others.

In Seattle and New York representatives of the police departments spoke of the results they have seen from the use of the Truth About Drugs Program.

The Scientology Organization of Mexico presented a “Colloquium on the Problem and Solution to Drugs in Mexico” attended by local and national law enforcement agencies who have adopted the program. It included a presentation on the results of having trained more than 2,000 policemen on the Truth About Drugs program and the use the officers have made of these materials in their work in the community.

There were also open house events, conferences and community round tables in Canada, Italy and Russia, with additional programs planned for the coming days in Taiwan, Australia and Israel.

The Church of Scientology supports The Truth About Drugs drug education and prevention initiative.

Inspired by the words of L. Ron Hubbard, Founder of the Scientology religion, that “a being is only as valuable as he can serve others,” Scientologists wholeheartedly support these programs. Participation and collaboration in these initiatives is invited and welcomed from all who seek to improve conditions for themselves and others.

For more information, visit the Scientology website at www.Scientology.org/how-we-help/voice-for-humanity.

Religion Communicators Council Learns About the American Center for Outreach

The Religion Communicators Council exists to spread the good news to the world. Its members come from all religious groups and work in various public relations arenas.

What does a religious community do when they are attacked on the political stage? The answer: form a non-profit to address this. That is exactly what happened in 2011 when the American Center for Outreach was formed by Muslim leaders in Nashville, Tennessee.

The American Center for Outreach (ACO) plans to host the Religion Communicators Council (RCC) for its April 21^st meeting. Director Paul Galloway will speak to the mission, purpose and history of the center to RCC members.

RCC hears regularly from a variety of organizations and groups which better the community, promote messages of faith or give tips on how to spread the good word.

The American Center for Outreach works to promote religious liberty and faith-based social justice through advocacy and issue-based coalitions. Its principles are religious freedom, mutual respect, and interfaith cooperation, among others.

“It is wonderful that such an organization exists to bring justice and equality to all legal processes,” says president of the Nashville RCC chapter and pastor of the Church of Scientology, Rev. Brian Fesler.

Director of ACO, Paul Galloway who will be presenting to the RCC has been called “the Yoda of interfaith affairs” while he was with Interfaith Ministries for Greater Houston, where his work was honored with a Jefferson Awards Certificate of Excellence for Public Service.

Fesler continued: “All religious communicators are welcome to attend and become members of RCC.” RCC is open to members from all denominations, and the Nashville group includes Baha’is, Christians, Jews, Muslims, Scientologists, and more.  For more information about the RCC, visit www.religioncommunicators.org.

For more information about the American Center for Outreach, visit acotn.org. 

Church of Scientology to Host Open House and Musical Salute for Armed Forces

The Nashville Church of Scientology is planning a special open house and musical tribute to those who serve the nation on May 16, 2015.

According to militarybenefits.info, May 16^th is Armed Forces Day and is a “holiday for citizens to come together and thank our military members for their patriotic service in support of our country. This day honors everyone serving in the U.S. Military branches: Air Force, Army, Coast Guard, Marines, Navy.” In honor of the brave men and women who serve the nation, the Church of Scientology will be hosting an open house and musical salute on that day in Nashville, Tennessee.

President of the church, Corinne Sullivan, is planning the event. “We are inviting anyone active in the military, veterans, and families of military members,” she says.

The Open House will take place all day on May 16^th, with the musical tribute rounding off the day from 4pm-7pm in the community hall.

The Nashville Church of Scientology often hosts events of this nature because of its special mission to help leaders in the world as well as artists. Musicians have found a home at this church where they are welcome to play music without criticism, visual artists have displayed their art purely for the purpose of showcasing their talent, and others have been welcomed to learn how to improve in their career through seminars by successful entrepreneurs.

“Those who have served this nation with dignity deserve to be recognized,” said Sullivan, “our founder, L. Ron Hubbard, served in the navy during the Second World War. Men and women who take the time to assist their nation in times of crisis need to be recognized for their dedication.”

To learn more about Scientology or upcoming events at the Nashville Church, visit scientology-ccnashville.org.