Alcoboy, Western spiritual traditions can be rather dryly intellectual — and I can’t blame Blacks (and others) for not being very attracted to them. It’s one of the reasons that mainstream Protestant churches are having trouble attracting even white members any more, compared to other churches that have more engaging and moving services including the use of more dynamic music, and even the incorporation of movement.

I’ve been involved in church and ecumenical work, and I can say there are definitely cultural factors at work, along with some of the sort of systemic things you mention as well. I can point out as an example that if you go to an African Methodist Episcopal (AME) church the service has a completely different feel compared to either a traditional Methodist or Episcopal service, even though it has origins in mainline protestantism (and in anti bellum divisions over whether to oppose slavery).

And again, that’s not necessarily good or bad (though some things about culture, can be), just different. Just as a day starting out with English scones and tea, and ending up with a good roast beef and side of Yorkshire pudding can be great; but if I want to do a real tour of highly developed culinary variety, I’m going to go to someplace like Spain or Italy (where I’m also apt to get hugs rather than handshakes), not Britain.

Chuck, are you sure there’s even a single Black FSM or Reg to ask?

The exorcism theory of Scientology sounds probably too big of a stretch also, for any culture that has some inkling of spirits in their cultural education.

Hubbard’s exorcism procedures are just too penalty laden and troublesome to learn and “master” if you ask me.

Scientology’s quackery is just too difficult to do, and so many pitfalls that blame you for being incapable of doing it “standardly”, always blaming you if it fails. Making practitioners of Scientology is arduous and most people fail to become competent Hubbard quackery experts.

And no matter who does the quackery, the results are so lackluster.

There are no and have never been any really convincing soul flying Scientologists who can perform supernatural miracles.

Why waste one dime of one’s expendable income money for quackery that doesn’t produce the promised supernatural results?

It’s a blessing not to be lured into Hubbard’s quackery and exorcism procedures crap.

The “money” ridge on the Bridge, is a good ridge and it stopped me, which is one reason in the back of my head I was happy I joined staff and Sea Org, since the costs of other even 10 Gs, back in the mid 1970s, was out of reach for me, realistically.

Scientology’s quackery is stretched out, just like a long con.

It’s like Hubbard was in the back of his mind, using psychiatry/psychologists’ therapy programs of long duration as his model.

Stretch it out, for long range. keep the supernatural powers and soul flying as long term carrots for the dupes wishing to pay for all that quackery pseudo-therapy and exorcism.

The Volunteer MInisters and coffeeshop auditing tiny spurts of bringing the prices of the quackery down to free level, was correct (nutty to expect anyone, paying or not, to do the durned pseudo-therapy and exorcism though when it’s all laid out to see in detail what this crap does and doesn’t do).

There’s just too much wrong in all directions with a quackery pseudo-therapy exorcism sales cult. No fixing it in all directions, really.

I feel that in both cases(SA and US), institutionalized racism has caused blacks to adopt a ‘stick to your own kind’ approach to joining things like churches and such. This could be why blacks tend to avoid predominantly white organizations.

“Alcoboy, the relatively more recent and more systematic racism in South Africa can’t be directly compared to the US.”
Please don’t take this wrong but you must not live in Cleveland County, North Carolina.

True that. But that turns away even white people. Not to mention Latinos and Asians.
“So you want me to take out a second mortgage on my house and give it to the, what was it called, the eye ay ess?”
“Yes!”
“Um, in return for what?”
“Why, STATUS, of course!”
That would send ALL ethnicities running for the door!

Ron’s policy was, “free service, free fall.”

(I’m joking, by the way)

👌