<p>No clue if the kids are Scientologists, but if they are it’s likely this is a form of [Disconnection[/url</a>]. This is a technique where people are taught to completely cut off contact with anybody they know that may be critical in any way of either the Church or Scientology. It’s often used when individual members of a family/group leave the church, or if a family is trying to get an individual member that’s joined to leave. People that are subjected to Disconnection are often labelled [url=<a href=“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suppressive_Person]Suppressive”>Suppressive person - Wikipedia]Suppressive</a> Persons](<a href=“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disconnection]Disconnection[/url”>Disconnection - Wikipedia), as those are people described by Hubbard to be the segment of the population whose goal in life is to destroy the church (and, if as a member of the Church you’re labelled one, you can be excommunicated yourself and face Disconnection from all of your former friends in the church).</p>
<p>I know all the seemingly random capitalization make me look a little looney. They’re proper terms in the church, so I feel I should try to write them the way they’d use them.</p>
<p>Religions that try and exclude family members if they don’t spout the party line are pathetic.
If they really believed in their dogma they wouldn’t feel so threatened when confronted with a differing opinion.</p>
<p>Both Cruise children are scientologists, and Isabelle is engaged to a Scientilogist as well. </p>
<p>What is funny is that by all reports, both children were primarily raised by his sister, so I would say that both children were abandoned by the parents.</p>
<p>I think I read the kids started off under joint custody spending half their time with Cruise and half with Kidman. Then when they got older they made the choice to live with Cruise. </p>
<p>I had also read that they were being raised by Cruise’s sister. But then I read that the sister lives with Cruise and Holmes until recently.</p>
<p>I should also say given Scientology’s history I’d expect a lot of bad press released to come out about Katie Holmes during the time all of the hearings are going on. Especially if she’s soured entirely on Scientology (or will go on record talking about how she doesn’t like it). Expect stories of sexual deviancy, cheating on taxes, pets she may have going missing/dying, probably some of their entourage will come out and talk about how she doesn’t have a connection with her kid or mistreated it.</p>
<p>It is not surprising that the children would chose to live with Tom when they were older. They were raised in a very influential church from the time they were very young, a church that as RacingRiver states in #182 encourages Disconnection and labels anyone seen as possibly critical of the church as a SP. Imagine if people who you understood to be very powerful and in high leadership spiritually, including your father, were telling you that your own mother was a Suppressive Person, something that was very negative in your churches culture. At every turn people you trusted were using very insidious ways to undermine and degrade your mother. It doesn’t surprise me in the least that they became distant to their mother and chose to live with Tom over Nichole.</p>
<p>My guess is Ms. Cruise #3 was paying very, very close attention to this as the years wore on. She fully understood that when/if she made her exit her child(ren) would be hearing the same crap about her that I’m sure she witnessed Tom’s older children being fed about Nichole. She took the offensive.</p>
<p>After reading a lot of ONTD posts on Marriage Impossible/Game of Holmes/Fly Away Holmes, I’m really starting to believe that the theory of Tom Cruise being a psychologically abusive husband might have some truth to it. Katie filed for divorce while her husband was out of the country, in a state where she could argue for full custody. She had a home set up for her and her daughter in advance. She has said publicly she doesn’t care about getting any money as long as her daughter is away from Tom. Tom made her change her name and dictated what roles she could and couldn’t take. And in pictures of both Nicole and Katie taken when they knew they were divorcing Tom, they look full of life and, well, freed. Of course, this is circumstantial and Tom may be perfectly good husband and father, but it definitely raises a lot of red flags for me.</p>
<p>yes, to me too. I inferred from Katie’s actions, that she was likely being coached and supported by others who could help her exit safely, and help her empower herself. We do this when a spouse is afraid of their spouse. There was also a report that paparazzi cued her in to “strange men” waiting for her outside her apartment, so they may have even be aware of her vulnerability. I’m speculating on that…</p>
<p>How great would it be if the paparazzi make a point to take pictures of these “shadow men” and put a lot of pressure on them. In this media age, no one can stay anonymous and that piece of leverage could be eliminated.</p>
<p>For all we know, those men could be bodyguards she hired herself. It’s hard to believe that Tom Cruise or the Church of Scientology would be quite that obvious, unless the goal is to try to scare her.</p>
<p>See examples of when they would call members of the IRS and judicial system all hours of the night, every night, when various legal rulings didn’t go their way.</p>
<p>"Religions that try and exclude family members if they don’t spout the party line are pathetic.
If they really believed in their dogma they wouldn’t feel so threatened when confronted with a differing opinion. "</p>
<p>Well the Amish have operated that way for many years and don’t seem to get that same bad press. Maybe because they are not movie stars.</p>
<p>Katie’s dad is a divorce attorney. I’m sure she is getting very good advice and that all her ducks were in a row before she did this. This is not some hick town girl Tom married but one with very supportive and educated parents. I’m sure her people knew what they were doing and had some idea of what they were going it be up against.</p>
<p>Since today is a vacation day for me in the middle of the week, I followed a few of these links and read or viewed them. Is it possible that John Travolta tried to leave Scientology and that is why these articles are coming out in the press about him? Katie does appear to have her act together in escaping the ‘situation’ with Tom; based on the YouTube I see of Tom talking about Scientology, he is clearly proud of the role he plays in what appears to be a cult … it’s great when you’re in a group that admire you as much as your favorite star role in a hit movie. </p>
<p>Knew nothing about Scientology. Have been doing some reading.
Wow.
The founding and historical beliefs make the LDS practically look like Quakers.
Xenu? Really?</p>
<p>Don’t forget the volcanoes, and, yes, the intergalactic walrus. And the televisions from millions of years ago.</p>
<p>There’s a story that’s been going around forever that L. Ron Hubbard, who was then best known as a science fiction writer, said at one point that the best way to get rich was to invent a religion. And he proceeded to do so.</p>
<p>It would all be very amusing if not for the truly frightening way that Scientology treats people who try to leave, or publicly disparage, the religion.</p>