The lengthy dispute began in 1965, when false allegations and perjured testimony opened an “inquiry” into Scientology by the Australian State of Victoria. That official inquiry ultimately led to severe restrictions on the religious freedom of Scientologists in Victoria and opened the door to what became an 18-year legal battle to allow Scientologists the right to freely practice their religion.
That legal fight ended 41 years ago when, in a ruling that now stands as the landmark decision for guidance regarding religion and charity status for Australia and New Zealand, the High Court pronounced: “The Church of Scientology has easily discharged the onus of showing that it is religious. The conclusion that it is a religious institution entitled to tax exemption is irresistible.”
The ecclesiastical leader of the Scientology religion, David Miscavige, has championed the religious freedom of Scientologists and members of every faith across the globe for three decades. Thanks to his tireless efforts, Scientology has thrived in Australia, experiencing an explosive growth that has spread to all corners Down Under, where there is no escaping the conclusion that Aussies have embraced the world’s youngest major religion.
“No matter the issue: drugs, human rights, morality—you come at it with a passion that is unparalleled.”
The battle for religious freedom was not only won in a court of law, but also in the court of public opinion, which was best rendered when former Deputy Premier of Western Australia Herbert Graham publicly apologized to members of the Church, stating that the ban on Scientology was the “blackest day in the political history of Western Australia.”
In addition to an all-new spiritual headquarters for the Asia-Pacific region, new Ideal Churches of Scientology have opened in Melbourne, Sydney and Perth, configured to provide the full services of the Scientology religion to its parishioners, while also serving the community with social betterment and outreach programs.
Those initiatives have won acclaim as they have spread across the continent, helping the injured and homeless through natural disasters, leading the battle against illicit drugs and abusive psychiatric practices, as well as championing human rights.
When bushfires raged across the Australian East Coast in 2019, Scientology Volunteer Ministers (VMs) immediately went to fire stations and offered to help in any way needed. They were put in charge of all catering operations and management of all volunteers. After 50 days straight working at the Hawkesbury Fire Control Centre in New South Wales, VMs moved south to Victoria, where they rebuilt fences, cooked meals for firefighters and delivered assists to help bring relief from injuries and spiritual trauma. Over five months, they prepared more than 39,000 meals for fire personnel and evacuees and put in thousands of volunteer hours, earning recognitions and certificates of appreciation from the mayor of Hawkesbury City, the New South Wales National Parks and Wildlife Service and a New South Wales Rural Fire Service fire control officer.
That is but a glimpse. Scientologists have partnered with community groups to operate a food bank in Melbourne, delivering some 500 meals each week to needy families and providing blankets, food and hot drinks to the homeless in Sydney—all while participating in community cleanups; distributing more than 3.4 million Truth About Drugs booklets; holding some 2,000 drug prevention events; reaching 14 percent of the national population with facts about psychiatric abuse; achieving landmark legislative patient rights reforms and empowering aboriginal communities and universities with effective human rights education.
“No matter the issue: drugs, human rights, morality—you come at it with a passion that is unparalleled,” said Paul Shiel, founder of the Medal Missionaries Community charity partnership, addressing the more than 1,000 Scientologists and guests assembled to celebrate the grand opening of the Ideal Church of Scientology Perth. “I have worked with humanitarian teams from the Nullarbor to the Kimberleys and the top of Darwin and I have never seen anything like your campaigns… It is Help with a capital H.”
Scientologists have spread across Australia with a message marked by the Volunteer Minister’s mandate: to be “a person who helps his fellow man on a volunteer basis by restoring purpose, truth and spiritual values to the lives of others.”
Their motto is, no matter the circumstances, “Something can be done about it.”
It was just such a commitment exhibited when the Church of Scientology was forced to fight for recognition so long ago. Something was done about it. And that attitude still echoes throughout the land.
