Beyond Belief

March 4, 2013
Hillâs candid memories of growing up inside the Church of Scientology are notable not just for their detail but for the light they shed on an environment that fosters isolation, powerlessness, and privacy loss. The Church takes precedence over family to the extent that Hillâwhose parents were Church executivesâspent just one hour a day with them, decreasing as they moved up in the Church hierarchy. Although most of Hillâs extended family has left Scientology, her uncle, David Miscavige, is currently head of the Church. Hill recalls she "didnât know what normal looked like," and that her life was "owned by the Church." In fact, after her engagement to a fellow Scientologistâone that Church officials tried mightily to preventâher desire to have children motivated her to leave the Church. (As "thetans," many members "canât really be the parent" of another thetan). Those looking for a glimpse into the celebrity side of Scientology will be disappointed; Hill primarily relates how celebrities are treated differently from the rest. Some readers may have difficulty believing such insular Scientology communities can exist in this age of access, but memoirs like Hillâs cast light on their internal practices.