From the BBC:

http://www.bbc.com/travel/story/20210103-englands-sleepy-scientology-town

"The sleepy Sussex market town of East Grinstead has gained a reputation in recent decades as a hotbed for offbeat religious activity. It has been described as Britain’s strangest town and the real-life answer to Twin Peaks."

It was the worldwide home of Scientology until 1967

"It’s not just Scientology making waves here, though. The mysterious Rosicrucians, a secret society that claims to guard a body of esoteric truths about the universe, maintain a palatial mock-Tudor lodge at nearby Greenwood Gate

Less unconventional, the British home of Mormonism lies a few miles north of East Grinstead at the impressive London England Temple, while Jehovah’s Witnesses and Christian Scientists have also set up shop in town."

Sorry for your kook invasion, England.

Hey, dagny, what goes around, comes around. I mean, your country was FOUNDED by our kooks ;-)



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/09/2021 09:37AM by Soft Machine.

Ouch. Ouch, I say.

The truth: it burns!

You should come to where I live - Jackson County Missouri.

Did any good ever come put of Sussex. A big yes. me

That's out of Sussex. Stubby fingers and a tablet.

Kentish Wrote:
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> That's out of Sussex. Stubby fingers and a tablet.

Surely, you should be Sussexy rather than Kentish?

Pedant point - the "London" temple is in Crawley rather than East Grinstead, I believe. Nearby perhaps. Nowhere near London, but near Gatwick Airport because ?Pres. McKay or someone flew in there.

London Temple is in Crawley and Preston Temple is in Chorley. Neither in the place the names suggest. Then there's the laughable Yankee habit of calling it London, England as if any of the other Londons are of equal consequence. Paris, France. Rome, Italy. Brazilia, Brazil. I always laugh when American films do that kind of thing. Okay, I think you can forgive Preston, England, because no one's heard of Preston outside these islands.

I suspect they took a note out of Ryanair's book, You get a flight to Berlin with them and you'll land half way across Poland. Sometimes you'd be lucky to land on the same continent!

Lion in Zion Wrote:
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> Kentish Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
>
> London Temple is in Crawley and Preston Temple is
> in Chorley. Neither in the place the names
> suggest.

The Boston is in Belmont, where the Romneys live when they deign to abide in the Bay State. The Washington temple is in South Kensington, MD. Or is that South KENTISHton?

A part of their decision-making is to locate temples prominently close to major highways.

Born in Sussex. Have two daughters born in next door Kent. One a "woman of Kent" the other a "Kentish woman".

I very rarely post, but felt I had to on this topic! About 3-4 years ago a close friend of mine married a woman who grew up in East Grinstead UK, and sitting around in a pub we had this exact conversation. She is about as Atheist as you can be, but she had some odd experiences growing up around there.

Apparently there were constantly people out proselytizing (usually the big 3 of Mormons, JWs and Scientologists but as the article says there were more) door to door, in the town centre or on public transport trying to 'hoover' up those who were not already affiliated elsewhere.

If you got a cab anywhere (particularly after a night out) the drivers would often try to talk to you about their beliefs and invite you to meetings. If you declined it was not unknown to then get passive aggressive comments about being out at night as a young woman. Many cab drivers would have leaflets, cards or other printed information on the seats for you to read and be 'impressed' by during your journey.

You did not want to wake up with a hangover and realise you joined a cult on the way home...

When she was around 18 and picked up a job in a drug store she said it likely either the JW's or Scientologists (couldn't remember) used to come in, buy make-up and toiletries whilst being very polite and and friendly, but leave dozens of stickers all over the store on medications saying that taking drugs was a sin, they were unnecessary and that prayer would cure all etc. She and her colleagues had to spend time about once a week walking around locating and unpeeling the BS.

.. Including all "psych" drugs (think anti-depressants, etc.). They have been known to claim that psychiatrists are "worse than Nazis".

Re being anti-medications, I doubt that would have been JWs. As far as I know, they have never been against medical science. But I could be mistaken, even though I was in their group for a few years. However, I never heard of this as part of their beliefs, either at that time or in their past.

Scientologists, though, apparently, have some strange (to outsiders) beliefs about sickness and pharmaceuticals. I read recently that if a member becomes ill it is considered to be their own fault and they are punished for it. I guess they think it's a sign of lack of faith or sinfulness or something like that? I was surprised that I had never heard this before. I read it in an article about Tom Cruise and his recent flare-up on the movie set.

A friend's son is into Scientology in a big way. He spent a year in the UK with them. I don't remember which town he lived in. My friend says he has lost a lot of relationships due to his strange beliefs. He wouldn't be the first on that account.

I have too, due to being a JW back in the day, but I am so thankful that I didn't marry a JW. There was one guy I was very fond of but he wasn't interested in going across country to be a missionary, as I wanted to do. The JWs strongly encourage people to marry quickly (to avoid "sin", i.e. sex) but fortunately for me I wasn't interested in jumping into anything hastily. I did miss him for a long time though. And converted precisely zero people in the French-speaking Quebec areas I travelled to. So, lucky all around on both counts, for all concerned.

Scientologists are against medications (ironic since L. Ron loved a bit of recreational refreshment).

JWs are against blood transfusions which rules out a lot of medical procedures, but they are not against medicine entirely.

Terrible Two Wrote:
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> JWs are against blood transfusions which rules out
> a lot of medical procedures, but they are not
> against medicine entirely.

Oh yes. Good point.

'seattle temple' is in Bellevue, WA