1. Scientology influence
1.1. What is Scientology?
1.1.1. Religion or cult?
1.1.1.1. Scientology is legally recognized as a tax-exempt religion in the United States and some other countries
1.1.1.2. In other countries, notably Canada, France, Germany, and the United Kingdom, Scientology does not have comparable religious status
1.1.1.3. It has often been described as a cult that financially defrauds and abuses its members, charging exorbitant fees for its spiritual services
1.1.2. History
1.1.2.1. Developed by L. Ron Hubbard in 1952
1.1.2.2. Developed as a successor to his earlier self-help system, Dianetics.
1.1.2.3. In a survey by the City University of New York in 2007 the realistic figures of followers has had around 55,000 in the US and between 100,000 and 200,000 worldwide
1.1.2.4. In 2008 the American Religious Identification Survey found that the number of American Scientologists had dropped to 25,000
1.1.3. Beliefs
1.1.3.1. Scientology teaches that people are immortal beings who have forgotten their true nature
1.1.3.2. Scientology believes that souls ("thetans") reincarnate and have lived on other planets before living on Earth
1.1.3.3. Scientologist's also believe that the practice of psychiatry is destructive and abusive and must be abolished
1.1.3.4. The 'Church of Scientology' claimed to have around 3.5 million followers worldwide
1.1.4. Costs
1.1.4.1. Cost can start of cheap where you pay $15 per course for 6 courses
1.1.4.2. There are different levels in scientology based on what the individual needs (or what you can afford!!)
1.1.4.3. You'll be paying around $128,000 to reach clear
1.1.4.4. About another $33,000 to reach OTIII
1.1.4.5. An additional $120,000 to reach OTVIII which is the highest current level
1.2. Holmes-Cruise
1.2.1. Tom Cruise is a public face of scientology
1.2.2. With the high profile divorce the attention is now being focused on the demands that are made of members of Scientology
1.2.3. Katy Holmes has claimed that Tom Cruise is extremely controlling and manipulative which are long term criticisms of Scientology
1.2.4. A long-term policy of Scientology is disconnection. If a person changes their mind and wants to leave the church they are declared a ‘suppressive person.’ It’s a version of excommunication
1.2.5. It is believed that this form of excommunication is controlling and is ripping families apart
1.2.6. Holmes, who was raised Catholic, was worried about their daughter Suri’s future involvement in Cruise’s religion.
1.2.7. Suri who turned 6 in April, which is a significant milestone in Scientology, would be subjected to a form of interrogation called "security checking".
1.2.7.1. Sample Questions
1.2.7.1.1. Have you ever refused to eat just to worry someone?
1.2.7.1.2. Have you ever decided 'Someday, when I'm grown up, I'll get even'? If so, with whom?
1.2.7.1.3. What has somebody told you not to tell?
1.2.7.1.4. Have you ever gotten yourself dirty on purpose?
1.2.7.1.5. Do you have a secret?
1.2.7.1.6. Have you ever cried when you shouldn't have?
1.2.8. Scientology claims that it improves communication and enables you to build more successful relationships. This is Tom Cruise's 3rd failed marriage!
2. The marriage
2.1. Engagement
2.1.1. On June 17, 2005 Tom proposed to Katie on the top of the Eiffel tower in Paris, France. Tom gave Katie a large solitare diamond engagement ring
2.1.1.1. Ages at Engagement: Tom, 42; Katie, 26
2.1.2. Katie Holmes continued to claim that she was not been pressured to join the Church of Scientology, yet she had a "Scientologist chaperone", Jessica Rodriquez, with her constantly
2.1.2.1. Jessica Rodriquez was tasked with accompanying the actress 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and sitting in on interviews she gave about her marriage.
2.1.3. Since then, Katie was rarely alone, followed constantly by security teams hired by Tom. But now Katie has turned to her mom and dad, Martin Holmes, to be by her side.
2.2. Wedding facts
2.2.1. 11/18/2006: In a Scientololgy ceremony, Tom and Katie were married at Odescalchi Castle in Italy. They reportedly were previously legally married in Los Angeles, California at their Beverly Hills Mansion. Their official wedding date is unknown but is rumored to have taken place two weeks prior to their Italian wedding
2.2.1.1. Ceremonial Location: 15th-century Odescalchi Castle on the southern shore of Lake Bracciano in Italy. The $50,000 fee to use the Castle was waived
2.2.2. Wedding Attire: Clothes for everyone in the wedding were reportedly designed by Giorgio Armani. MSNBC.com wrote that Katie "spent more than $3,000 on lacy underthings ..."
2.2.2.1. Ceremony: Because Tom has been twice-divorced, the Catholic church would not perform their wedding ceremony. Katie and Tom decided on a Scientology wedding ceremony, but it was not recognized in Italy
2.2.2.2. At a Scientology wedding, the bridal couple makes a vow to not going "to sleep at night without having repaired any upset they may have had during the day."
2.2.2.2.1. In Scientology traditional ceremonies, brides are told that "young men are free and may 'forget' their promises." Grooms are reminded that "girls need clothes and food and tender happiness and frills, a pan, a comb, and perhaps a cat
2.2.3. Wedding Guests: 150 guests including
2.3. Children in the marriage
2.3.1. Tom and Katie have one child. In February 2007 Katie said she wanted more children
2.3.1.1. Suri Cruise: Born in 2006. Suri weighed 7 pounds, 7 ounces and was 20 inches long at birth
2.3.1.2. Katie agreed to the Scientology guidelines for having a silent birth. It is rumored that Katie's parents were not too happy about the announcement
2.4. Residences
2.4.1. After the birth of their daughter, Suri, Tom and Katie began living a secluded lifestyle in their Beverly Hills mansion. Tom restored an older home in Biltmore Forest in Asheville, North Carolina
2.4.1.1. Katie previously lived ten months of the year in Wilmington, North Carolina. The couple also has an 8-bedroom home in Teulluride, Colorado
2.5. Religion
2.5.1. Tom: Scientology but he spent a year when he was 14 at a Catholic seminary.
2.5.1.1. Katie: Catholic, but studied Scientology. Katie continued to claim that she was not pressured to join the Church of Scientology, yet she had a "Scientologist chaperone", Jessica Rodriquez, with her constantly.
3. The divorce
3.1. Facts
3.1.1. Katie Holmes shocked Cruise (and everyone else) on June 28 with the divorce as he was filming a new movie, Oblivion, in Iceland
3.1.2. Holmes has been trying to escape from the marriage for a year, saying that their marriage has been “irretrievably broken.”
3.1.3. Holmes finally decided to break free when she was convinced that Cruise would force their daughter Suri into joining the Church of Scientology, particularly the Sea Organization which is known for it’s extremely strict practices
3.2. Why Kathy left Tom?
3.2.1. Katie’s parents Martin and Kathy Holmes wanted to have the OLD Katie back and now they have their wish. Furthermore, they were not happy with the Scientology robot Katie had become
3.2.2. As news leaks daily it seems that Scientology was a big factor in the divorce. Sources close to Katie are saying that Tom’s decision to ship Suri off to Scientology school was the main reason she got those running shoes ready
3.2.2.1. CDL already reported that Katie had become wary of Suri’s involvement in the secretive, and head-scratching religion. Apparently, the six-year-old is at an age where she will be encouraged to be more involved in the church and Tom was gearing up to send her to Sea Organization
3.2.2.2. Kathy feared for the emotional wellbeing of her daughter
3.2.3. Differing religions are bound to get messy in a relationship, especially when one is as controversial as Tom Cruise’s Scientology. Holmes’s papers cite “irreconcilable differences,”
3.3. About the child
3.3.1. As quoted in People, Stars ‘Rock Ages’ it’s thought that Suri is Katie Holmes. Both Katie and Tom have agreed that the 6-year-old daughter had to live with her mother in New York
3.3.1.1. But the condition, Tom Suri may visit anytime. Child custody provisions of a divorce reason from the completion of the preparation of Tom and Katie were announced on Monday 11 July 2012, several days after the actress was 33 years filed for divorce
3.3.2. Meanwhile, Katie is now in New York has made a new plan for the future of Suri. Katie previously kept Suri at home, but is now planning to enroll her in a private school in Manhattan in the early winter
3.4. Car accident
3.4.1. Holmes and Suri had hopped into a black Mercedes Benz sedan about 9:30 p.m. Monday 16th of July 2012, after the girl's gymnastics class in Manhattan, the New York Daily News reports. A driver, not Holmes, was behind the wheel.
3.4.1.1. A few blocks later, a garbage truck somehow crashed into the back of the Mercedes, leaving a dent in the car.
3.4.1.1.1. Was Scientology behind this accident?