And, in the wider arena, through the spiritual salvation of the individual, Scientology seeks the ultimate transformation—"a civilization without insanity, without criminals and without war, where the able can prosper and honest beings can have rights, and where man is free to rise to greater heights.”

In one form or another, all great religions have held the hope of spiritual freedom—a condition free of material limitations and suffering. Scientology offers a very practical approach to attaining this spiritual aim. Of this, L. Ron Hubbard wrote: “For countless ages a goal of religion has been the salvage of the human spirit. Man has tried by many practices to find the pathway to salvation. He has held the imperishable hope that someday in some way he would be free.” Mr. Hubbard continued, “And here, after these ages of grief and suffering, through terrible wars and catastrophe, the hope still lives—and with that hope, accomplishment.”

Thus, while the hope for such freedom is ancient, what Scientology is doing to bring about that freedom is new. And the technologies with which it can bring about a new state of being in man are likewise new. An understanding of these beliefs will illustrate how Scientology fits within the religious and spiritual traditions of the world.