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Former top female Scientologist, who worked with the Church's biggest names including John Travolta and Tom Cruise's children, claims that she was forced to spend three years in Scientology 'prison'
'I would work with celebrities on a one-on-one capacity. I was Word Clearing John Travolta as he was having trouble with a specific policy'
'I kissed a Scientology girl and liked it - then I was forced to go to Scientology jail!'
A former top female Scientologist, who worked with the Church's biggest names including John Travolta and Tom Cruise's children, claims that she was forced to spend three years in Scientology 'prison' because she kissed a girl, Daily Mail Online can reveal exclusively.
Former top female Scientologist, who worked with the Church's biggest names including John Travolta and Tom Cruise's children, claims that she was forced to spend three years in Scientology 'prison'
'I would work with celebrities on a one-on-one capacity. I was Word Clearing John Travolta as he was having trouble with a specific policy'
'I kissed a Scientology girl and liked it - then I was forced to go to Scientology jail!'
- She slept in dorms with 33 women on bunk beds. 'If I put my hand on the shoulder of a woman or spoke to a woman, I'd get a report'
- When the doors opened, there was large stands of burger and fries and people would be diving at them, it was like a scene from Lord of the Flies
- She saw a massive bottle of industrial strength bleach in a utility closet and drank a hefty cap full
- 'I fell backwards, my whole body was convulsing, my throat started to swell.'
A former top female Scientologist, who worked with the Church's biggest names including John Travolta and Tom Cruise's children, claims that she was forced to spend three years in Scientology 'prison' because she kissed a girl, Daily Mail Online can reveal exclusively.
Nora
Crest, Nora Sova at the time, was a friend of the stars and worked at
Los Angeles Celebrity Centre, building up a close rapport with Cruise's
kids and Travolta. She helped work through their Scientology courses and
acted as a 'life counselor' to the stars.
But
she says that all changed when she kissed another girl - and liked it.
Even though it never went any further than kissing, Nora was put into
the Rehabilitation Project Force [RPF].
Former members refer to this as the equivalent of a 'Scientology prison'.
The
now 39-year-old claims that she was ordered to work for a pittance and
endured horrific injuries, including three broken ribs, while working
and living in squalid conditions.
Scientology's
founder L. Ron Hubbard classified homosexuality as an 'illness' and a
'sexual perversion' and said the Church should help to 'cure'
homosexuals.
Nora
is the first person to ever speak out after having a homosexual
experience in the Church and says the 'cure' is actually years in the
RPF, which is for people who have violated expectations or policies.
They are sent to secret bases to do arduous 80-hour week 'hard labor' for months, and sometimes, years on end.
It
culminated with Nora trying to escape several times - but always
getting caught and made to return - before downing a bottle of bleach in
'let me leave or die' desperation.
'It
was the most horrific time of my life. I was battered and bruised,
pushed around and nearly died trying to leave the Church and all because
I had the audacity to desire another woman.
'I
was brainwashed into believing I'd done wrong and had to live in
horrific conditions for three years before I was finally allowed to
leave. This can't be allowed to happen to another person, hence why I'm
speaking out.
'Homosexuality in the Church is the lowest of the low, you're treated like scum,' says Nora.
Daily Mail Online has reached out to the Church of Scientology for comment on this article but has yet to receive a response.
The 39-year-old is now happily married with two children and credits husband Cameron for 'saving her life', but never believed that her faith in Scientology would nearly kill her.
Before
her punishment, Nora was a high flying member of the Sea Org, a
hardcore group for dedicated members who sign a billion-year contract
tying them to the Church.
Both
her parents, Kathy Thomas and Constantine Panfilous Sova, were heavily
involved in the Church and eager for Nora to be an active member from an
early age.
At 18, she was working as a teacher in a Scientology School in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, and had just joined the Sea Org.
'My
father decided that there was no other path in life. Even at an early
age, he was trying to get me to recall past lives, which is what
Scientologists believe in,' she says.
'But I loved normal things like basketball and soccer. I had a plan to go to college and be a sports broadcaster.
'But
I eventually took a job at 18 at the Lewis Carroll Academy of the Arts
teaching PE and reading. It was a Scientology school, and in the eyes of
the Church, you're fully qualified if you've graduated from High
School.
Nora Crest
(bottom row, third from right) was forced to spend three years in
'prison' for having a lesbian relationship. This is Sea Org members
performing a military salute to founder L. Ron Hubbard and Scientology
for New Years Eve 1999
'I
did it to please my dad and the Church. When you're a Scientologist,
you want to show your dedication, and that it is at the heart of
everything you do.
'I
was doing more and more courses and had reached the "State of Clear" by
the age of 14, which is really young. They say your mind is then free
of unwanted emotions, but it basically means you've been fully
brainwashed.
'They
convinced me that, as I was doing so well, then I must have been a Sea
Org member in another life, so it was my duty to do it again.'
In
1996, Nora began working as a Church recruiter in Los Angeles before
completing courses and intensive training to be a Word Clearer. This
allowed her to deliver Study Tech, which is an intensive form of
learning devised by founder Hubbard where students are made to
understand every single word of a text, so that there are no apparent
barriers to study.
That's when Tom and Nicole were going through a separation and we were ordered never to speak of her and she was a bad person. l also worked Lisa Marie Presley's daughter Riley. She was lovely.
Nora
was given a trusted position at the Celebrity Center in Los Angeles
where she helped stars and their children to study Hubbard's scriptures
using an E-Meter, ' an electronic instrument that measures mental state
and change of state in individuals and assists the precision and speed
of auditing', according to the Scientology website.
'I
would work with celebrities on a one-on-one capacity. I was Word
Clearing John Travolta as he was having trouble with a specific policy
that LRH [L. Ron Hubbard] had written.
'I
used an E-meter to guide him to words that he didn't understand. The
meter helped me look for a reaction if they didn't understand a word.
'The
needle would flicker if he didn't understand and I'd use a dictionary
to help him and he'd have to repeat it until the needle flowed like a
sweeping hand of a clock. He was very nice and apologized 20 times for
helping him,' says Nora.
'I
worked with Tom Cruise's kids Connor and Isabella - they were only
little and I was working with them during the summer time when they were
off school, they were fun and very sweet.
'That's
when Tom and Nicole were going through a separation and we were ordered
never to speak of her and she was a bad person. l also worked Lisa
Marie Presley's daughter Riley. She was lovely.'
Even
though Nora was a respected worker, she says that she was forced to
live in a cockroach- and rat-infested accommodation block with other Sea
Org members, who were all earning only a pittance.
After
dating a couple of guys - but never having full sex in fear of the Sea
Org's strict 'no sex before marriage' rule - she found herself sharing a
room with another girl.
'I worked with Tom Cruise's kids
Connor and Isabella - they were only little and I was working with them
during the summer time when they were off school, they were fun and very
sweet,' says Nora
Nora was 'Word Clearing' John Travolta
as he was having trouble with a specific policy that L. Ron Hubbard had
written. He's with Jenna Elfman, wife Kelly Preston and Laura Prepon at
the Church of Scientology Celebrity Centre 44th Anniversary Gala in
2013
Nora worked with
Scientology's biggest celebrities at Scientology's main HQ in Los
Angeles where a lot of celebrities like Tom Cruise visit for meetings
and parties
'A
few months later I got sick and [the girl] said she'd give me a
Scientology 'nerve assist', which means laying your hands on critical
nerves along the spine to get the body going again. It felt nice and
comforting, she then offered to tuck me into bed, and leaned down and
kissed me on the mouth.
'It
was more than a peck. It was a very explosive moment in my mind. I
didn't know what was happening and how I was feeling, but I liked it,
and we continued to kiss over the next few months, but never anything
more,' says Nora.
'We
didn't engage in sex before marriage, as we knew how strict it was. I
didn't want to get into trouble, I even got myself a boyfriend to hide
what we were doing.
'I was completing major courses in Scientology, I thought this was my life and didn't want to screw it up.'
It
wasn't long though before other Sea Org members realized what was
happening and Nora was ordered to see her chief officer for, what Nora
calls, an 'intense interrogation.'
She
says: 'They recorded everything and said I was destroying the Sea Org
morale, it was too much for everyone, so I confessed to everything, I
felt so guilty. I was then told I wouldn't be on my job anymore and they
were going to work out what to do with me. They did the same with [the
girl].
'We
were put on cleaning and construction work for three months before they
sent me to RPF in March 2000, which is when my hell began.'
RPF
was a rundown building in west Los Angeles where inmates were made to
believe they'd done wrong against the Church and work over 80 hours a
week for only $50 a month.
Nora
explains: 'It was the culture where every minute of every day, hundreds
of people were watching you, judging you, making sure you didn't step
out of line. We were sleeping in dorms where there were at least 33
women on bunk beds, three beds high.
'If
I put my hand on the shoulder of a woman, spoke to a woman, or anytime I
was nice to a woman, I'd get a report. We had three meals a day, where
you have 20 minutes to gather your food and eat it, and 30 minutes to do
your hygiene.
'You
get numbed by nudity and have no privacy. You get used to going to the
toilet and five people watch you. The rooms had bugs and cockroaches;
the bunks were dirty mattresses with rusty springs dating back to the
50s.
'Disgusting
conditions become the norm and you think that's what you deserve and
that you are what they say you are: a worthless piece of s**t.
Nora with husband Cameron, who was also a Sea Org member for ten years, on their wedding day in 2005
'You
spoke only when you were spoken to. All outside communication was
heavily vetted, so if my mom wrote a letter they would cross things out
or I'd be interrogated asking why she said a certain thing. We got
$11.25 a week and had to buy everything with that including hygiene
products.
'If
you wanted a snack you had to buy it yourself. You'd go to the canteen
and they'd charge you $1 for a coke or $2 for a protein bar. That'd
leave with you hardly anything for the rest of the week.
'You're
required to run all day, every day. If you need the bathroom you have
to run there. Your uniform consists of black jeans, grey shirts, a belt
and steel toe-capped boots, as everyone worked on construction in some
form. I worked for the electrical unit, even though I had no knowledge,
and was given various challenges that you had to complete in a certain
time.
We would stand in an empty trash can while various people poured buckets of iced water over your head and were shouting at you about what crap you were. After they were done with you, you were made to clean up all the mess.
'For
example, I'd have to put down five junction boxes in a minute, if I
missed the target, I'd have to 'Take A Lap', which meant going down to
the basement of the facility and running a quarter mile.
'If
they didn't want you to take the time to do that, they'd make you do
fifty sit-ups or push-ups on the spot every time you missed the target.
'We
would also be thrown 'overboard', which stemmed from people being
punished on other bases where they'd be thrown into a lake or pool of
water.
'As
we didn't have any water near us, we would stand in an empty trash can
while various people poured buckets of iced water over your head and
were shouting at you about what crap you were. After they were done with
you, you were made to clean up all the mess.'
'Every
Tuesday they would serve hamburgers and fries for lunch. It was the one
thing, besides cold scrambled eggs for breakfast, that we had
consistently.
'We'd
be made to wait in line for the food to be distributed, there'd be
around 250 people. When the doors opened, there was large stands of
burger and fries and people would be diving at them, it was like a scene
from Lord of the Flies, elbowing, punching each other, ripping
hamburgers from one another, screaming in each others' faces, then
running off with the food to corners of the room like rabid animals and
eating it quickly.
'It was a fight for life in there, every single day.'
Nora when
she was 18 months old in 1977 and at eight, playing basketball, which
she loved, but was forced to concentrate on Scientology studies
During her time working on construction, Nora says that she suffered a number of injuries, including three broken ribs and two herniated discs.
'I
was doing a Scientology routine where you learn to use verbal and
physical commands to move a person from one wall across the room to the
other. I was working with a man in his 40s and over 200 pounds in
weight.
'He
was becoming increasingly frustrated with not being able to move me
across the room and became suddenly violent, picking me up off the
ground and slamming my whole body repeatedly into the concrete wall. Two
of my ribs on the left side dislocated from my frame, and cracked, and
one on the right fractured. I had no pain medication or
anti-inflammatory and I was still made to work,' says Nora.
I
then went into a utility cupboard and saw a massive bottle of
industrial strength bleach and so drank a hefty cap full, around the
equivalent of a quarter cup. I fell backwards, my whole body was
convulsing, my throat started to swell.
'Then
while doing construction on a new accommodation block, I was breaking
down a pony wall with a sledge hammer. After swinging the hammer for 20
minutes I collapsed and couldn't move. I was unable to walk unaided and
hunched like a 95-year-old.
'After
I could stand for more than ten minutes on my own I was put back to
work - ten to 15 hours a day. After all this, I was adamant I wanted
leave, but they made it virtually impossible for me.'
After two years in the RPF, literally battered and bruised, Nora tried to quit.
'They
said I could leave but interrogated me with thousands of questions -
are you a secret FBI agent? Do you want to harm the Church? Over and
over again.
'The
only way you can leave officially is if you go up against a board of
your fellow Sea Org members, who you've been close to for so long, and
prove to them that you're not fit enough to be in the Sea Org anymore,
you have to say you're so pathetic that you're not worthy of it,' she
says.
'I
had to tell them i was a degraded human being, unable to help me or
anyone else, I was a terrible person and they should please kick me
out.
'It
was one of the worst days of my life and I had to wait for three months
for their decision while being convinced to stay on a daily basis.
They're telling me that I'm useless and I'm only ever going to be a
hooker on the outside, I'd have nothing.
'They
threatened to split my family up and that I could never speak to my
mother or sister. Ultimately, I changed my mind and decided to stay,
they'd broken me again.'
But
the final straw came only a few months later, in November 2002, when
she was punished for laughing and joking with another female.
Nora was treated at Valley Care in Los
Angeles. The oaoers say she 'accdentally' drank bleach but Nora said
she did it on purpose as a way to leave Scientiology
'I was put in the laundry unit and we were having fun, someone saw this and thought I was trying to seduce her, so they ordered me to do a confessional with an E-Meter, which would show if I'm telling the truth. I was asked all these questions if i'd kissed her, touched her, talked naughty words to her. I started laughing. I put down the E-Meter and said: "This isn't Scientology", and tried to leave the room, but they were stopping me. More and more people came into the room.
'I
was trying to get to the door and got five feet from it, but they were
grabbing all parts of me and dragging me down. At one point, I had 13
people on my body and was pinned to the floor. I couldn't move, I was
screaming, but I somehow managed to break free an arm and open the door
and wrangle free.
'I
was being kicked and punched, my face was covered in blood, but I just
ran. Not thinking straight, I didn't run to the police, instead I ran to
the security at the base, who held me there until an RPF officer came
to see me. Next day, I was told by the commanding officer that I was a
piece of s**t and would be heavily punished.
'I don't think I would have coped
without Cameron by my side. I can safely say that marrying my husband
and having children saved my life, ' Nora says
'I
was made to scrub walls, but I was crying hysterically even as I was
working. I thought there was no escape, I even tried to cut my wrists
with scissors, but they were so blunt that I couldn't do it, I really
thought that I was so inept I couldn't even kill myself properly.
'I
then went into a utility cupboard and saw a massive bottle of
industrial strength bleach and so drank a hefty cap full, around the
equivalent of a quarter cup. I fell backwards, my whole body was
convulsing, my throat started to swell. When they found me, they got a
gallon of milk and put me in a room and made me drink it.
'They
then got a Scientology doctor, who escorted me to a hospital and made
sure I stuck to the true story before we went inside, that I was not
depressed and drank bleach by accident. The doctor didn't believe me and
kept asking the same questions, but I stuck to the story.
'When
I was released from hospital, they took me to a building and I was
forced to sign a waiver that I wasn't ever going to sue the Church, say
bad things, never criticize it. I said it all to camera. I didn't care, I
just wanted to go home. They then drove me to Eagle Rock in LA where my
mom lived. I was just so relieved to see her. But I didn't tell my mom
what really happened for five years.'
Now on
the outside, Nora found that she didn't know a thing about normal life
and had no hope of getting a job. Thankfully, a few months later she met
her future husband Cameron, who understood her plight as an ex-Sea Org
member himself. The pair married in 2005 and have two boys - Landon,
seven, and Nick, nine.
Nora
adds: 'I felt like I'd literally let the whole planet down because I
had left the Sea Org. It took years for that massive guilt to lift. When
I discovered the truth about Scientology, I realized the sad truth,
nothing I did there had actually made a difference in the world at all. I
had zero impact in the lives of anyone on the planet. It was all lies.
'I'd
never used a phone or done normal things. The hardest part was not
acting like a Sea Org member. When I found a job, I'd never leave my
desk, my boss had to order me to take lunch. I would eat my food really
quickly, it was natural, even though I wasn't on a time scale. I could
go for a walk, I was allowed to speak to anyone, it was weird trying to
be a human being again.
'I
don't think I would have coped without Cameron by my side. I can safely
say that marrying my husband and having children saved my life.'
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