Reddit reviews The Church of Scientology: A History of a New Religion

There's some really interesting work on Scientology going on right now in academia; I'd especially recommend Hugh Urban's work to people who are interested in a deeper but accessible look at Scientology.

One of the interesting points that scholars like Urban have been making is that Scientology's esoteric structure (the fact that teachings are kept secret until practitioners advance to specific levels rather than being publicly accessible to everyone) is a main source of conflict today, but fit perfectly into the values of the Cold War era of its founding. While we massively emphasize freedom of information now, a few decades ago the mindset of secrecy and conspiracy was very widespread in American consciousness. The Church of Scientology tried hard to present itself as the most American of religions throughout its early history, but now it's left in a mindset that is seen as anachronistic and contrary to our intellectual values.

It's perhaps unsurprising that the other large, new, esoteric religion in the United States, the LDS church, is similarly stigmatized. It's definitely true Scientology and Mormonism get a lot of flack for being recent religions with founders who have known, questionable histories. I think that the esoteric nature of both religions, however, is also a big factor in why so many (including religious people) will dismiss them as cults or otherwise disparage them.

The book The Church of Scientology: History of a New Religion might give you some tips on the types of things to expect when you start a new religion. A lot of what happens in new religions like Scientology and newish religions like Mormonism are common to all religions, so studying their history and controversies will help you know what to expect and maybe even help you avoid some of the problems.