In the US, the Church of Scientology have also lost a high ranking follower:
The Church of Scientology lost one of its most high-profile members when the Hollywood film-maker Paul Haggis quit the organisation in protest at its stance on same-sex marriages. In an explosive letter of resignation, Haggis claimed he could no longer “be a member of an organisation where gay-bashing is tolerated”.
Haggis, the writer of the Oscar-winning dramas Crash and Million Dollar Baby, had earlier called on spokesman Tommy Davis to denounce statements made by the church’s San Diego branch in support of Proposition 8, the controversial legislation that bans gay marriage in California. “The church’s refusal to denounce the actions of these bigots, hypocrites and homophobes is cowardly,” Haggis wrote in a letter addressed to Davis.
You can even gets odds on the next celebrity to quit:
9/4 John Travolta
3/1 Katie Holmes
4/1 Lisa Marie Presley
6/1 Jason Lee
8/1 Priscilla Presley
10/1 Chaka Khan
12/1 Nancy Cartwright
14/1 Brandy
18/1 Beck
25/1 Kirstie Alley
50/1 Tom Cruise
In the UK they have gained Peaches Geldolf:
‘I’ve been one for a while now,’ she admits. ‘It’s like, I was confused about what path to go through and I feel like I needed a spiritual path.
‘I felt I was lacking something when I didn’t have a faith. In the end, all it’s about is making yourself a better person.While the controversial organisation, popular in Hollywood with the likes of Tom Cruise, has many critics, Peaches’ father Bob Geldof is supportive of her interest in it.
She says: ‘My father says anything that makes me feel like a better person and makes me happy is a good thing’.
While the Live Aid organiser is clearly full of encouragement, he’s not quite so generous with cash.
‘My dad is literally the biggest tight-a***,’ Peaches complains. ‘He’s a miser, and Irish potato famine miser.’
Given he is such a tight-arse, one suspects Geldof may regret his support for Peaches’ spiritual journey.
A French court has convicted the Church of Scientology of fraud, but stopped short of banning the group from operating in France.
Two branches of the group’s operations and several of its leaders in France have been fined.
The case came after complaints from two women, one of whom said she was manipulated into paying more than 20,000 euros (£18,100) in the 1990s.
David T adds:
Peaches Gandalf Speaks!