The Church of Fear

Inside the Weird World of Scientology

By: John Sweeney

Narrated by: John Sweeney

Length: 10 hrs and 11 mins

Publisher's summary

Tom Cruise and John Travolta say the Church of Scientology is a force for good. Others disagree.

Award-winning journalist John Sweeney investigated the Church for more than half a decade. During that time he was intimidated, spied on, and followed, and the results were spectacular: Sweeney lost his temper with the Church's spokesman on camera, and his infamous 'exploding tomato' clip was seen by millions around the world.

In The Church Of Fear, Sweeney tells the full story of his experiences for the first time and paints a devastating picture of this strange organisation, from former Scientologists who tell heartbreaking stories of families torn apart and lives ruined to its current followers who say it is the solution to many of mankind's problems.

This is the real story of the Church by the reporter who was brave enough to take it on.

John Sweeney is a reporter for BBC Panorama. He is the author of six previous books including the novel Elephant Moon.

©2013 John Sweeney (P)2015 Audible, Ltd

Critic reviews

"A bold and swashbuckling reporter...let him shout: at least he shouts the truth." ( Mail on Sunday)
"Gripping." (The Economist)
"A brave book." (Liverpool Daily Post)
"Blackly comic." (The Humanist)

An eye opener. Thank you.

This is a great book with a thought-provoking message about religion and cults. Where is that line? Have we all grown tolerant of cult activities in our churches because we just got used to it? This extreme case of a cult should make us examine all our organized churches.

Glad I added this to my library!

I have already listened to Jenna's book & Ron's book. I have listened to Paulette's book & also Leah's. I should have listened to this one first, but.... at least I knew of the characters her was speaking of! Very in-depth & informative, just a nice addition to what I have already learned about this "church" of FEAR. I refuse to call them a church as they do not fit the nor conduct themselves as a church. A cult is the proper term for this sci-fi organization of madness. Loved his accent & his passion in reading his book & would definitely recommend to anyone looking for an education on the matter. Thumbs up!

Loved it

Even though I’ve read and listened to a lot about Scientology this was a very interesting read. Based purely on Sweeney’s own interactions with the ‘church’ he gets a lot of information across to the listener. I especially enjoyed his last few chapters about conversations with the now defactors he once faced less amicably for the BBC. Plus Sweeney is a great narrator!

great book

I would strongly suggest watching the HBO special called "going clear" before reading this book and then you'll have a good idea as to where the author is coming from

Excellent book!

Great book. My only critique is that the sound levels of the narration needed to be corrected before being put on the market. He has a nice strong voice that drops off at the end of sentences so I missed a lot of that content. If I turned up the volume, he boomed at the beginning of a sentence before dropping off. I grew tired of turning up the volume and rewinding to hear what he said.

I am fascinated by this story.

Interesting look into a secretive religion...

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

"The Church of Fear" gives readers a little known look into a well known but little talked about religion in which members are secluded from the unbelieving family members and forced to pay exorbitant improvement fees. Scientology's cult status is clearly with each page.

Who was your favorite character and why?

John Sweeney was a favorite in his no holds barred quest for the truth.

Have you listened to any of John Sweeney’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I have not. In "Church of Fear" Sweeney was energetic and fired by his convictions which made for a fascinating listen.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

"You can join but you can never leave."

Any additional comments?

“Church of Fear” by John Sweeney is a wonderfully interesting and informative read. If you’re interested in cults, human nature and organizational control pick the book up today and if you’re in the mood for a special treat, be sure the version you buy is the audio book.

A truthbomb on one of the most deranged cult.

Excellent tale on how the Cult of $cientology treat those who speak the truth about this ridiculous organization.

Another great investigation

After listening to Sweeney's book about N Korea I immediate!y purchased this Audible book and it was just as compelling. Great investigative work. The only downside is he shouldn't have read his own story.

Fun listen

If you’re looking for a hard hitting expose about Scientology, this isn’t it. This is Sweeney explaining in detail how his bbc doc about Scientology came to be. Not to say that you won’t learn something about how the organization operates.

His style reminds me of Jon Ronson where he takes the reader along with his journalistic investigation.

It’s funny and weird.

First hand look at scientology's devious tactics

Yet more proof that scientolgy's US tax exempt status should be revoked. Excellent author and narrator.