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Duke of Buckingham
12-26-13, 06:25 AM
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/11/A_gathering_of_Ra%C3%ABlians_in_South_Korea.jpg
A gathering of Raëlians in South Korea

Raëlism (also Raelianism or the Raëlian Movement) is a UFO religion that was founded in 1974 by Claude Vorilhon, now known as Raël. It is numerically the world's largest UFO religion. An adherent of Raelism is a Raelian.

The Raëlian Movement teaches that life on Earth was scientifically created by a species of extraterrestrials, which they call the Elohim. Members of this species appeared human and when having personal contacts with the descendants of the humans they made, they previously misinformed (on purpose) early humanity that they were angels, cherubim or gods. Raëlians believe messengers, or prophets, of the Elohim include Buddha, Jesus, and others who informed humans of each era. The founder of Raëlism, members claim, received the final message of the Elohim and that its purpose is to inform the world about Elohim and that if humans become aware and peaceful enough, they wish to be welcomed by them.
Japanese Raëlian character mascot.

The Raëlian Church has a quasi-clerical structure of seven levels. Joining the movement requires an official apostasy from other religions.

Raelian ethics include striving for world peace, sharing, democracy and nonviolence. Sexuality is also an important part of the Raëlian doctrine. The Raëlian Church has attracted some of its priests and bishops from other religions despite having liberal views of sexuality.

Raël founded Clonaid (originally Valiant Venture Ltd Corporation) in 1997, but then handed it over to a Raëlian bishop, Brigitte Boisselier in 2000. In 2002 the company claimed that an American woman underwent a standard cloning procedure that led to the birth of a daughter, Eve (b. 26 December 2002). Although few believe the claim, it nonetheless attracted national authorities and the mainstream media to look further into the Raëlians' cult status.

The Raëlians frequently use the swastika as a symbol of peace, which halted Raëlian requests for territory in Israel, and later Lebanon, for establishing an embassy for extraterrestrials. The religion also uses the swastika embedded on the Star of David. Starting around 1991, this symbol was often replaced by a variant star and swirl symbol as a public relations move, particularly toward Israel.

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The beginnings of Raëlism are rooted in the claims of a French former automobile journalist and race car driver Claude Vorilhon. In his books The Book Which Tells the Truth (1974) and Extraterrestrials Took Me to their Planet (1975), Vorilhon alleges that he had alien encounters with beings who gave him knowledge of the origins of all major religions.

The movement traces its beginnings to a conference in Paris, France of two thousand people in 1974. From there, the MADECH organization was born. The name MADECH is a double acronym in the French language. The first stands for "Movement for the welcoming of the Elohim, creators of humanity" (Mouvement pour l‘accueil des Elohim, créateurs de l'humanité) while the second stands for "Moses preceded Elijah and the Christ" (Moise a devancé Élie et le Christ).:p. 104 By 1976, Raël transformed MADECH into the International Raelian Movement.

From 1980 to 1992 Raël and his movement became increasingly global. In 1980 Claude Raël's fifth Raëlian book Sensual Meditation was published and formal publication of the Raëlian Messages in the Japanese language began as part of the Raëlian mission to Japan. Two years later, Africa became another target area in the mission to spread the Raëlian messages.

On 26 December 2002, Brigitte Boisselier, a Raëlian Bishop and CEO of a biotechnology company called Clonaid, announced the birth of baby Eve, supposedly the first-ever human clone, which at that point ignited much media attention, ethical debate, doubt, critics, and claims of a hoax. Spokespeople for the movement, such as Claude Vorilhon, have suggested that this is only first step in achieving a more important agenda, claiming that accelerated growth process and mind transfer, in combination with cloning are mechanisms by which eternal life may be achieved.

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Raëlians drawing with sand

The major initiation rite in the Raëlian Church is the "baptism" or "transmission of the cellular plan" and is performed by upper-level members in the Raëlian clergy known as guides. In 1979, Raël introduced the "Act of Apostasy" as an obligation for those preparing for their Raëlian baptism.

The Raëlian baptism is known as transmission of the cellular plan where "cellular" refers to the organic cells of the body and the "plan" refers to the genetic makeup of the individual. This Raëlian baptism involves a guide member laying water onto the forehead of the new member. The practice began on "the first Sunday in April" of 1976 when Raël baptised 40 Raëlians. Raëlians believe that their genetic information is recorded by a remote computer and would become recognized during their final hour when they will be judged by the extraterrestrial Elohim.

Baptisms can only be performed on four special days in the year. The dates mark anniversaries in the Raëlian calendar.

The dates are the 6 August, which marks the anniversary of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima in 1945, 13 December, marking the day that Raël in 1973 says he had his first personal encounter with one of the extraterrestrial Elohim, 7 October in which the Elohim, Raël says, took him up in a spacecraft in 1975 and the following day had meals with Jesus, Buddha, and other past religious figures and the first Sunday in April, which Raëlians believe is the date when dark-skinned extraterrestrials created Adam and Eve.

Sensual Meditation is the set of exercises made public by Claude Vorilhon in his book La méditation sensuelle. It is practiced by members of International Raelian Movement (IRM). The first of these exercises is usually taught in Raëlian Seminars.

Throughout the history of Raëlism, members of the Raëlian Church have toured public settings advocating masturbation, condoms and birth control. Raëlians hope that genetically modified food and nanotechnology will allow humankind to eliminate the obligation to work, in a world that embraces science and technology.

Raëlians have founded Clonaid, a company that envisions that someday human beings can be scientifically recreated though a process of human cloning, and Clitoraid, an organization whose mission is to oppose female genital mutilation.

Raëlian structure members have set up exhibitions about their beliefs of extraterrestrial intelligent designers sending crop circles, UFOs, and spaceships for their arrival at an embassy. While there have been smaller meetings of Raëlians and non-Raëlians, annual Raëlian seminars have been typically larger.

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The Raëlian symbol with the swastika (left) and the alternative version (right)

Theologian of new religious movements, George D. Chryssides, described the Raëlian Church as being in an "early developmental stage" and that their beliefs distance it from a "dominant intellectual climate". Raëlism claims that all life on Earth, humans included, was created scientifically by Elohim, members of an extraterrestrial race who appeared similar to small humans and so were often depicted as angels, cherubs, or gods. Raëlians, who are not monotheists, believe the correct historical meaning of the word Elohim is the plural sense, "those who came from the sky". However it is clear that Raël is confusing the Hebrew term Elohim (see Pluralis excellentiae) with the akkadian "Annunaki" which means "Those who came from heaven". Belief in extraterrestrial Elohim play a central part in Clonaid's claim of offering cloning services for homosexual and infertile couples who want a child cloned from a partner's DNA.

Chryssides states that Raëlism is discernible from other UFO religions for its heavy support for physicalism and repudiation of supernaturalism. Susan J. Palmer, a social scholar who had long contacts with Raëlians, associated epiphenomenalism with the belief in Raëlism that mind transfer coupled with human cloning can implant mind and personality into a new and disease free body. Raëlians publicly deny the existence of the ethereal soul and a supernatural god, but they believe that humanity for many generations past will be resurrected, albeit in a scientific way.

Raëlians believe that throughout the ages, members of the Elohim civilization sent different prophets, including Moses, Jesus, Buddha and many others whose role was guide humanity and to prepare humans for the future, all of whom were created as a result of a sexual union between a human woman and one of the Elohim. To Raëlians, this was possible because the Elohim had advanced DNA synthesis and genetic engineering. The Elohim later reduced the frequent visits so that humans were largely left to progress on their own, until the time of the Apocalypse/Revelation when they would send their final messenger and disclose themselves at an extraterrestrial embassy, establishing political and economic ties.

Raëlians believe that sex is a normal, natural and healthy part of life and encourages people to be true to their natural sexuality. They promote healing from damaging messages from strict puritanical belief systems and social stigmas that stifle one's natural sexuality. Acceptance of masturbation, homosexuality, bisexuality, pansexuality, naturism and any legal, safe and consensual adult activity is promoted as part of a healthy and long life, and this is used to attract young converts to the religion. Raelians believe that sexuality is a gift of pleasure to mankind from the Elohim. The Raëlian book Let's Welcome our Fathers From Space says that new advanced extraterrestrial civilizations will ultimately practice a final religion or "religion of the infinite" that involves ubiquitous practice of Sensual Meditation.

According to Giancarlo Genta and Jason Colavito, writers who have influenced Raëlian beliefs include Zechariah Sitchin and Erich von Däniken.

Raelians believe in reclaiming the swastika by restoring its historical meaning as a symbol of peace and good luck. Swastika has been used for millennia in the East as a religious symbol of peace and harmony.

In 1991, a Montreal anti-cult organization called Info-Cult made statements against the Raëlian Church with an article on Le Devoir, branding Raëlians as promoters of fascism and racism, due to the church's use of the swastika as part of their logo and the Raëlian description of an extraterrestrial global government in which those less than ten percent above average intelligence are excluded from the electorate. Outside Info-Cult's office, Raëlians spoke against the act of discriminating against a religious minority. On 2 January 1992, a dozen people protested against the use of the swastika in the Raëlian logo in Miami's Eden Roc Hotel. The use of the swastika and other Raelian practices has led to criticism from the group Hineni of Florida, a Jewish anti-cult organization.

In February 1991, the Raëlian Church modified their symbol. The official reason given was a request from the Elohim to change the symbol in order to help in negotiations with Israel for the building of the Extraterrestrial Embassy to greet the anticipated Elohim space vessels, although the country continued to deny their request. In 2005, the Israeli Raëlian Guide Kobi Drori stated that the Lebanese government was discussing proposals by the Raëlian movement to build their interplanetary embassy in Lebanon. However, one condition was that the Raëlians not display their logo on top of the building because it mixes a swastika and a Star of David. According to Drori, the Raëlians involved declined this offer, as they wished to keep the symbol as is. From 1991 to 2007, the official Raëlian symbol in Europe and America did not have the original swastika, but Raël, founder and leader of the Raëlian Movement decided to make the original symbol, the Star of David intertwined with a swastika, the only official symbol of the Raelian Movement worldwide.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e6/Tent_version_of_Embassy_for_Extraterrestrial_Elohi m_for_Ra%C3%ABlian_seminar_in_Columbia%2C_South_Am erica.jpg/800px-Tent_version_of_Embassy_for_Extraterrestrial_Elohi m_for_Ra%C3%ABlian_seminar_in_Columbia%2C_South_Am erica.jpg
Tent version of the Embassy for Extraterrestrial Elohim for use in a Raëlian seminar in Colombia, South America (1/4 the width, 1/4 the length, and half the height of the proposed embassy)


The anti-cult organization Info-Cult claimed that Geniocracy was a fascist ideology. In 1995, a parliamentary commission issued a report through the National Assembly of France that categorized the Raelian Movement (Mouvement Raëlien) as a "secte" (French word for cult). In 1997, a parliamentary inquiry commission issued a report through the Belgian Chamber of Representatives that categorized the Belgian Raelian Movement (Mouvement Raëlien Belge) as a sect. Glenn McGee, the associate director of the Center for Bioethics at the University of Virginia, states that part of the sect is a cult while the other part is a commercial website that collects large sums of money from those interested in human cloning. The Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor of the United States Department of State and sociologist Susan J. Palmer have classified the International Raëlian Movement as a religion.

In 2005, two Wired News reporters were welcomed into a Raëlian seminar and had permission to videotape it. They believe the footage they took makes it clear that the Raelian Movement is a cult which should disband. A Raëlian guide said in a Wired interview that he is not ashamed of what is shown and that he has no concerns about this incident.

The estranged former wife of Vorilhon characterised him as a 'cult leader' and claimed he brought groups of female Raëlians home and held orgies which affected the children from an early age.

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Sensual Meditation (1980), Raël's fifth book about Raëlism.