Nashville Church of Scientology Celebrates the New Year 2017

Nashville’s Church of Scientology saw a whirlwind of activity during 2016. Parishioners will gather on New Year’s Eve to celebrate a year of accomplishments and look forward to the coming months.

The Nashville Church of Scientology has much to celebrate as 2016 comes to a close. Scientologists will look back on the time spent on programs aimed at drug reform, literacy, and improving morality across cultures, during a special celebration on New Year’s Eve.

The Nashville Church began the year as an organizing partner with other community leaders and pastors for the annual march and convocation for MLK Day. Next, the Church hosted an event to commemorate International Holocaust Remembrance Day while also revealing “the Men Behind Hitler.”

In the spring, the Church was happy to host a Survival Training workshop geared toward understanding how to prepare for and act in times of disaster with leading professionals on the subject; a Fitness Fair to help educate the community how to be healthy, happy and drug-free; an educational meeting on improving the environment; and a community gathering for International Friendship Day which had 60 guests of diverse faiths, cultures, and races all together overcoming stereotypes and other obstacles to friendship.

The church hosted a forty member group from Historic Nashville Inc., for a tour, as well as nearly thirty students from Middle Tennessee State University.

During summer, the church held an anniversary celebration for thirty-one years in Music City with a large-scale gala where community guests, parishioners and friends were able to recognize members’ achievements and look forward to the many years ahead. In September, the church held a forum on domestic violence for the International Day of Peace on the theme: Know Your Rights and Survive—Overcoming Domestic Violence, where local experts talked about the problem and things people can do to help victims. Also for International Day of Peace, Pastor of the Church, Rev. Brian Fesler, participated in an interfaith service at Fisk University to promote peace and dedicate a peace pole on Fisk campus.

Church members spent several months distributing copies of L. Ron Hubbard’s booklet The Way to Happiness, working with people who have been abused in the field of mental health, and promoting human rights messages across Middle Tennessee.

In October, church members held a series of events for Red Ribbon Week, a week meant to promote drug-free living. These events included booklet distributions of the Truth About Drugs booklet, educational seminars and one-on-one meetings to enlighten leaders on the materials.

In November, the Church hosted the annual Artlightenment art and film festival, which this year was themed “America: It’s Cultures and Influences.” In its eighth year, this was the most successful to date in terms of the attendance and number of artists participating, both locally and internationally.  The festival included a film festival, fashion show as well as having a plethora of fine art, painting and photography displays.

In December, the Church worked with local and state government agencies and non-profit organizations to plan the Tennessee Celebration of International Human Rights Day. During the celebration, human rights advocates were awarded for their service to the community.

Church pastor Rev. Brian Fesler said, “2016 was an amazing year. I’m extremely proud of the work our members are doing in and with the community. We are very excited about 2017, and will be expanding our programs exponentially in alignment with our mother Church’s international approach.” For more information about Scientology, visit www.scientology-ccnashville.org.