How to Write a Scientology Memorial
Writing a memorial for a Scientologist loved one is a chance to give thanks for the life they have just completed and to wish them well on the journey ahead. This guide offers structure, prompts, and gentle suggestions to help you write something honest and warm, whether you are working alone or gathering memories from family, friends, and members of their org.
Writing a memorial within Scientology
Scientology teaches that the thetan (the spiritual being, the true self) is immortal. The body wears out in time, but the thetan continues, separating from the body at the moment of death and moving onward to a new life. A Scientology memorial sits within that understanding: the person has not ended, they have moved on, and the gathering is a farewell rather than a finality.
Because of this, the tone of a Scientology memorial tends to be forward-looking. There is grief: the loss of someone's presence and companionship is felt as deeply here as anywhere: but the framing is one of celebration for the life lived and good wishes for the road ahead. The official funeral service, written by founder L. Ron Hubbard, structures itself around this idea: an acknowledgement of what the being has done in this lifetime, and a wish for them on what comes next.
Write to that shape. Honour what they accomplished, the people they loved, the auditing journey they walked, the service they gave. Then wish them well on the journey ahead, not as a polite formula, but as a sincere farewell from people who have known the being in this lifetime and hope to see them well in the next.
What to include. Scientology elements
Begin with their auditing journey. The wins they had, the gains they spoke about, the breakthroughs that changed how they moved through the world. Auditing is one of the most meaningful experiences a Scientologist describes, and the gains they made (large or small) are part of who they were. You do not need to be technical; you only need to be honest about what their progress meant to them.
Name the orgs they were part of. The mission where they first walked in, the org where they did most of their training, any service organisations like the Sea Org if they belonged. Mention their training and processing in plain terms: the courses they completed, the levels they reached, the way they put what they learned to use in their family and work.
Their service often deserves a clear mention. Many Scientologists give significant time as volunteers: as Volunteer Ministers, in community programmes, in their org, or in the wider Church. The hours they gave, the people they helped, and the way they showed up when they were needed are part of the life worth remembering.
Write about their relationships in the Church: the auditor who walked alongside them, the friends they made on course, the org family they spent decades with. And write about how they handled life's challenges using Scientology principles: the way they used what they had learned to steady themselves through illness, loss, or hardship, and the example they set for the people around them.
Memory prompts
Use these to gather material before you start writing, or share them with family, friends, and members of their org who knew the person and want to contribute.
- Their auditing journey, the gains they spoke about and the breakthroughs that shaped them.
- The orgs and missions they were part of, and the people they knew there.
- Service they performed, Volunteer Minister work, community programmes, or hours given in the org.
- A teaching from LRH they returned to often, and what it meant in their daily life.
- Their family in the Church, auditor, course mates, longstanding friends in the org.
- How they handled life's challenges using Scientology principles.
- Their training accomplishments, courses completed, levels reached, the moments they spoke about with pride.
- The way they treated newcomers, the patience they showed someone walking into the org for the first time.
- Small daily habits that reflected what they had learned, how they communicated, how they handled stress, how they showed up.
- The way they faced their final period of life.
Structure suggestions
A simple shape that holds up well, whether the memorial is a paragraph or several pages.
- Open by acknowledging the thetan's onward journey (a quiet sentence that sets the tone) and then anchor the reader in who this person was with a specific scene from their life.
- Move into their story, where they grew up, how they came into Scientology, the family they made, the work they did, the orgs they called home. Keep it factual but warm.
- Spend the most words on character. What were they like to live with, to course with, to call after a long day? Specifics are everything.
- Name their path in the Church plainly, their auditing journey, the service they gave, the org family they belonged to. There is no need to defend it; truthful naming is enough.
- Include the voices of others if you can. A line from their auditor, a memory from a course mate, a sentence from someone they helped as a Volunteer Minister, these widen the picture.
- Close with "wishing them well on the road ahead". A simple, sincere farewell, in the language of their faith, lands better than any tidy summary. Let the ending breathe.
If a blank page is too much
Writing about someone you have just lost is hard, and a blank document is sometimes the hardest part. If that is where you are right now, Cherished Book offers a free, respectful first draft built from a few short questions you can then shape with your own words and invite family and friends in the Church to add to. The AI is calibrated to the Scientology framing (the thetan, the onward journey, the life lived) and nothing publishes without your review. Many families find it easier to edit something gentle than to start from nothing.
Including others
A Scientology life is usually woven through a community, and a memorial is richer when more than one voice carries it.
- Ask members of the Church first. Their auditor, course mates, and longstanding friends in the org often hold stories the family never heard.
- Reach out to people they helped, anyone they audited, supported as a Volunteer Minister, or quietly stood beside through a hard time.
- Invite children, grandchildren, and younger family members to contribute, even just a sentence each. A child's memory of a parent's patience or communication often says more than any adult writing.
- Give people a clear prompt. "One thing you remember about a win they shared" or "one way they helped you" works better than "send me a memory", specifics give people a way in.
- Set a soft deadline. Grief makes deadlines feel cruel; let people contribute over weeks rather than days if you have the time.
- Cherished Book lets friends from the Church, family, and others add their own memories, photos, and short tributes to the same memorial, so you do not have to gather everything yourself.
Frequently asked questions
Should the memorial mention the thetan and the onward journey?
A short acknowledgement that the being continues onward is in step with Scientology belief and is welcomed by most families. It does not need to be doctrinal. A gentle sentence near the opening or close is usually enough, with the body of the memorial focused on the life they lived in this lifetime.
How specific should I be about their auditing or training?
As specific as the family is comfortable with. Naming the gains they spoke about, the levels they completed, or the service they gave makes the memorial feel like theirs. If the family prefers to keep technical details private, focus on what their progress meant for the way they lived.
How long should a Scientology memorial be?
There is no required length. A few paragraphs that capture who they were, the life they lived, and the people they loved is enough. Cherished Book lets you keep adding over time as more family and friends from the Church contribute.
Last reviewed June 2026.
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