Sorry, Tom!: Billionaire James Packer leaves the "church"

Sorry, Tom!: Billionaire James Packer leaves the "church"

* w w w .smh . com .au/news/people/see-ya-tom-packer-quits-cruises-church/2008/05/09/1210131257772.html

See ya, Tom: Packer quits Cruise's church

Andrew Hornery
May 10, 2008

THE Church of Scientology has lost its grip on James Packer.

The billionaire's closest friends have revealed that he has quietly
distanced himself from Scientology, labelled a cult by some former
members, as it faces international controversy about its
anti-psychiatry stance.

Members of Mr Packer's inner circle have confirmed that the
billionaire, who had ranked as Scientology's wealthiest member in the
world, was no longer undertaking Scientology courses and had slowly
moved away from the religion, telling his closest friends he no longer
"needs it".

His office did not respond to the Herald's calls yesterday.

Mr Packer was introduced to Scientology by his friend Tom Cruise in
2002. Friends say they remain close. They were most recently
photographed dining together with their wives in Germany.

The religion entered Mr Packer's realm at one of the lowest points in
his personal and business life. He was overweight and depressed, his
marriage to his first wife, Jodhi Meares, had ended and he was reeling
from the humiliating and very public collapse of One.Tel, losing $350
million from the family business on the way.

He has spoken publicly of his involvement in the religion only once,
telling The Australian Financial Review Magazine in 2006 that he spent
an hour or so "every couple of days" practising Scientology. "I think
it has been very good for me," he said. "It has been helpful. I have
some friends in Scientology that have been very supportive. But I
think it's just helped me have a better outlook on life."

Thanks to his Hollywood confidant Cruise, Mr Packer and his fortune
were embraced at Scientology's highest levels.

A video from 2004 shows Mr Packer in the front row with the world's
most senior Scientologist at a convention in Los Angeles at which Tom
Cruise was awarded a large medal before a roaring crowd.

However, Scientology caused discomfort within Mr Packer's old circle
of Sydney friends. When his lifelong friend David Gyngell quit Channel
Nine in May 2005, it was Mr Packer who called in Scientologists to
counsel the TV executive.

Out of respect for his friend, Mr Gyngell listened to them but
politely said he did not need their help. In a blaze of negative
publicity, he left the network his father, Bruce, had launched. Mr
Gyngell has since returned to Nine and resumed his friendship with Mr
Packer.

However, observers suggest Mr Packer's expanding casino empire has
presented issues difficult to reconcile with Scientologist beliefs.

Scientology's founder, the science fiction author L. Ron Hubbard,
denounced gambling. "An obsessive gambler is a psychotic just like a
drug addict or an alcoholic," Hubbard wrote in 1977.