As rumors have it, Katie Holmes filed for divorce from Tom Cruise because she was afraid he was going to push some major Scientology voodoo on their 6-year-old daughter Suri. Apparently Tom was ready to pack the little gal up and ship her out to a crazy, militant brainwashing-esque group called Sea Organization. That may've been the final kick in Katie's butt to get her the hell outta Dodge.
As expected, most people are ecstatic for Katie and continue to bash Tom and his science-fiction-author-created "religion." I'm certainly no fan of Scientology. And if all the rumors are true, I hope the cult gets shut down for good. I'm also not a huge fan of Tom Cruise, though he does make some good movies. But unlike the majority of people embracing Katie these days, I've got to throw my supportive hat into Tom's ring.
Why? Simple. Katie knew what she was getting into. She knew Tom was extremely into Scientology. She knew he divorced Nicole Kidman and the baggage involved there. So why is she suddenly grabbing Tom's daughter and running now?
You can easily equate the whole situation to a mixed marriage. I'm not talking about skin color here, but religion. When someone Jewish marries someone Catholic, there's bound to be some friction down the line when kids come into the picture. Your choices are either to raise your kids under both religions or pick one from the onset.
Many times, parents will put off the religion discussion. "We'll figure it out when the kids are older," they'll say. And when the kids are older, that's when the disagreements start and things get ugly.
Is it fair to put your child in the middle of your and your spouse's religious war? Absolutely not. So talk it out before you even get married. You may only be thinking of yourself at that moment, but if you have strong religious beliefs to start with, then you need to think of your future kids.
In other words, don't be selfish. Yes you're in love and want to spend the rest of your life with this person, but if you have such differences of opinions on something like religion, it's only going to lead to heartache later on. You might as well just adopt a kid on your own in that case and not even bother with the whole marriage thing.
If nothing else, Tom Cruise has never kept his religious beliefs secret. If Katie disagreed with them from the onset, she never should have married Tom.
Do you think you should decide what religion you're going to raise your kids before you get married?
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Comments 52
I most definitely do. I think she may have thought she could change him. A lot of men and women are like that.
Yes, she should have thought this through. She should have NEVER had a child with and then get married to this man if she did not agree with the cult he is clearly very deeply involved in! She should have backed away much sooner.
Hm Andrew, it depends on the "religions" involved, not to mention age gaps, and how they met.
She's Catholic = follower, anti-divorce target; he, a Scientologist = the brainwasher, authority figure.
She was very young, 16 years younger, and he knew she worshipped him since she was a young girl = target.
That's taking advantage in a superior power position. Yes she was over 21, blah, blah. He's very calculated in his grooming and selection of a mate. Do you really think he revealed the depth and degree of his indoctrination to Scientology? I think not, he dumbed that down to lure and secure her commitment to him.
And don't get me started on his perception of her resemblance to him to better facilitate the "alien sperm" implantation. (god, that was gross to type out)
So, I think you're projecting ordinary criteria onto an extreme scenario that's being played out very publicly. Sorry, apples and oranges. On steroids. Your perspective would be more valid and applicable if you had a more clear understanding of the power imbalances here, ie, you're naïve, however well-intended.
What, exactly, Katie thought she was doing marrying Tom is beyond me . . .
That's the point, TorranceMom. There was no thought. Only idol worship and indoctrination mixed with being young and star-struck; prime target in the crosshairs of a cult predator.
Think of how far the media has come in 5 yrs- I don't think any of us would have a clue.
Holy Cow! DebaLa and I agree!! That doesn't happen very often!
While I wasn't thinking of the "grooming" aspect of it (very astute, thanks for pointing that out), I was thinking of it in a more mundane way. Tom comes across, in interviews and whatnot, as very glib, very good with getting across what he wants you to think. I can see him playing down the entire Scientology thing... "It's just a regular religion. People think it's crazy because they don't understand it. Look at the way some people bash Catholicism, but they really don't understand it, do they? Same thing."
And when the topic of raising kids came up, if it did, I can imagine that he'd point out any similarities there might be between Scientology and Catholicism... making everything palatable and appealing to her. It's easy to do when she's young and has stars in her eyes over finding "the man of her dreams". Plenty of us have made mistakes like this when we were crazy in love. Maybe not deciding on a religion, but other things.
Tom comes across, to me, as a narcissistic manipulator, and I don't think Katie stood much of a chance.