The purpose of this study is to analyze how two former members of the Church of Scientology describe their lives and the process from member to non-member. This will be achieved by answering how they describe their lives within the church and how they describe their process leaving the church. Also, by analyzing what crucial factors influenced their decision to leave the church. The study uses a qualitative text analysis to analyze two biographies written by two former members, Miscavige Hill and Tunedal.

The study concludes that the two former members lives in the church differ. Of that reason that one of them grew up in the movement and the other joined as an adult. Also, one of them were an ordinary member of the movement and the other were a member of the very exclusive “sea organization” within the Church of Scientology. Furthermore, the result of the study shows that the process from member to non-member is a lengthy process, and that there are a number of factors that contributed to the members decision to leave the Church of Scientology, such as the church demands for donation and the church control over its members. The study demonstrates the need for source criticism, and to be critical of stories from both members and former members. Not everyone has the same experience of new religious movement and each member has an individual experience. Whereby there will always be different versions of “the truth”.