"My Father, the Morning Star" by Rita Chang-Eppig

January 2, 2022

I was born into the Church of Scientology. My mom and dad worked at Sea Org, and when I was a baby I was cared for by strangers. My mom wasn’t allowed to breastfeed me, and she only saw me before and after her sixteen hour workdays. She and my dad made very little money. I am grateful that my mom left the church before I was two years old. I don’t know what really happened. What she told me is: I called my parents and told them I was trying to leave, and then I told the church that my parents would call the FBI if I didn’t come home. There was a story about driving from Southern California to Kirkland, WA, where her parents, my grandparents, lived. I had diarrhea. That was always part of the story. My aunt’s story is that my mom’s parent’s drove down and saved us. I’ll never know the real story.

I grew up with my mom’s narrative of Scientology. At eighteen she moved to Los Angeles. Not sure why. She worked at the Unicorn Cafe and a pretzel stand. She met my dad, who was in his late th…