I've been reading about the Church of Scientology, and how it's classified by a lot of people as a "new religious movement". This is the same tag that was given to the Branch Davidian Church based out of Waco, and even the Mormon church. My question is when do we stop considering these new religious movements "new", and start examining them as actual religions? The LDS church obviously fell into this category, but now it's seen as a bona fide religion in America. So where's the line and how do we know when it's been crossed?
Here's Rachel Bernstein giving a great explanation on this
If you investigate the background of the "lot of people" you say describe Scientology as a "new religious movement", as opposed to the shonky business Russia and many European countries have classified it as, you'll find they've either been paid directly by or benefited in some other way through Scientology as an attempt to legitimize itself. It's a deliberate strategy called "safe-pointing" in Scientology.