Times Square was aglow as Scientology Volunteer Ministers in their bright yellow jackets took center stage in the heart of Manhattan. They gathered to accept a congressional proclamation in honor of L. Ron Hubbard for the 50th anniversary of the Volunteer Ministers movement and its legacy of help.
New York holds a pivotal role in the history of the Volunteer Ministers, the religious social service Mr. Hubbard developed. It was here in 1973 that he conducted a sociological study and discovered the dramatic deterioration of values in the city. He predicted where the culture was headed: rampant immorality, violence as sport, and ultimately, politics by terrorism. He took action by devising a movement that could halt the decline by instilling values back into society at the grassroots level.