Theodora Mashubuku:
With a Smile as Warm as Africa
Theodora Mashubuku wanted to help others, but she really did not know how. She found her calling as a Scientology spiritual counselor and overcame a shortcoming that made helping others nearly impossible. Her profile is one of 200 “Meet a Scientologist” videos available on the Scientology website at www.scientology.org.
Theodora Mashubuku is an auditor—“one who listens.” It comes from Latin audire, to listen, used by L. Ron Hubbard to describe a being who helps his fellows through the application of Scientology and Dianetics spiritual counseling.
Mashubuku was born and raised in Bothashoek, a tiny village in Limpopo Province in the Northeastern corner of South Africa. She completed her primary education at the school where her father, a priest, was principal, and at age 11 moved to Pretoria to attend secondary school and college. She became a bookkeeper, but she felt this was not the final chapter in her education—there had to be more to life.
In July 2004, Mashubuku walked into the Church of Scientology in Randburg, South Africa. Before she left, she realized she had found what she was looking for.
In her video on Scientology.org, Mashubuku admits that before Scientology, she was very judgmental.
“If someone did something I would think ‘they’re bad.’ I never looked at their viewpoint, where they were coming from and why they reacted that certain way,” she says.
That attitude made her—and others—miserable. But through her Scientology training she completely changed.
“Since Scientology I can look at people’s experiences. Instead of being judgmental, I tend to be very helpful,” she says.
For the past six years, Mashubuku, 27, has held a staff position at the Church of Scientology where she reaches out to others as a positive force for good. She has traveled twice to the spiritual headquarters of the Scientology religion in Clearwater, Florida, first to learn to supervise others in their study of the basics of the Scientology religion, then to train to be a Scientology spiritual counselor—an auditor.
“Being on staff allows me to do what I love most—to help,” she says.
And as much as her work benefits others, the effect on her own life has been profound as well.
“Happiness was rare for me before Scientology,” she says. “Now it is a way of life.”
The popular “Meet a Scientologist” profiles on the Church of Scientology International Video Channel at Scientology.org now total 200 broadcast-quality documentary videos featuring Scientologists from diverse locations and walks of life. The personal stories are told by Scientologists who are educators, teenagers, skydivers, a golf instructor, a hip-hop dancer, IT manager, stunt pilot, mothers, fathers, dentists, photographers, actors, musicians, fashion designers, engineers, students, business owners and more.
A digital pioneer and leader in the online religious community, in April 2008 the Church of Scientology became the first major religion to launch its own official YouTube Video Channel, which has now been viewed by millions of visitors.