Thomas Kaenzig, Director of Media Relations, US Raelian Movement, successfully filed suit in order for references to God and bearing arms to be removed from his citizenship oath. Raelians believe extraterrestrials contacted French leader Rael and asked him to prepare for their return to Earth. We chatted with Kaenzig:
Was the overall citizenship process easier or more difficult than anticipated, and what reactions have you received?
I didn’t expect to have to wait that long [seven years] to be approved. If you look at the Constitution, it doesn’t say that everyone has to believe in God in order to become a citizen. Several people have sent us feedback, and some were saying, “How can somebody come from another country and then change the rules here?” I didn’t change the rules at all. I went by the initial ideals of the Founding Fathers of this country—who were all immigrants, by the way—that said this country has to be based on separation of church and state, and there can be absolutely no religious reference in anything involved in the government. I didn’t come here to change the rules. But I can say that I came here to remind people of the original intent of what the government should be, and the government should always be free from religion. ... The Christian fanatics say that this country was based on the whole idea of God, etc. I think it’s just people ignorant of their own history. That’s the irony in this whole thing: When you take the Citizenship Test, out of 100 questions they ask you 10, and you have to have six right. One of those questions is, “Why did the pilgrims come here in the first place?” The official answer in the booklet you get from the government is, “Because they fled religious persecution in Europe.”
You’ve moved to Vegas, home of the USA Raelian Movement Headquarters. Why Vegas?
It’s hard to say. I’ve traveled all over the world and to most parts of the United States. I definitely think on the West Coast you find more of this concept of freedom as it was originally intended in the Constitution. Las Vegas especially in a sense that it’s a city of leisure and fun, and that ties in well to the Raelian philosophy, which is about being happy, being free and having fun in life.
According to Rael.org, there’s a seminar coming up in Vegas March 23-29. What can attendees expect?
We have our Awakening seminar, a meditation seminar, the last weekend of March, and the great news is that Rael himself with be there and teach for the whole week. The mediation seminar helps us to be more in harmony with ourselves and to be more happy. In the morning we start out with a meditation with everybody, and Rael teaches in the morning. The afternoons you have workshops, and in the evenings we have a lot of shows. We have a lot of artists in the movement, so we have amazing shows at night. And of course everybody’s welcome whether they’re Raelian or not, just to come and check it out.