Is Tom Cruise the Goebbels of Scientology?

The war of words over Tom Cruise’s next film is heating up, with a leading church in Germany comparing the Top Gun star to a notorious Nazi.

The German Protestant Church has compared Cruise to Nazi propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels and that he is using his fame to publicize his faith, the sometimes controversial Church of Scientology.

Thomas Gandow, chief spokesman on religious cults for the German Protestant Church, called Scientology a “totalitarian organization” and alleged that Cruise was “the Goebbels of Scientology,” according to various overseas reports, including the London Independent.

Cruise’s camp is slamming his comments as “irresponsible” and “wrongheaded.” Scientology is recognized as a religion in the U.S., but is under scrutiny in some other countries. Tom Cruise has been granted permission to shoot his next film, ‘Valkyrie’ — about an assassination attempt against Adolf Hitler — in Germany, but the project is still stirring up heated reactions.

“This film will have the same propaganda advantages for Scientology as the 1936 Olympics had for the Nazis,” Gandow said, referring to the publicity the 1936 Berlin Games gave Germany.