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Religion and Systems in Australia

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Introduction

Assessment Task 1: Religion and Systems in Australia Post 1945 Religion, as evident throughout the course of history, changes with time, and those changes are occurring at a faster pace than ever before as we witness the twenty-first century unfold bringing new ideals and an even more diverse community. These changes account for the present religious landscape in Australia and are apparent in the statistics provided in the 2006 census which indicate rises in secularism and denominational switching. Secularism has attracted a build up of Australian residents which are defined by the developing separation from religious influence. Secularism was furthered by the reformist agenda of nineteenth century Protestant Australia which encouraged an education system that was 'compulsory, free and secular'1 because of ongoing religious-political education debates between rivaling denominations. The increasing tendency of Australians stating that they have 'no religion' in each succeeding national census provides a clear view of the extent to which secularism has influenced the current religious landscape of Australia. The number of residents identifying themselves as having 'no religion' increased from 17% in the 1996 census to 19% in the 2006 census. ...read more.

Middle

Living Religion: THIRD EDITION. Melbourne: PEARSON Education Australia. - N/A. (2007). Media Fact Sheet: Census shows non-Christian religions continue to grow at a faster rate. N/A. The Australian Bureau of Statistics. - Rowbotham. J. (2007). Pentecostals are the big winners in a world that's hungry for hope. [Internet]. Australia: The Australian. Available from: http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,,21980660-2702,00.html. [Accessed 18th November 2008]. - Gilchrist. M. (2008). Census 2006: 'No religion' up, Christians down. [Internet]. N/A. Available from: http://www.ad2000.com.au/articles/2007/aug2007p2_2589.html. [Accessed 18th November 2008]. Census 2006: 'No religion' up, Christians down Michael Gilchrist. The latest statistics on religious affiliations from the 2006 Australian Census provide little comfort for the leaders of the major Christian churches. In 1901, the overwhelming majority (96 percent) of Australians described themselves as Christian. One hundred years later, that number has declined to 64 percent (down from 71 percent in 1996). This decline will continue, since the younger the age group the lower the percentage. The mainline non-Catholic denominations have declined the most, while the Catholic Church has remained fairly stable in recent years at around 25 percent of the Australian population. The most rapid growth - from very small bases - has occurred with the Christian fundamentalists such as the Pentecostals and the major non-Christian believers, notably Buddhists, Muslims and Hindus. ...read more.

Conclusion

by 2.5 per cent to 5.1 million, they declined as a proportion of the population from 26.7 per cent to 25.8 per cent. "Australia is still largely a Christian country - using Christian in a very broad sense," Archbishop Jensen said. The proportion of Australians with no religion was 18.7 per cent, compared with 16 per cent last time. Although Christianity is declining from a large base - Christians account for 64 per cent of the population, compared with 68per cent in 2001 - other religions are growing. Hindus were up 55per cent on 2001 figures to 148,119, Buddhists were up 17 per cent to 418,000 and Muslims were up by 21 per cent to 340,392. 1 Morrissey. J. (2005). Living Religion: THIRD EDITION. Pg 265. 2 Gilchrist. M. (2008). Census 2006: 'No religion' up, Christians down. [Internet]. 3 Gilchrist. M. (2008). Census 2006: 'No religion' up, Christians down. [Internet]. 4 Rowbotham. J. (2007). Pentecostals are the big winners in a world that's hungry for hope. [Internet]. 5 Rowbotham. J. (2007). Pentecostals are the big winners in a world that's hungry for hope. [Internet]. 6 Rowbotham. J. (2007). Pentecostals are the big winners in a world that's hungry for hope. [Internet]. ?? ?? ?? ?? ...read more.

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