Australia’s Religious Landscape Post 1945

“We live in a postmodern world in the sense that no single religion, system or ideology has any convincing claim to be the one voice of truth. We are yet to grasp the full reality that Australia is a pluralistic, multicultural, multi-religious society in which among people of different traditions and with indigenous people is a requirement of social cohesion. In a global world our national identities in no way preclude our responsibilities for the well-being of all humanity and the one earth we share. ” – Dr Gerard Hall SM

Dr Gerard Hall says we now live in a ‘postmodern world’ where ‘no single religion, system or ideology’ can ‘convincingly claim the one voice of truth’. Australia has been long dominated by the Christian faith with the 1911 census reporting 96% of Australians subscribing to any denomination of Christianity. This large percentage of Christians can be attributed to the White Australia policy. However, the 2011 census revealed a decrease of Christians with only 61% aligning themselves with the faith, half of the overseas-born population also reporting a Christian denomination.

Non-Christians affiliations and those reporting ‘no religion’ have increased radically since the last census. The number of people reporting ‘No Religion’ increased from 15% of the population in 2001 to 22% in 2011. This is most prevalent among younger Australians with 28% of people aged 15-34 reporting they had no religious affiliation. There are over 59 religious traditions present in Australia today. Globalisation has influenced the growth of eastern religions and new age fads in Australian society.

Migration has led to an increase in the number of religious adherents in non-Christian faiths such as Buddhism, Sikhism, Taoism and Hinduism. Hinduism has grown exponentially since 1911 at 189%, followed by Islam at 69%, and Buddhism at 48%. Atheism or citizens who have no revealed any religious affiliation has risen due to scientific advancement, rise of secularism, immigration and births. Along with this there is renewed interest in and awareness of Indigenous spirituality.

Due to the ‘pluralistic, multicultural, multi-religious society’ of Australia, multi-faith dialogue is important for the cohesion and harmony of Australian society. Sometimes tensions between religious traditions or against a particular religion result in violence or discrimination. To illustrate this point, ignorant and prejudiced media portrayals of Muslims have encouraged anti-Islamic attitudes and stereotypes despite the peaceful religious teachings of the Koran. Dr Ameer Ali (President of Australian Federation of Islamic Councils) recognised that interfaith dialogue was essential to ‘understand each other’.

Similarly, Archbishop George Pell believes that interfaith dialogue must be established to maintain currently peaceful relationships before potential hostilities have a chance to escalate. In 1964, Pope Paul VI recognised the need for interfaith communication, stating that; “We do not wish to turn a blind eye to the spiritual and moral values of the various non-Christian religions, for we desire to join with them in promoting and defending common ideals in the spheres of religious liberty, human brotherhood, education, culture, social welfare, and civic order.

Dialogue is possible in all these great projects, which are our concern as much as theirs and we will not fail to offer opportunities for discussion in the event of such an offer being favourably received in genuine, mutual respect. We readily accept the principle of stressing what we all have in common rather than what divides us. This provides a good and fruitful basis for our dialogue, and we are prepared to engage upon it with a will. “

Multi-faith dialogue assists in keeping peace and social unity in society, especially with organisations such as the NSW Council of Christians and Jews who recognise their common heritage in order to promote understanding and combat anti-Semitism. They organise activities that include an annual Passover demonstration directed to non-Jewish audiences, panel discussions and seminars on current subjects of interest, multi-denominational evenings for poetry and music, Holocaust education and an annual Christian commemorative service for the Holocaust held in the crypt of St Mary’s Roman Catholic Cathedral.

Along with interfaith dialogue between Christians and Jews, the NSW Council of Christians and Jews also seek to broaden the interfaith relations with Islam in particular. Some past interfaith activities in Australia include the 2001 Anzac Day service at St. Mary’s Cathedral for Buddhist Monks and Christian Ministers, Centenary of Federation celebrations in Melbourne, Prayer services at Martin Place by the Muslim-Christian Council for peace in Indonesia, Prayer services for September 11, Asian Boxing Day Tsunami and Bali bombings.

As Dr Gerard Hall says, in the current ‘global world, our national identities in no way preclude our responsibilities for the well-being of all humanity and the one earth we share’. This statement is illustrated by a number of international councils, one being the World Conference on Religion and Peace – an international council founded by the Buddhist Nichiko Niwano in 1970 that organises bi-annual ‘Heads of Faith Meetings’ that are attended by the leaders of the Catholic, Protestant, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, Jewish and Baha’i faiths.

The meetings conducted by the World Conference on Religion and Peace provide an opportunity for religious world leaders to exchange ideas and information and establish a working alliance between these religious traditions. The promotion of understanding and the education of interfaith co-operation assists in pursuing social justice issues, for example, Aboriginal reconciliation and rights. Reconciliation is the process whereby Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and non-Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples move towards the future with a relationship based upon mutual recognition, understanding and respect.

For this to happen there must be acknowledgement of past mistakes such as land dispossession and the stolen generation in order to make amends, such as restoring Native Title. Reconciliation is a long process which began with the 1967 referendum giving ATSI people the right to vote and the Commonwealth government the authority to make laws in the interest of ATSI people. Additionally, most churches have helped facilitate this reconciliation.

The NCCA (National Council of Churches Australia) acknowledge that many of its member churches played a role in culmination of the stolen generations and issued a public statement on the ‘Bringing Them Home’ report making recommendations in support of Reconciliation. The Week of Prayer for Reconciliation began in 1993 with the goal of providing an interfaith week of prayer encompassing all faiths with the common goal of reconciliation. It is to devote time to prayer, thought and reflection on the soul of a nation and the relationship between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians.

Attempts at reconciliation by various religious denominations have helped to bring out acceptance of the synchronization of Christian and Aboriginal religious traditions; as an example: many Aboriginal clergy incorporate Indigenous symbols and rituals from their own culture to express Christian concepts such as using Indigenous coconut milk instead of wine and damper or yam instead of bread, Christian stories are often retold with an Indigenous slant (instead of fire, they talk about fire sticks), red ochre is used instead of ashes/oil on the forehead and prayers are told in Indigenous languages.

Many Christian churches incorporate Aboriginal Ministries and Aboriginal Spirituality into services, particularly Protestant churches though many people feel that incorporating Aboriginal beliefs into Christianity degrades both. Critics claim that ‘Self-determination’ is now replaced with ‘Main-Streaming’. ‘Practical Reconciliation’ is now the term used rather than a real acknowledgement of past wrongs.

The Catholic Church has also made many positive overtures towards Reconciliation starting with Pope John Paul II’s visit to Alice Springs in 1986 who stated that “there is the need for just and proper settlement that lies unachieved in Australia’ Pope Benedict’s recent address to Australia encouraged ongoing assistance for Reconciliation. In 1998 the Catholic church joined with other churches to issues a statement called ‘Towards Reconciliation in Australian Society – Reconciliation and Aboriginal Australians’.

They also pressured for more assistance for the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders due to the ongoing psychological trauma of the Protection and Assimilation policies. National Reconciliation Week is a week of Catholic initiatives promoting reconciliation with emphasis on Aboriginal health. Other Christian churches involved in Reconciliation include the Anglican Church who expressed its support for Reconciliation during 1998. It also provides funding to National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Ecumenical Commission (NATSIEC) that assists in rebuilding Indigenous communities.

Anglicare Australia and the Anglican Board of Missionaries formed the Anglican Reconciliation Working Group which provides accommodation, health care, family support for Indigenous communities and helps fund training of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders. The Ecumenical movement Uniting Church formed a Uniting Aboriginal and Islander Christian Congress in Townsville that works with Indigenous people to promote compensation and healing for past wrongs. The Uniting Church National Assembly has also made a formal apology for its part in the harmful policies in the past and a commitment to a better future.

Christian leaders and leaders from other religious faiths united in rejecting the Howard Government’s attempts to weaken the Wik legislation. Their conviction no doubt assisted in changing opinions and rallying support for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander rights. Interfaith dialogue especially between Dreaming and Christianity illustrate the importance of multi-faith communication. There are, however, limitations of interfaith dialogue as critics believe there are important differences between faiths that cannot be overlooked.

There is also controversy that religions are trying to change and distort their religious beliefs to attempt to reconcile with other religions. Despite the criticisms of interfaith dialogue it still plays an essential role in Australian society to maintain peace and social cohesion. ——————————————– [ 1 ]. The Importance of Inter-faith Cooperation; available from http://www. buddhistinformation. com/importance_of_inter_faith_cooperation. htm [ 2 ]. Pope John Paul II’s public statement at Alice Springs, 1986; available from http://www. austlii. edu. au/au/orgs/car/docrec/relevant/docbook/p7. htm