1. Census statistics show the changes of religious populations from 1945 and the present day. The Census graph in figure 2.1 shows that Christianity in Australia was at 88% of the population. Where as in 2001, Christianity takes up 68%. This is a drop of 20% over 54 years. This is because of migration to Australia with people coming from all over the world.
2. The Religious Landscape is the changing population of the different types of religions in Australia. Most non-Christian religions from 1945 to present day have increased in size or stayed the same. Judaism has remained at 0.4% of Australia’s population.
3. From 1945, Christian denominations have increased in population because of migration and immigration from all over the world. For example the Catholic Church’s population increased from 21% to 27%. With a split in the denominations of Catholicism, a new denomination was formed. This is now known as the Uniting church that has a population of approximately 6.7%.
4. Since the first fleet in 1788, Christianity has been the dominating religion of Australia. The Aboriginal spirituality was not taken into account and was not recognised throughout society. By the other end of the 20th Century, there were significant changes in Christian affiliation reflecting changing immigration patterns. After WWII, there was a rapid growth in Eastern Orthodox churches and Catholicism. The Christian religion is a very important religion to Australians because it was the first religion recognized in Australia, and began many denominations throughout the country.
5. The Australian society in 1945 was very different to present day life. The women of 1945 were considered to have no or little rights. Women were seen as a lesser class than men. Women of 1945 were expected to stay home with their children and be a housewife. Nowadays things are very different where women have their own choice whether they want to stay home, or go out to work. Another change from 1945 is the amounts of pay and rights women have, in the workplace and rights in society such as voting in elections. Culture of 1945 was more ethnic because of the migration.
6. Some changes which migration caused in the religious life of Australia were the migrating of people from all different countries such as Austria, Belgium, Greece, Italy, Malta and bringing with them all the different religions and beliefs associated with them. There were a large number of them but the main religions which were brought over Roman Catholic or Orthodox Christians.
7. Demoninational switching is the movement of people from one denomination within a religion to another. It is believed that this occurs due to changes in income, promotions or changes in career. The fundamental belief in this theory is that as peoples lives change, their religious beliefs and practices are likely to change as they are tested and as people move beyond their ‘religious comfort zone’.
8. For example from 1991-1996 14% of people swapped their religion. The changes of denomination have caused Christianity to lose adherents to protestant denominations such as the Anglican Church. The rise can be seen in the Pentecostal denominations. Individual denominations have had rises and losses in numbers of adherents because of migration.
9. New Age religions have been on the rise in Australia since the beginning of the 1970s following their introduction in the US. Developed in response to mainstream religions, namely Christianity, and their ‘failure to satisfactorily respond to the needs of people today’ (p.30), the New Age Movement has no official structure or holy text, rather centres on a variety of similar beliefs and is founded on spiritualist ideals.
From 1996 to 2001, the proportion of individuals who claimed adherence to New Ageism doubled from 30 500 to 45 800 (p29). The most significant increases were seen in Paganism, which saw an increase of 144 per cent, and Wiccan/Witchcraft, which rose by 373 per cent. Whilst Spiritualist increased by 14 per cent during this five-year period, the sect nonetheless accounts for the greatest number of adherents, beside Paganism, in the New Age Movement. The 2006 census saw a further escalation in the number of people claiming adherence to Paganism, with a 45.93 per cent increase. Spiritualist and Wiccan/Witchcraft however, remained constant, with the former increasing by 0.06 per cent and the latter declining by 0.06 per cent. It is therefore evident that New Ageism has, and continues to be of significance within Australian society. If current trends continue alongside the support of mass media, New Ageism namely Paganism, will continue to escalate incredibly.
10. The concept of secularism is any movement or concept which rejects religious belief or adherence. Basically in the census this is considered as agnostics, atheists, humanists, rationalists and those in the no religion category. It effects the expression of religion in Australia as it slowly changing the main religion expressed within Australia (Christianity) as it allows for the needs of the individual to be addressed before the needs of the community.
11. (a) ecumenism→ a doctrine within the Christian Church which promotes cooperation and better understanding among different religious denominations which is aimed at the universal unity of Christianity.
(b) interfaith dialogue→ is the cooperative and positive interaction between Christians of different denominations.
(c) Reconciliation→ a process which changes for the better the relationship between individuals or groups.
12. History and activities of some ecumenical movements within Christianity
Date History
1895 World Student Christian Federation (WSCF) formed in Sweden (joined by Australia in 1896)
1948 The World Council of Churches began.
1965 2nd Vatican Council led Roman Catholics to develop ecumenical dialogue with other Christian groups.
1994 National Council of Churches in Australia (NCCA) formed to replace the Australian Council of Churches (ACC)
2003 There is formal dialogue between NCCA, Australian Federation of Islamic Councils and the Executive Council of Australian Jewry.
13. The importance of interfaith dialogue is that it impacts the lives of everyday Australians, religious or not. In 2004 the discussion for all groups was surrounding peace, in hope that this discussion can bring understanding between groups that traditionally had regarded each other as the enemy. The main things that interfaith dialogue aims at are to build an understanding, good will and sense of community between people of different faiths; To learn about each other and their (and our) faith traditions in a spirit of exploration and discovery; to share this knowledge and understanding with others; to work together, as Australians, to achieve common goals to support each other in difficult times.
14. Reconciliation affects all Australians as it brings the wider community together, especially since the great push for reconciliation between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal peoples. In Australia this reconciliation involves justice, recognition and healing in response to all the wrong doing in the past to the Aboriginal peoples ancestors.
Religion Assignment - Religion and Non - Religion
Religion and Non – Religion
1. Name and briefly describe essential features of Atheism and Agnosticism.
Atheism is defined as the absence of belief in deities, or nontheism. Atheists believe that there is no God or divine being in there life. The belief has been shaped through just its name, “Anti – theism”. This means there is no God and believe. This belief has been shaped through the total rejection of God thus creating a sense of disbelief. The features of atheism can stem from various areas. Atheism relies heavily on scientific method to examine and give justifications for human existence and the universe itself. This creates a shadow on atheists as it further emphasises the use of gods and deities and the rejection of a god like figure. This leads to the next point about the future. In this day and age technological advancements and science are becoming able to answer the unsolvable. Such questions are is god real? Did he create the earth in 7 days? These questions are challenged by theories such as the big bang theory and change people perspectives and their beliefs in religion.
Agnosticism is defined as the belief that there can be no proof either that God exists or that God does not exist. They rely on fact in order to have some sort of belief. Agnostics will only believe in the existence of gods and deities if there is sufficient information which can help support that there is a devine being. The Agnostics believe that there is a transcendant being if there is sufficient evidence and knowledge to back up that we have transcendental beings and deities. Agnostics will only believe if they have proof of there existence.
2. Explain the positions of Rational Humanisn and Scientific Humanism.
Rational Humanism also known as secular Humanism can be defined as willingness to accept claims about God and his existence provided that it can be proven in a rational way using investigative methods. Rational Humanism accepts that there are many phenomena now and in the past, although it does not mean that the inability to explain the reasoning of those occurrences justify the existence of God. Scientific humanism is a belief that humankind can be perfected and knowledge attained through rational thought and experimentation. It repudiates anything that cannot be verified or dealt with using the scientific method.
Rational humanists are a minuet but a very persuasive religion in todays’s society. Julian Huxley the general of UNESCO was a humanist. Huxley believed that mankind was in charge of there destiny, that we create was is to happen in the future. He believed that the big bang theory was true and that evolution did occur and that is how mankind was created. He says and I quote “I would have a strong belief in religion but the fact is there is no evidence to support this god like figure”.
Scientific humanism is a belief that humankind can be perfected and knowledge attained through rational thought and experimentation. It repudiates anything that cannot be verified or dealt with using the scientific method. Uma therman a famous hollywood actress is a scientific humanist. she believes that science has the answer for everything and that without this scientific proof there is no supernatural being. this can also link to scientology because scientology is the belief in the power of a person's spirit to clear itself of past painful experiences through self-knowledge and spiritual fulfillment. they link together as they in a way have the same morals and belief system about s there really a god.
3. Discuss how agnosticism, atheism and humanism determine the aspirations of behavior of individuals
4. Evaluate the place of religious dimensions in human history to provide meaning and purpose, social cohesion and social transformation
Throughout human history, people have been known to worship Gods, deities and other forms of supreme supernatural beings beyond humanity. Throughout time and humanity, people have looked up to the clouds and other places of worship for answers unknown to them, asking questions like Is there really a God, when i die will i go to the clouds. Religion brings this connection amongst people and create an inextricable link between the unknown and faithful worshipping of Gods.
Religious dimension is a great element for people to have faith and have own understandings to some questions that are unanswerable. The main questions which are asked come from 3 categories: selfhood, who am I, where did I come from. Meaning: Why am i? Where will I go when i die and Purpose: Why do I do? What is the purpose of life. These questions are a pervasive part of human experience and thought by some to be the source of the world's great religions, which still have no answer after thousands of years. Religion puts these questions into perspective for people to believe in and have faith in. Religion can give people value, meaning and purpose to life. Followers of a certain religion may believe they were brought onto earth to dedicate their lives as a priest for example.
Religion is common in all societies. Believers and non-believers are found throughout all cultures on earth. religion brings people together in moments of despair and joy, also death, birth and other special occasions like christmas for example. The Christians will flock to church and unite and celebrate their faiths about Jesus. Religions throughout time have brought civilisations together in believing in supreme Gods whether they were the same or not, the foundation of belief is still quite similar. People should have a right to believe in any god or gods to which they may find inner peace with, and answers to questions of fulfilling messages.
Wednesday's Lesson
During today’s lesson you are to:
1. Prepare a draft plan for your Assessment Task focussing on Paul’s contribution to the development and expression of Christianity.
2. Suggested Reading p 47-48 of Meeting St Paul. The references here will allow you to explore Paul’s contribution Christianity.
3. Download the powerpoints from the class Wiki to assist with essay plan.
4. It would be helpful to answer the Key Text and Questions on page 53 of Meeting St Paul Today.
5. Place your draft ideas and essay plan on your Wiki page.
End of the Lesson:
1. Ensure you have saved your plan to your wikispaces.com
2. Check the learning preparation due for Friday.
1. Census statistics show the changes of religious populations from 1945 and the present day. The Census graph in figure 2.1 shows that Christianity in Australia was at 88% of the population. Where as in 2001, Christianity takes up 68%. This is a drop of 20% over 54 years. This is because of migration to Australia with people coming from all over the world.
2. The Religious Landscape is the changing population of the different types of religions in Australia. Most non-Christian religions from 1945 to present day have increased in size or stayed the same. Judaism has remained at 0.4% of Australia’s population.
3. From 1945, Christian denominations have increased in population because of migration and immigration from all over the world. For example the Catholic Church’s population increased from 21% to 27%. With a split in the denominations of Catholicism, a new denomination was formed. This is now known as the Uniting church that has a population of approximately 6.7%.
4. Since the first fleet in 1788, Christianity has been the dominating religion of Australia. The Aboriginal spirituality was not taken into account and was not recognised throughout society. By the other end of the 20th Century, there were significant changes in Christian affiliation reflecting changing immigration patterns. After WWII, there was a rapid growth in Eastern Orthodox churches and Catholicism. The Christian religion is a very important religion to Australians because it was the first religion recognized in Australia, and began many denominations throughout the country.
5. The Australian society in 1945 was very different to present day life. The women of 1945 were considered to have no or little rights. Women were seen as a lesser class than men. Women of 1945 were expected to stay home with their children and be a housewife. Nowadays things are very different where women have their own choice whether they want to stay home, or go out to work. Another change from 1945 is the amounts of pay and rights women have, in the workplace and rights in society such as voting in elections. Culture of 1945 was more ethnic because of the migration.
6. Some changes which migration caused in the religious life of Australia were the migrating of people from all different countries such as Austria, Belgium, Greece, Italy, Malta and bringing with them all the different religions and beliefs associated with them. There were a large number of them but the main religions which were brought over Roman Catholic or Orthodox Christians.
7. Demoninational switching is the movement of people from one denomination within a religion to another. It is believed that this occurs due to changes in income, promotions or changes in career. The fundamental belief in this theory is that as peoples lives change, their religious beliefs and practices are likely to change as they are tested and as people move beyond their ‘religious comfort zone’.
8. For example from 1991-1996 14% of people swapped their religion. The changes of denomination have caused Christianity to lose adherents to protestant denominations such as the Anglican Church. The rise can be seen in the Pentecostal denominations. Individual denominations have had rises and losses in numbers of adherents because of migration.
9. New Age religions have been on the rise in Australia since the beginning of the 1970s following their introduction in the US. Developed in response to mainstream religions, namely Christianity, and their ‘failure to satisfactorily respond to the needs of people today’ (p.30), the New Age Movement has no official structure or holy text, rather centres on a variety of similar beliefs and is founded on spiritualist ideals.
From 1996 to 2001, the proportion of individuals who claimed adherence to New Ageism doubled from 30 500 to 45 800 (p29). The most significant increases were seen in Paganism, which saw an increase of 144 per cent, and Wiccan/Witchcraft, which rose by 373 per cent. Whilst Spiritualist increased by 14 per cent during this five-year period, the sect nonetheless accounts for the greatest number of adherents, beside Paganism, in the New Age Movement. The 2006 census saw a further escalation in the number of people claiming adherence to Paganism, with a 45.93 per cent increase. Spiritualist and Wiccan/Witchcraft however, remained constant, with the former increasing by 0.06 per cent and the latter declining by 0.06 per cent. It is therefore evident that New Ageism has, and continues to be of significance within Australian society. If current trends continue alongside the support of mass media, New Ageism namely Paganism, will continue to escalate incredibly.
10. The concept of secularism is any movement or concept which rejects religious belief or adherence. Basically in the census this is considered as agnostics, atheists, humanists, rationalists and those in the no religion category. It effects the expression of religion in Australia as it slowly changing the main religion expressed within Australia (Christianity) as it allows for the needs of the individual to be addressed before the needs of the community.
11. (a) ecumenism→ a doctrine within the Christian Church which promotes cooperation and better understanding among different religious denominations which is aimed at the universal unity of Christianity.
(b) interfaith dialogue→ is the cooperative and positive interaction between Christians of different denominations.
(c) Reconciliation→ a process which changes for the better the relationship between individuals or groups.
12. History and activities of some ecumenical movements within Christianity
Date History
1895 World Student Christian Federation (WSCF) formed in Sweden (joined by Australia in 1896)
1948 The World Council of Churches began.
1965 2nd Vatican Council led Roman Catholics to develop ecumenical dialogue with other Christian groups.
1994 National Council of Churches in Australia (NCCA) formed to replace the Australian Council of Churches (ACC)
2003 There is formal dialogue between NCCA, Australian Federation of Islamic Councils and the Executive Council of Australian Jewry.
13. The importance of interfaith dialogue is that it impacts the lives of everyday Australians, religious or not. In 2004 the discussion for all groups was surrounding peace, in hope that this discussion can bring understanding between groups that traditionally had regarded each other as the enemy. The main things that interfaith dialogue aims at are to build an understanding, good will and sense of community between people of different faiths; To learn about each other and their (and our) faith traditions in a spirit of exploration and discovery; to share this knowledge and understanding with others; to work together, as Australians, to achieve common goals to support each other in difficult times.
14. Reconciliation affects all Australians as it brings the wider community together, especially since the great push for reconciliation between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal peoples. In Australia this reconciliation involves justice, recognition and healing in response to all the wrong doing in the past to the Aboriginal peoples ancestors.
Religion Assignment - Religion and Non - Religion
Religion and Non – Religion
1. Name and briefly describe essential features of Atheism and Agnosticism.
Atheism is defined as the absence of belief in deities, or nontheism. Atheists believe that there is no God or divine being in there life. The belief has been shaped through just its name, “Anti – theism”. This means there is no God and believe. This belief has been shaped through the total rejection of God thus creating a sense of disbelief. The features of atheism can stem from various areas. Atheism relies heavily on scientific method to examine and give justifications for human existence and the universe itself. This creates a shadow on atheists as it further emphasises the use of gods and deities and the rejection of a god like figure. This leads to the next point about the future. In this day and age technological advancements and science are becoming able to answer the unsolvable. Such questions are is god real? Did he create the earth in 7 days? These questions are challenged by theories such as the big bang theory and change people perspectives and their beliefs in religion.
Agnosticism is defined as the belief that there can be no proof either that God exists or that God does not exist. They rely on fact in order to have some sort of belief. Agnostics will only believe in the existence of gods and deities if there is sufficient information which can help support that there is a devine being. The Agnostics believe that there is a transcendant being if there is sufficient evidence and knowledge to back up that we have transcendental beings and deities. Agnostics will only believe if they have proof of there existence.
2. Explain the positions of Rational Humanisn and Scientific Humanism.
Rational Humanism also known as secular Humanism can be defined as willingness to accept claims about God and his existence provided that it can be proven in a rational way using investigative methods. Rational Humanism accepts that there are many phenomena now and in the past, although it does not mean that the inability to explain the reasoning of those occurrences justify the existence of God. Scientific humanism is a belief that humankind can be perfected and knowledge attained through rational thought and experimentation. It repudiates anything that cannot be verified or dealt with using the scientific method.
Rational humanists are a minuet but a very persuasive religion in todays’s society. Julian Huxley the general of UNESCO was a humanist. Huxley believed that mankind was in charge of there destiny, that we create was is to happen in the future. He believed that the big bang theory was true and that evolution did occur and that is how mankind was created. He says and I quote “I would have a strong belief in religion but the fact is there is no evidence to support this god like figure”.
Scientific humanism is a belief that humankind can be perfected and knowledge attained through rational thought and experimentation. It repudiates anything that cannot be verified or dealt with using the scientific method. Uma therman a famous hollywood actress is a scientific humanist. she believes that science has the answer for everything and that without this scientific proof there is no supernatural being. this can also link to scientology because scientology is the belief in the power of a person's spirit to clear itself of past painful experiences through self-knowledge and spiritual fulfillment. they link together as they in a way have the same morals and belief system about s there really a god.
3. Discuss how agnosticism, atheism and humanism determine the aspirations of behavior of individuals
4. Evaluate the place of religious dimensions in human history to provide meaning and purpose, social cohesion and social transformation
Throughout human history, people have been known to worship Gods, deities and other forms of supreme supernatural beings beyond humanity. Throughout time and humanity, people have looked up to the clouds and other places of worship for answers unknown to them, asking questions like Is there really a God, when i die will i go to the clouds. Religion brings this connection amongst people and create an inextricable link between the unknown and faithful worshipping of Gods.Religious dimension is a great element for people to have faith and have own understandings to some questions that are unanswerable. The main questions which are asked come from 3 categories: selfhood, who am I, where did I come from. Meaning: Why am i? Where will I go when i die and Purpose: Why do I do? What is the purpose of life. These questions are a pervasive part of human experience and thought by some to be the source of the world's great religions, which still have no answer after thousands of years. Religion puts these questions into perspective for people to believe in and have faith in. Religion can give people value, meaning and purpose to life. Followers of a certain religion may believe they were brought onto earth to dedicate their lives as a priest for example.
Religion is common in all societies. Believers and non-believers are found throughout all cultures on earth. religion brings people together in moments of despair and joy, also death, birth and other special occasions like christmas for example. The Christians will flock to church and unite and celebrate their faiths about Jesus. Religions throughout time have brought civilisations together in believing in supreme Gods whether they were the same or not, the foundation of belief is still quite similar. People should have a right to believe in any god or gods to which they may find inner peace with, and answers to questions of fulfilling messages.
Wednesday's Lesson
During today’s lesson you are to:
1. Prepare a draft plan for your Assessment Task focussing on Paul’s contribution to the development and expression of Christianity.2. Suggested Reading p 47-48 of Meeting St Paul. The references here will allow you to explore Paul’s contribution Christianity.
3. Download the powerpoints from the class Wiki to assist with essay plan.
4. It would be helpful to answer the Key Text and Questions on page 53 of Meeting St Paul Today.
5. Place your draft ideas and essay plan on your Wiki page.
End of the Lesson:
1. Ensure you have saved your plan to your wikispaces.com
2. Check the learning preparation due for Friday.