Neopaganism in Australia
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Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...
is the largest religion in Australia, though its share of total population has declined significantly over the past several decades. Section 116 of the
Constitution of Australia The Constitution of Australia (or Australian Constitution) is a written constitution, constitutional document that is Constitution, supreme law in Australia. It establishes Australia as a Federation of Australia, federation under a constitutio ...
of 1901 states, "The Commonwealth shall not make any law for establishing any religion, or for imposing any religious observance, or for prohibiting the free exercise of any religion, and no religious test shall be required as a qualification for any office or public trust under the Commonwealth." Australia's Aboriginal peoples developed the spirituality of the Dreaming and some of the earliest evidence on earth for religious practices among humans has been found in the archaeological record of their ancestors.
Torres Strait Islander Torres Strait Islanders () are the Indigenous Melanesian people of the Torres Strait Islands, which are part of the state of Queensland, Australia. Ethnically distinct from the Aboriginal people of the rest of Australia, they are often grouped ...
religion bore similarities to broader
Melanesian Melanesian is the adjectival form of Melanesia. It may refer to: * Melanesians * Melanesian mythology * Melanesian languages In linguistics, Melanesian is an obsolete term referring to the Austronesian languages of Melanesia: that is, the Oceani ...
spirituality. Since the start of European arrival and settlement with the British in 1788, and with subsequent immigration,
Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...
has been the most widely professed faith. However, the religious landscape of
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
has been changing and diversifying in the last two decades. The 2016 Census found that Protestants outnumbered Catholics while the irreligious population was also substantial. In an optional question in the 2021 Australian National Census, 43.9% of respondents declared some variety of
Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...
, with the Christian denominational distribution as follows:
Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
20.0%,
Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...
9.8%,
Uniting Church The Uniting Church in Australia (UCA) was founded on 22 June 1977, when most congregations of the Methodist Church of Australasia, about two-thirds of the Presbyterian Church of Australia and almost all the churches of the Congregational Union ...
2.7%,
Orthodox Orthodox, Orthodoxy, or Orthodoxism may refer to: Religion * Orthodoxy, adherence to accepted norms, more specifically adherence to creeds, especially within Christianity and Judaism, but also less commonly in non-Abrahamic religions like Neo-pag ...
2.1%,
Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...
and
Reformed Reform is beneficial change Reform may also refer to: Media * ''Reform'' (album), a 2011 album by Jane Zhang * Reform (band), a Swedish jazz fusion group * ''Reform'' (magazine), a Christian magazine *''Reforme'' ("Reforms"), initial name of the ...
1.6%,
Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only (believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compete ...
1.4%,
Pentecostal Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a Protestant Charismatic Christian movement
1.0%,
Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched th ...
0.6%, other Protestant 0.5%, and 'other Christian' 3.7%. Other religions affiliations in 2021 were:
Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
3.2%;
Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
2.7%;
Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
2.4%;
Sikh Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism, Sikhism (Sikhi), a Monotheism, monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Gu ...
0.8%; Jewish (0.4%); and other religions 1.7%. 38.9% declared 'No Religion', and unspecified or not declared represented a further 7.2%.


History

Christianity came to Australia with the first British settlers on the
First Fleet The First Fleet was a fleet of 11 ships that brought the first European and African settlers to Australia. It was made up of two Royal Navy vessels, three store ships and six convict transports. On 13 May 1787 the fleet under the command ...
. Of the convicts and settlers, most were members of the established Church of England and Ireland with lesser numbers of Nonconformist Protestants,
Catholics The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
and other faiths. The first religious census in 1828 divided the early colony into four groups: Protestants, Catholics, Jews and Pagans. Other smaller groups also arrived and established their churches. Jews started arriving in the early 19th century. The
Australian gold rushes During the Australian gold rushes, starting in 1851, significant numbers of workers moved from elsewhere in Australia and overseas to where gold had been discovered. Gold had been found several times before, but the colonial government of Ne ...
brought in workers from China and the Pacific islands, as well as specialised workers from
British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...
, such as the mainly Muslim " Afghan Cameleers". Australia has generally had a tradition of secular government. The Christian festivals of Easter and Christmas are public holidays.


Indigenous Australian religion

Indigenous Australians Indigenous Australians or Australian First Nations are people with familial heritage from, and membership in, the ethnic groups that lived in Australia before British colonisation. They consist of two distinct groups: the Aboriginal peoples ...
had their own religious traditions of the Dreaming when British colonisation started in 1788. As
Mircea Eliade Mircea Eliade (; – April 22, 1986) was a Romanians, Romanian History of religion, historian of religion, fiction writer, philosopher, and professor at the University of Chicago. He was a leading interpreter of religious experience, who establ ...
put it, "There is a general belief among the ndigenousAustralians that the world, man, and the various animals and plants were created by certain Supernatural beings who afterwards disappeared, either ascending to the sky or entering the earth." There were and still are
ritual A ritual is a sequence of activities involving gestures, words, actions, or objects, performed according to a set sequence. Rituals may be prescribed by the traditions of a community, including a religious community. Rituals are characterized, b ...
systems, with an emphasis on life transitions such as adulthood and
death Death is the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain an organism. For organisms with a brain, death can also be defined as the irreversible cessation of functioning of the whole brain, including brainstem, and brain ...
. There is evidence of contact of Indigenous Australians with explorers, fishermen, and survivors of numerous shipwrecks from peoples of various non-Indigenous cultures and faiths prior to British settlement. Indigenous Australians of (
Arnhem Land Arnhem Land is a historical region of the Northern Territory of Australia, with the term still in use. It is located in the north-eastern corner of the territory and is around from the territory capital, Darwin. In 1623, Dutch East India Compan ...
) (ib Northern Australia) retain stories, songs and paintings of trade and cultural interaction with boat-people from the north. These people are generally regarded as being from the east
Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
n
archipelago An archipelago ( ), sometimes called an island group or island chain, is a chain, cluster, or collection of islands, or sometimes a sea containing a small number of scattered islands. Examples of archipelagos include: the Indonesian Archi ...
. There is some evidence of Islamic terms and concepts entering northern Aboriginal cultures via these interactions. (See: Macassan contact with Australia.)


Christianity

While the
Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...
originally held a position of privilege in early colonial Australia, a legal framework guaranteeing religious equality evolved within a few decades. Large numbers of Irish Catholics were transported to Australia through the British criminal justice system. British Nonconformist Methodist, Presbyterians, Congregationalists and Baptists set up their own churches in the 19th century, as did Lutherans from Germany. Immigrants brought religious tensions, largely fuelled by historical grievances between Catholics and other Christians, that would continue into the 20th century. The first chaplain, Richard Johnson, a
Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...
cleric, was charged by Governor
Arthur Phillip Admiral Arthur Phillip (11 October 1738 – 31 August 1814) was a British Royal Navy officer who served as the first governor of the Colony of New South Wales. Phillip was educated at Greenwich Hospital School from June 1751 unti ...
with improving "public morality" in the colony, and he was also heavily involved in health and education. The gold rush of the 1850s led to significantly increased immigration and diversity of religious traditions, such as Irish Catholicism,
Scottish Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...
ism, and more English
Anglicanism Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of the ...
, among other religious traditions. Australian Aboriginal peoples suffered a decline during this period as they were dispossessed of their lands; and diseases spread among their populations. Christian churches organised missions during this period, intended to "civilise" Aboriginal communities and spread Christianity. The overall consequences of this activity contributed to the decline of indigenous languages and beliefs, the extent to which are still being determined and recorded. By 1901 apart from the indigenous population and the descendants of
gold rush A gold rush or gold fever is a discovery of gold—sometimes accompanied by other precious metals and rare-earth minerals—that brings an onrush of miners seeking their fortune. Major gold rushes took place in the 19th century in Australia, New Z ...
migrants, Australian society was predominantly Anglo-Celtic, with 40% of the population being Anglican, 23% Catholic, 34% other Christian and about 1% professing non-Christian religions. There was a Lutheran population of German descent in South Australia.
Freedom of Religion Freedom of religion or religious liberty is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or community, in public or private, to manifest religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship, and observance. It also includes the freedom ...
was enshrined in Section 116 of the Constitution of Australia of 1901 but the Church of England was not disestablished in the colony of
New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...
until the ''Church Act of 1836''. Drafted by the reformist attorney-general John Plunkett, the act established legal equality for Anglicans, Catholics and Presbyterians and was later extended to Methodists.


Other religions

There were at least 15 Jews in the First Fleet, 14 convicts and one "free" child. The Tolpuddle Martyrs were sentenced to
penal transportation Penal transportation or transportation was the relocation of convicted criminals, or other persons regarded as undesirable, to a distant place, often a colony, for a specified term; later, specifically established penal colonies became their ...
to Australia because friendly societies had strong elements of what are now considered to be the predominant role of trade unions. As noted above, the
Australian gold rushes During the Australian gold rushes, starting in 1851, significant numbers of workers moved from elsewhere in Australia and overseas to where gold had been discovered. Gold had been found several times before, but the colonial government of Ne ...
brought in workers from China and the Pacific islands, as well as specialised workers from
British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...
such as, from the 1860s onwards, the mainly Muslim " Afghan Cameleers". From the 1870s
Malay Malay may refer to: Languages * Malay language or Bahasa Melayu, a major Austronesian language spoken in Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei and Singapore ** History of the Malay language, the Malay language from the 4th to the 14th century ** Indonesi ...
divers were recruited (with most subsequently repatriated). Before 1901, some Muslim sailors and prisoners came to Australia on convict ships. In 1901, the government passed an act limiting immigration to those of European descent in what came to be known as the White Australia Policy. By effectively limiting the immigration of practitioners of different faiths, this policy ensured that Christianity remained the religion of the overwhelming majority of Australians for the foreseeable future and, indeed, to the present day. The first census in 1911 showed 96% identified themselves as Christian. The tensions that came with the First Fleet continued into the 1960s: job vacancy advertisements sometimes included the stipulation of "Protestant preferred" or that "Catholics Need Not Apply". Nevertheless, Australia elected its first Catholic prime minister, James Scullin, in 1929 and Sir Isaac Isaacs, a Jew, was appointed governor-general in 1930.


Constitutional status

The
Australian constitution The Constitution of Australia (or Australian Constitution) is a constitutional document that is supreme law in Australia. It establishes Australia as a federation under a constitutional monarchy and outlines the structure and powers of the ...
consists of several documents, including the Statute of Westminster and the Australia Act of 1986, but there is only one reference to religion in the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Australia, signed into law in 1900. Notably, the constitution does not include a bill of rights and, as a result, Australia's fundamental law has been criticised for its lack of explicit protection for several rights and freedoms. However, Section 116 of the 1900 act to constitute the Commonwealth of Australia (Australian Constitution) provides that:
The Commonwealth shall not make any law for establishing any religion, or for imposing any religious observance, or for prohibiting the free exercise of any religion, and no religious test shall be required as a qualification for any office or public trust under the Commonwealth.
Technically, this article does not affect the states' authority to legislate on religion. Nor would it block federal legislation on religion, aside from that establishing an official religion of Australia. In practice, though, federal governments have respected Section 116 and generally allowed the free practice of religion. Australia does not have explicit "separation of church and state" -the essence of a secular state- in the sense that countries like the USA do. In view of Section 116 of Australia's constitution ("The Commonwealth shall not make any law for establishing any religion, or for imposing any religious observance …”) it is commonly believed that Australia is already a "secular state". This is a misconception: in 1981, the High Court determined that there is in fact no constitutional separation of church and state in Australia. However, while there is nothing in the constitution that prevents the creation of a truly secular state, there is no general 'mood' to legislative establishment of religions. In 1983, the High Court of Australia defined religion as "a complex of beliefs and practices which point to a set of values and an understanding of the meaning of existence". The ''ABS 2001 Census Dictionary'' defines "no religion" as a category of religion which has subcategories such as
agnosticism Agnosticism is the view or belief that the existence of God, of the divine or the supernatural is unknown or unknowable. (page 56 in 1967 edition) Another definition provided is the view that "human reason is incapable of providing sufficient ...
,
atheism Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no d ...
,
Humanism Humanism is a philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential and agency of human beings. It considers human beings the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry. The meaning of the term "humani ...
and
rationalism In philosophy, rationalism is the epistemological view that "regards reason as the chief source and test of knowledge" or "any view appealing to reason as a source of knowledge or justification".Lacey, A.R. (1996), ''A Dictionary of Philosophy' ...
. The Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (HREOC) is able to inquire into allegations of discrimination on religious grounds. In 1998 the HREOC addressed the right to freedom of religion and belief in Australia against article 18 of the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) is a multilateral treaty that commits nations to respect the civil and political rights of individuals, including the right to life, freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedo ...
, stating that "despite the legal protections that apply in different jurisdictions, many Australians suffer discrimination on the basis of religious belief or non-belief, including members of both mainstream and non-mainstream religions, and those of no religious persuasion." An example of an HREOC response to such views is the IsmaU project, which examines possible prejudice against Muslims in Australia since the
11 September 2001 attacks The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commerc ...
in the US and the Bali bombings.


Demographics

A question on religion has been asked in every census taken in Australia, with the voluntary nature of this question having been specifically stated since 1933. In 1971, the instruction "if no religion, write none" was introduced. This saw a sevenfold increase from the previous census year in the percentage of Australians stating they had no religion. Since 1971, this percentage has progressively increased to 38.9% in 2021. The
Australian Bureau of Statistics The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) is the independent statutory agency of the Australian Government responsible for statistical collection and analysis and for giving evidence-based advice to federal, state and territory governments ...
(ABS) 2006 Census Dictionary statement on religious affiliation states the purpose for gathering such information:
Data on religious affiliation are used for such purposes as planning educational facilities, aged persons' care and other social services provided by religion-based organisations; the location of church buildings; the assigning of chaplains to hospitals, prisons, armed services and universities; the allocation of time on public radio and other media; and sociological research.
The census question about religion is optional, and asks "What is the person's religion?", giving respondents a choice of nine religions, "Other" and "No religion". At the
2016 census Sixteen or 16 may refer to: *16 (number), the natural number following 15 and preceding 17 *one of the years 16 BC, AD 16, 1916, 2016 Films * ''Pathinaaru'' or ''Sixteen'', a 2010 Tamil film * ''Sixteen'' (1943 film), a 1943 Argentine film dir ...
9.6% of people declined to answer, or they did not give a response adequate for interpretation. This figure dropped to 7.2% in 2021.The religious views of those people are not known, so it is not proper to group them together with people who state that they have no religion – instead, all the census figures about religion should be treated with corresponding confidence levels. The 2021 Australian census data showed that 43.9% of Australians classify themselves Christian, 8.2% less in real terms than just five years prior, The second-largest classification was the 38.9% who identified as "No Religion". As in many Western countries, the level of active participation in church worship is much lower than this; weekly attendance at church services is likely to be under 1 million, about 4% of the population. The fastest growing religious classifications over the fifteen years between 2006 and 2021 were: * No religion – up from 18.7% to 38.9% * Islam – up from 1.7% to 3.2% *
Hinduism Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...
– up from 0.7% to 2.7% * Sikhism – up from 0.1% to 0.8% * Buddhism - from 2.1% to 2.4% Meanwhile, all Christian denominations combined decreased from 63.9% to 43.9%.


Census data

1: Includes relatively small numbers of so-called 'Secular Beliefs' such as Atheism, Agnosticism, Humanism &, Rationalism, ''and'' Other Spiritual Beliefs such as New Age, Own Spiritual Beliefs, Theism(!), etc. See 7 2: Includes 'Inadequately described' 3: Due to rounding, figures may not add up to the totals shown.


Line and bar charts


Total Fertility Rates (TFR)

As of 2016,
Buddhists Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...
(1.68),
Hindus Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
(1.81) and
Irreligion Irreligion or nonreligion is the absence or rejection of religion, or indifference to it. Irreligion takes many forms, ranging from the casual and unaware to full-fledged philosophies such as atheism and agnosticism, secular humanism and a ...
(1.84) had the lowest fertility rate.
Christians Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
(2.11) and
Jews Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
(2.17) had a moderate TFR, and
Muslims Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abraha ...
had the highest fertility rate at 3.03.


Indigenous Australian traditions

Prior to British colonisation in Australia, the
animist Animism (from Latin: ' meaning 'breath, Soul, spirit, life') is the belief that objects, places, and creatures all possess a distinct Spirituality, spiritual essence. Potentially, animism perceives all things—Animal, animals, Plant, plants, Ro ...
beliefs of Indigenous Australian peoples had been practised for millennia. In the case of mainland
Aboriginal Australians Aboriginal Australians are the various Indigenous peoples of the Australian mainland and many of its islands, such as Tasmania, Fraser Island, Hinchinbrook Island, the Tiwi Islands, and Groote Eylandt, but excluding the Torres Strait Islands ...
, their spirituality is known as the Dreaming and it places a heavy emphasis on belonging to the land. The collection of stories which it contains shaped Aboriginal law and customs.
Aboriginal art Indigenous Australian art includes art made by Aboriginal Australian and Torres Strait Islander peoples, including collaborations with others. It includes works in a wide range of media including painting on leaves, bark painting, wood carving ...
, story and dance continue to draw on these spiritual traditions. In the case of the Torres Strait Islanders who inhabit the islands between Australia and New Guinea, spirituality and customs reflected their
Melanesia Melanesia (, ) is a subregion of Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It extends from Indonesia's New Guinea in the west to Fiji in the east, and includes the Arafura Sea. The region includes the four independent countries of Fiji, Va ...
n origins and dependence on the sea. Indigenous Australians have a complex
oral tradition Oral tradition, or oral lore, is a form of human communication wherein knowledge, art, ideas and cultural material is received, preserved, and transmitted orally from one generation to another. Vansina, Jan: ''Oral Tradition as History'' (1985 ...
and spiritual values based upon reverence for the land and a belief in the Dreaming. The Dreaming is at once the ancient time of creation and the present day reality of Dreaming. There were a great many different groups, each with their own individual culture, belief structure, and language. These cultures overlapped to a greater or lesser extent, and evolved over time. The Rainbow Serpent is a major dream spirit for Aboriginal people across Australia. The Yowie and Bunyip are other well known dream spirits. At the time of the British settlement, traditional religions were
animist Animism (from Latin: ' meaning 'breath, Soul, spirit, life') is the belief that objects, places, and creatures all possess a distinct Spirituality, spiritual essence. Potentially, animism perceives all things—Animal, animals, Plant, plants, Ro ...
and also tended to have elements of ancestor worship. According to the 2001 census, 5,244 persons or less than 0.03 percent of respondents reported practising Aboriginal traditional religions. Aboriginal beliefs and spirituality, even among those Aboriginal peoples who identify themselves as members of a traditional organised religion, are intrinsically linked to the land generally and to certain sites of significance in particular. The 1996 census reported that almost 72 percent of Aboriginal peoples practised some form of Christianity and 16 percent listed no religion. The 2001 census contained no comparable updated data.


Since British settlement

European culture The culture of Europe is rooted in its art, architecture, film, different types of music, economics, literature, and philosophy. European culture is largely rooted in what is often referred to as its "common cultural heritage". Definition ...
and
Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...
have had a significant impact on
Indigenous Australians Indigenous Australians or Australian First Nations are people with familial heritage from, and membership in, the ethnic groups that lived in Australia before British colonisation. They consist of two distinct groups: the Aboriginal peoples ...
. As in many colonial situations the churches both facilitated the loss of Indigenous Australian culture and religion and also facilitated its maintenance. The involvement of Christians in Aboriginal affairs has evolved significantly since 1788. Around the year 2000, many churches and church organisations officially apologised for past failures to adequately respect indigenous cultures and address the injustices of the dispossession of indigenous people. In the
Torres Strait Islands The Torres Strait Islands are a group of at least 274 small islands in the Torres Strait, a waterway separating far northern continental Australia's Cape York Peninsula and the island of New Guinea. They span an area of , but their total land ...
, the
Coming of the Light Festival The Coming of the Light Festival is celebrated in the Torres Strait Islands on 1 July each year. It commemorates the arrival of the London Missionary Society in Torres Strait at Erub (Darnley Island) on 1 July 1871, introducing Christianity to the ...
marks the day the Christian missionaries first arrived on the islands on 1 July 1871 and introduced Christianity to the region. This is a significant festival for Torres Strait Islanders, who are predominantly Christian. Religious and cultural ceremonies are held across Torres Strait and mainland Australia. Prominent Aboriginal activist
Noel Pearson Noel or Noël may refer to: Christmas * , French for Christmas * Noel is another name for a Christmas carol Places * Noel, Missouri, United States, a city *Noel, Nova Scotia, Canada, a community * 1563 Noël, an asteroid *Mount Noel, Britis ...
, himself raised at a
Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched th ...
mission in Cape York, has written that missions throughout Australia's colonial history "provided a haven from the hell of life on the Australian frontier while at the same time facilitating colonisation". Prominent Aboriginal Christians have included Pastor David Unaipon, the first Aboriginal author; Pastor Sir
Douglas Nicholls Sir Douglas Ralph Nicholls, (9 December 1906 – 4 June 1988) was a prominent Aboriginal Australian from the Yorta Yorta people. He was a professional athlete, Churches of Christ pastor and church planter, ceremonial officer and a pioneering ...
, athlete, activist and former Governor of
South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...
;
Mum (Shirl) Smith Coleen Shirley Perry Smith AM MBE (22 November 1924 – 28 April 1998), better known as Mum Shirl, was a prominent Wiradjuri woman, social worker and humanitarian activist committed to justice and welfare of Aboriginal Australians. She wa ...
, a celebrated Redfern community worker who, assisted by the Sisters of Charity, work to assist Aboriginal peoples.; and former Senator Aden Ridgeway, the first Chairman of the Aboriginal Catholic Ministry. In recent times, Christians such as Fr
Ted Kennedy Edward Moore Kennedy (February 22, 1932 – August 25, 2009) was an American lawyer and politician who served as a United States senator from Massachusetts for almost 47 years, from 1962 until his death in 2009. A member of the Democratic ...
of Redfern,
Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...
human rights lawyer Fr Frank Brennan and the Josephite Sisters have been prominent in working for Aboriginal rights and improvements to standards of living.


Abrahamic religions


Christianity

After the arrival of the first Christian settlers on the
First Fleet The First Fleet was a fleet of 11 ships that brought the first European and African settlers to Australia. It was made up of two Royal Navy vessels, three store ships and six convict transports. On 13 May 1787 the fleet under the command ...
of British ships in 1788, Christianity quickly became the major religion in Australia. Consequently, the Christian festivals of
Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus, Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by country, around t ...
and
Easter Easter,Traditional names for the feast in English are "Easter Day", as in the '' Book of Common Prayer''; "Easter Sunday", used by James Ussher''The Whole Works of the Most Rev. James Ussher, Volume 4'') and Samuel Pepys''The Diary of Samuel ...
are public holidays, the skylines of Australian cities and towns are marked by church and cathedral spires. Christian churches played a significant role in the development of early education, health and welfare services in Australia. The churches with the largest number of members are the
Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
, the Anglican Church of Australia and the Uniting Church in Australia. The
National Council of Churches in Australia The National Council of Churches in Australia (NCCA) is an ecumenical organisation bringing together a number of Australia's Christian churches in dialogue and practical cooperation. The NCCA works in collaboration with state ecumenical councils ...
has been the main Christian ecumenical body. For much of Australian history, the Church of England in Australia, now known as the Anglican Church of Australia, was the largest religious affiliation. However its relative position has declined, with the
Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
, benefiting from post-war Australia multicultural immigration, among other factors, to become the largest single religious group. The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia and other congregations associated with non-British cultures have also expanded. Today, the Catholic education system is the second biggest sector after government schools, with more than 750,000 students in 2018 (and around 21 per cent of all secondary school enrolments). The Anglican Church educates around 105,000 students and the Uniting Church has around 48 schools. Smaller denominations, including the Lutheran Church also have a number of schools in Australia. The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia also has 8 schools across the country. There are two Catholic universities in Australia: the
Australian Catholic University Australian Catholic University (ACU) is a public university in Australia. It has seven Australian campuses and also maintains a campus in Rome. History Australian Catholic University was opened on 1 January 1991 following the amalgamatio ...
which opened in 1991 following the amalgamation of four Catholic tertiary institutions in eastern Australia, and the
University of Notre Dame Australia The University of Notre Dame Australia (UNDA) is a national Roman Catholic private university with campuses in and in Western Australia and Sydney in New South Wales. The university also has eight clinical schools as part of its school of med ...
based in Perth. Catholic Social Services Australia's 63 member organisations help more than a million Australians every year. Anglican organisations work in health, missionary work, social welfare and communications; and the Uniting Church does extensive community work, in aged care, hospitals, nursing, family support services, youth services and with the homeless, and especially throughout inland Australia. Christian charities such as the
Saint Vincent de Paul Society The Society of St Vincent de Paul (SVP or SVdP or SSVP) is an international voluntary organization in the Catholic Church, founded in 1833 for the sanctification of its members by personal service of the poor. Innumerable Catholic parishes have ...
, the
Salvation Army Salvation (from Latin: ''salvatio'', from ''salva'', 'safe, saved') is the state of being saved or protected from harm or a dire situation. In religion and theology, ''salvation'' generally refers to the deliverance of the soul from sin and its c ...
, Anglicare, and
Youth Off the Streets Youth Off The Streets is an Australian not-for-profit youth organisation with locations in New South Wales, Queensland and Victoria. The organisation works with young people, their families and communities to create safety, offer support and provid ...
receive considerable national support. Religious orders founded many of Australia's hospitals, such as St Vincent's Hospital, Sydney, which was opened as a free hospital in 1857 by the Sisters of Charity and is now Australia's largest not-for-profit health provider and has trained prominent Australian surgeons such as
Victor Chang Victor Peter Chang, AC (born Chang Yam Him; 21 November 19364 July 1991), was a Chinese-born Australian cardiac surgeon and a pioneer of modern heart transplantation in Australia. His sudden murder in 1991 stunned Australia, and is considered ...
. Notable Australian Christians have included:
Mary MacKillop Mary Helen MacKillop RSJ (15 January 1842 – 8 August 1909) was an Australian religious sister who has been declared a saint by the Catholic Church, as St Mary of the Cross. Of Scottish descent, she was born in Melbourne but is best known fo ...
– educator, founder of the Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart and the first Australian to be recognised as a saint by the Catholic Church; David Unaipon – an Aboriginal writer, inventor and Christian preacher currently featured on the Australian $50 note; Archbishop Daniel Mannix of Melbourne – a controversial voice against
Conscription Conscription (also called the draft in the United States) is the state-mandated enlistment of people in a national service, mainly a military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it continues in some countries to the present day un ...
during
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
and against British policy in Ireland; the Reverend John Flynn – founder of the Royal Flying Doctor Service, currently featured on the Australian $20 note; Sir
Douglas Nicholls Sir Douglas Ralph Nicholls, (9 December 1906 – 4 June 1988) was a prominent Aboriginal Australian from the Yorta Yorta people. He was a professional athlete, Churches of Christ pastor and church planter, ceremonial officer and a pioneering ...
– Aboriginal rights activist, athlete, pastor and former Governor of
South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...
; Archbishop Stylianos Harkianakis – Archbishop and primate of the Greek Orthodox church in Australia from 1975 to 2019 Sectarianism in Australia tended to reflect the political inheritance of Britain and Ireland. Until 1945, the vast majority of Catholics in Australia were of Irish descent, causing the British majority to question their loyalty to the
British Empire The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts esta ...
. The first Catholic priests arrived in Australia as convicts in 1800, but the
Castle Hill Rebellion The Castle Hill convict rebellion was an 1804 Convicts in Australia, convict rebellion in the Castle Hill, New South Wales, Castle Hill area of Sydney, against the colonial authorities of the British Empire, British colony of Colony of New South ...
of 1804 alarmed the British authorities and no further priests were allowed in the colony until 1820, when London sent
John Joseph Therry John Therry (1790 - 25 May 1864) was an Irish Roman Catholic priest in Sydney, Australia. Early life John Therry was born in Cork and was privately educated at St Patrick's College in Carlow. In 1815 he was ordained as a priest. He did parish w ...
and Philip Connolly. In 1901, the
Australian Constitution The Constitution of Australia (or Australian Constitution) is a constitutional document that is supreme law in Australia. It establishes Australia as a federation under a constitutional monarchy and outlines the structure and powers of the ...
guaranteed
Separation of Church and State The separation of church and state is a philosophical and jurisprudential concept for defining political distance in the relationship between religious organizations and the state. Conceptually, the term refers to the creation of a secular sta ...
. A notable period of sectarianism re-emerged during the
First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
and the 1916 Easter Uprising in Ireland, but sectarian division declined after
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
. There was a diversification of Christian churches (especially with the growth of Greek, Macedonian, Serbian and Russian Orthodox churches), together with an increase in
ecumenism Ecumenism (), also spelled oecumenism, is the concept and principle that Christians who belong to different Christian denominations should work together to develop closer relationships among their churches and promote Christian unity. The adjec ...
among Christians through organisations such as the
National Council of Churches in Australia The National Council of Churches in Australia (NCCA) is an ecumenical organisation bringing together a number of Australia's Christian churches in dialogue and practical cooperation. The NCCA works in collaboration with state ecumenical councils ...
, as well as an increase in non-religious adherence. One of the most visible signs of the historical importance of Christianity to Australia is the prominence of churches in most Australian towns and cities. Among Australia's oldest are Ebenezer Chapel and the Anglican St Matthew's, Windsor, St Luke's, Liverpool, St Peter's, Campbelltown and
St James Church, Sydney St James' Church, commonly known as St James', King Street, is an Australian heritage-listed Anglican parish church located at 173 King Street, in the Sydney central business district in New South Wales. Consecrated in February 1824 and named ...
, built between 1819 and 1824 by Governor
Macquarie Macquarie may refer to: People * Lachlan Macquarie, Governor of the British colony of New South Wales from 1810 to 1821. * Elizabeth Macquarie Campbell, Lachlan Macquarie's second wife Locations * Division of Macquarie, an electoral district in th ...
's architect, Francis Greenway. St Mary's Cathedral, Sydney, was built to a design by
William Wardell William Wilkinson Wardell (1823–1899) was a civil engineer and architect, notable not only for his work in Australia, the country to which he emigrated in 1858, but for a successful career as a surveyor and ecclesiastical architect in En ...
from a foundation stone laid in 1868; the spires of the cathedral were not finally added until the year 2000. Wardell also worked on the design of St Patrick's Cathedral, Melbourne – among the finest examples of
ecclesiastical architecture Church architecture refers to the architecture of buildings of churches, convents, seminaries etc. It has evolved over the two thousand years of the Christian religion, partly by innovation and partly by borrowing other architectural styles as ...
in Australia. The Anglican St Paul's Cathedral, Melbourne, in the iconic hub of the city opposite
Flinders Street station Flinders Street railway station is a train station located on the corner of Flinders Street, Melbourne, Flinders and Swanston Street, Swanston streets in the Melbourne city centre, central business district (CBD) of Melbourne, Victoria (Austral ...
.
Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...
is known as the "City of Churches", but churches extend far into the Australian
Outback The Outback is a remote, vast, sparsely populated area of Australia. The Outback is more remote than the bush. While often envisaged as being arid, the Outback regions extend from the northern to southern Australian coastlines and encompass a n ...
, as at the historic Lutheran Mission Chapel at
Hermannsburg, Northern Territory Hermannsburg, also known as Ntaria, is an Aboriginal community in Ljirapinta Ward of the MacDonnell Shire in the Northern Territory of Australia, ; west southwest of Alice Springs, on the Finke River, in the traditional lands of the Western A ...
. Along with community attitudes to religion, church architecture changed significantly during the 20th century. Urban churches, such as the
Wayside Chapel The Wayside Chapel is a charity and parish mission of the Uniting Church in Australia in the Potts Point, New South Wales, Potts Point area of Sydney, Australia. Situated near Sydney's most prominent red-light district in Kings Cross, New South ...
(1964) in Sydney, differed markedly from traditional ecclesiastical designs. In the later 20th century, distinctly Australian approaches were applied at places such as Jambaroo Benedictine Abbey, where natural materials were chosen to "harmonise with the local environment" and the chapel sanctuary is of glass overlooking rainforest. Similar design principles were applied at Thredbo Ecumenical Chapel built in the
Snowy Mountains The Snowy Mountains, known informally as "The Snowies", is an IBRA subregion in southern New South Wales, Australia, and is the tallest mountain range in mainland Australia, being part of the continent's Great Dividing Range cordillera system ...
in 1996. The Christian festivals of Christmas and Easter are national public holidays in Australia. Christmas, which recalls the birth of
Jesus Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...
, is celebrated on 25 December during the Australian summer (although on 7 January by some Eastern Orthodox) and is an important cultural festival even for many non-religious Australians. The European traditions of
Christmas tree A Christmas tree is a decorated tree, usually an evergreen conifer, such as a spruce, pine or fir, or an artificial tree of similar appearance, associated with the celebration of Christmas. The custom was further developed in early modern ...
s, roast dinners,
carols A carol is a festive song, generally religious but not necessarily connected with Christian church worship, and sometimes accompanied by a dance. A caroller (or caroler) is someone who sings carols, and is said to be carolling (or caroling). T ...
and gift giving are all continued in Australia, but they might be conducted between visits to the beach. Here are some Christian denominations with Australian articles: * Anglican Church of Australia (formerly the Church of England in Australia) * Antiochian Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia * Australian Christian Churches (formerly the
Assemblies of God The Assemblies of God (AG), officially the World Assemblies of God Fellowship, is a group of over 144 autonomous self-governing national groupings of churches that together form the world's largest Pentecostal denomination."Assemblies of God". ...
in Australia) *
Australian Union Conference of Seventh-day Adventists The Seventh-day Adventist Church in Australia is formally organised as the Australian Union Conference of Seventh-day Adventists (often abbreviated by Australians as "the Union"), a subentity of the South Pacific Division of Seventh-day Adventist ...
*
Baptist Union of Australia Australian Baptist Ministries (formerly Baptist Union of Australia) is the oldest and largest national cooperative body of Baptists in Australia. The Baptist Union of Australia was inaugurated on 24 August 1926 at the Burton Street Church in ...
* Christian City Churches, started in Australia * Churches of Christ in Australia *
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Australia The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) in Australia began with the arrival of seventeen-year-old missionary William James Barratt in 1840. The LDS Church's first baptism in Australia was in 1842 when Barratt baptised Rober ...
*
Fellowship of Congregational Churches The Fellowship of Congregational Churches is a conservative Congregational denomination in Australia. It was formed by the forty congregations of the Congregational Union of Australia who chose not to join the Uniting Church in Australia in 1977 ...
, Australian only * Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia * CRC Churches International * Lutheran Church of Australia *
Presbyterian Church of Australia The Presbyterian Church of Australia (PCA) is the largest Presbyterian denomination in Australia. (The larger Uniting Church in Australia incorporated about two-thirds of the PCA in 1977.) History Beginnings When captain James Cook lande ...
*
Presbyterian Church of Eastern Australia The Presbyterian Church of Eastern Australia (PCEA) is a small Presbyterian denomination which was formed in Sydney on 10 October 1846 by three ministers and a ruling elder. As of December 2012 it consists of 13 pastoral charges with a total of ...
*
Presbyterian Reformed Church (Australia) The Presbyterian Reformed Church (PRC) is a Presbyterian denomination in Australia. The denomination was formed in 1967, as a result of growing theological liberalism within the Presbyterian Church of Australia, prior to the formation of the ...
* Catholic Church in Australia * Uniting Church in Australia * Two by Twos


Islam

The first contacts that Islam had with Australia was when Muslim fishermen native to Makassar, which is today a part of Indonesia, visited North-Western Australia long before British settlement in 1788. This contact of South East Asian ethnic groups of Islamic faith can be identified from the graves they dug for their comrades who died on the journey, being that they face
Mecca Mecca (; officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, commonly shortened to Makkah ()) is a city and administrative center of the Mecca Province of Saudi Arabia, and the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red ...
(in
Arabia The Arabian Peninsula, (; ar, شِبْهُ الْجَزِيرَةِ الْعَرَبِيَّة, , "Arabian Peninsula" or , , "Island of the Arabs") or Arabia, is a peninsula of Western Asia, situated northeast of Africa on the Arabian Plate. ...
), in accordance with Islamic regulations concerning burial, as well as evidence from Aboriginal cave paintings and religious ceremonies which depict and incorporate the adoption of Makassan canoe designs and words. In later history, throughout the 19th century following British settlement, other Muslims came to Australia including the Muslim 'Afghan' cameleers, who used their camels to transport goods and people through the otherwise unnavigable desert and pioneered a network of camel tracks that later became roads across the
Outback The Outback is a remote, vast, sparsely populated area of Australia. The Outback is more remote than the bush. While often envisaged as being arid, the Outback regions extend from the northern to southern Australian coastlines and encompass a n ...
. Australia's first mosque was built for them at Marree,
South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...
in 1861. Between the 1860s and 1920s around 2000 cameleers were brought from Afghanistan and the north west of British India (now Pakistan) and perhaps 100 families remained in Australia. Other outback mosques were established at places like Coolgardie, Cloncurry, and
Broken Hill Broken Hill is an inland mining city in the far west of outback New South Wales, Australia. It is near the border with South Australia on the crossing of the Barrier Highway (A32) and the Silver City Highway (B79), in the Barrier Range. It is ...
– and more permanent mosques in Adelaide, Perth and later Brisbane. A legacy of this pioneer era is the presence of wild camels in Outback and the oldest Islamic structure in the southern hemisphere, at
Central Adelaide Mosque The Central Adelaide Mosque, also known as Adelaide City Mosque or Adelaide Mosque, and formerly known as the Afghan Chapel, is a mosque located in Adelaide, South Australia. The mosque was built in 1888–1889, with its four distinctive minare ...
. Nonetheless, despite their significant role in Australia prior to the establishment of rail and road networks, the formulation of the
White Australia The White Australia policy is a term encapsulating a set of historical policies that aimed to forbid people of non-European ethnic origin, especially Asians (primarily Chinese) and Pacific Islanders, from immigrating to Australia, starting i ...
policy at the time of Federation made immigration difficult for the 'Afghans' and their memory slowly faded during the 20th century, until a revival of interest began in the 1980s. Successive Australian governments dismantled the White Australia Policy in the Post-WW2 period. From the 1970s onwards, under the leadership of
Gough Whitlam Edward Gough Whitlam (11 July 191621 October 2014) was the 21st prime minister of Australia, serving from 1972 to 1975. The longest-serving federal leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) from 1967 to 1977, he was notable for being the he ...
and Malcolm Fraser, Australia began to pursue
multiculturalism The term multiculturalism has a range of meanings within the contexts of sociology, political philosophy, and colloquial use. In sociology and in everyday usage, it is a synonym for "Pluralism (political theory), ethnic pluralism", with the tw ...
. Australia in the later 20th century became a refuge for many Muslims fleeing conflicts including those in
Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus li ...
,
Bosnia Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and He ...
,
Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
,
Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
,
Sudan Sudan ( or ; ar, السودان, as-Sūdān, officially the Republic of the Sudan ( ar, جمهورية السودان, link=no, Jumhūriyyat as-Sūdān), is a country in Northeast Africa. It shares borders with the Central African Republic t ...
and
Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...
. General immigration, combined with religious conversion to Islam by Christians and other Australians, as well as Australia's participation in UN refugee efforts has increased the overall Muslim population. Around 36% of Muslims are Australian born. Overseas born Muslims come from a great variety of nations and ethnic groups – with large Lebanese and Turkish communities. Following the
11 September attacks The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated Suicide attack, suicide List of terrorist incidents, terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, ...
, associations drawn between the political ideology of
Osama Bin Laden Osama bin Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden (10 March 1957 – 2 May 2011) was a Saudi-born extremist militant who founded al-Qaeda and served as its leader from 1988 until Killing of Osama bin Laden, his death in 2011. Ideologically a Pan-Islamism ...
and the religion of Islam have stirred debate in some quarters in Australia regarding Islam's relationship with the wider community – with some advocating greater emphasis on assimilation, and others supporting renewed commitment to diversity. The deaths of Australians in bombings by militant Islamic fundamentalists in New York in 2001,
Bali Bali () is a province of Indonesia and the westernmost of the Lesser Sunda Islands. East of Java and west of Lombok, the province includes the island of Bali and a few smaller neighbouring islands, notably Nusa Penida, Nusa Lembongan, and Nu ...
in 2002–5 and
London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
in 2005; as well as the sending of Australian troops to
East Timor East Timor (), also known as Timor-Leste (), officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is an island country in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the exclave of Oecusse on the island's north-weste ...
in 1999, Afghanistan in 2001 and
Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
in 2003; the arrest of bomb plotters in Australia; and concerns about certain cultural practices such as the wearing of the
Burkha A burqa or a burka, or , and ur, , it is also transliterated as burkha, bourkha, burqua or burqu' or borgha' and is pronounced natively . It is generally pronounced in the local variety of Arabic or variety of Persian, which varies. Exampl ...
have all contributed to a degree of tension in recent times A series of comments by a senior Sydney cleric, Sheikh
Taj El-Din Hilaly Taj El-Din Hamid Hilaly (alternatively spelt Tajeddin Hilaly, Hilali, Al-Hilaly, Taj el-Din al-Hilali, Aldin Alhilali, Tajideen El-Hilaly or Tajeddine) Toni Hassan ABC Radio, The Religion Report (transcripKeysar Trad on an alternative Australia ...
also stirred controversy, particularly his remarks regarding "female modesty" following an incident of gang rape in Sydney Australians were among the targets of Islamic Fundamentalists in the Bali bombings in Indonesia and attack on Australian Embassy in Jakarta and the South East Asian militant group
Jemaah Islamiyah Jemaah Islamiyah ( ar, الجماعة الإسلامية, ''al-Jamāʿah al-Islāmiyyah'', meaning "Islamic Congregation", frequently abbreviated JI) is a Southeast Asian militant extremist Islamist terrorist group based in Indonesia, which i ...
has been of particular concern to Australians. The Australian government's
mandatory detention Immigration detention is the policy of holding individuals suspected of visa violations, illegal entry or unauthorized arrival, as well as those subject to deportation and removal until a decision is made by immigration authorities to grant a vi ...
processing system for
asylum seekers An asylum seeker is a person who leaves their country of residence, enters another country and applies for asylum (i.e., international protection) in that other country. An asylum seeker is an immigrant who has been forcibly displaced and mi ...
became increasingly controversial after the 11 September attacks. A significant proportion of recent Asylum seekers arriving by boat have been Muslims fleeing the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan and elsewhere. Some Islamic leaders and social commentators claim that Islam has suffered from unfair stereotyping Violence and intimidation was directed against Muslims and people of Middle Eastern appearance during southern Sydney's Cronulla riots in 2005. In 2005, the Howard Government established the
Muslim Community Reference Group The Muslim Community Reference Group (MCRG) was an advisory body to the Australian federal government, set up by the Howard Government, from mid-2005 to mid-2006. The board served to provide the federal government with proposals on strategies and ...
to advise on Muslim community issues for one year, chaired by Ameer Ali. Inter-faith dialogues were also established by Christian and Muslim groups such as The
Australian Federation of Islamic Councils The Australian Federation of Islamic Councils (AFIC), founded in 1964 as Australian Federation of Islamic Societies (AFIS) and also known as Muslims Australia, is a not-for-profit umbrella organisation to represent Sunni Muslims across Australia ...
and the
National Council of Churches in Australia The National Council of Churches in Australia (NCCA) is an ecumenical organisation bringing together a number of Australia's Christian churches in dialogue and practical cooperation. The NCCA works in collaboration with state ecumenical councils ...
. Australia and Indonesia co-operated closely following the Bali-bombings, not only in law-enforcement but in improving education and cross-cultural understanding, leading to a marked improvement in relations. After a series of controversies, Sheikh
Taj El-Din Hilaly Taj El-Din Hamid Hilaly (alternatively spelt Tajeddin Hilaly, Hilali, Al-Hilaly, Taj el-Din al-Hilali, Aldin Alhilali, Tajideen El-Hilaly or Tajeddine) Toni Hassan ABC Radio, The Religion Report (transcripKeysar Trad on an alternative Australia ...
retired as Grand mufti of Australia in 2007 and was replaced by Fehmi Naji El-Imam AM. Today, over 604,000 people in Australia identify as Muslim, with diverse communities concentrated mainly in Sydney and Melbourne. More than half are non-practising
cultural Muslim Cultural Muslims are religiously non-practicing individuals who still identify with Islam due to family backgrounds, personal experiences, or the social and cultural environment in which they grew up. Definition In Central Asia and in former co ...
s. Since the 1970s Islamic schools have been established as well as more than 100 mosques and prayer centres. Many notable Muslim places of worship are to be found in large Australian cities, including the
Central Adelaide Mosque The Central Adelaide Mosque, also known as Adelaide City Mosque or Adelaide Mosque, and formerly known as the Afghan Chapel, is a mosque located in Adelaide, South Australia. The mosque was built in 1888–1889, with its four distinctive minare ...
, which was constructed during the 1880s; and Sydney's Classical Ottoman style
Auburn Gallipoli Mosque The Auburn Gallipoli Mosque is an Ottoman-style mosque in Auburn, a suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. More than 500 worshippers attend every day and around 2,000 worshippers attend the weekly special Friday prayer at the Auburn Gall ...
, which was largely funded by the Turkish community and the name of which recalls the shared heritage of the foundation of modern Turkey and the story of the ANZACs. 1,140 people identified as Aboriginal Muslims in the 2011 census, almost double the number recorded in the 2001 census. Notable Australian Muslims include boxer Anthony Mundine; community worker and
rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 112 ...
star Hazem El Masri; cricketer
Usman Khawaja Usman Tariq Khawaja ( ur, ; born 18 December 1986) is an Australian cricketer who represents Australia and Queensland. Khawaja made his first-class cricket debut for New South Wales in 2008 and played his first international match for Australi ...
and academic Waleed Aly. In 2013, Labor MP Ed Husic became Australia's first Muslim member of
Cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filing ...
, briefly serving as Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister and for Broadband in the short lived Second Rudd Government.


Judaism

At least eight Jewish convicts are believed to have been
transported ''Transported'' is an Australian convict melodrama film directed by W. J. Lincoln. It is considered a lost film. Plot In England, Jessie Grey is about to marry Leonard Lincoln but the evil Harold Hawk tries to force her to marry him and she wou ...
to Sydney aboard the
First Fleet The First Fleet was a fleet of 11 ships that brought the first European and African settlers to Australia. It was made up of two Royal Navy vessels, three store ships and six convict transports. On 13 May 1787 the fleet under the command ...
in 1788, when the first British settlement was established on the continent. An estimated 110,000 Jews currently live in Australia, the majority being
Ashkenazi Jews Ashkenazi Jews ( ; he, יְהוּדֵי אַשְׁכְּנַז, translit=Yehudei Ashkenaz, ; yi, אַשכּנזישע ייִדן, Ashkenazishe Yidn), also known as Ashkenazic Jews or ''Ashkenazim'',, Ashkenazi Hebrew pronunciation: , singu ...
of
Eastern Europe Eastern Europe is a subregion of the Europe, European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural, and socio-economic connotations. The vast majority of the region is covered by Russ ...
an descent, with many being refugees and
Holocaust The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; a ...
survivors who arrived during and after
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
. The Jewish population has increased slightly in recent times due to immigration from South Africa and the former
Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
. The largest Jewish community in Australia is in
Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
, with about 60,000, followed by Sydney with about 45,000 members. Smaller communities are dispersed among the other state capitals. Following the conclusion of the British colonial period, Jews have enjoyed formal equality before the law in Australia and have not been subject to civil
disabilities Disability is the experience of any condition that makes it more difficult for a person to do certain activities or have equitable access within a given society. Disabilities may be cognitive, developmental, intellectual, mental, physical, se ...
or other forms of state-sponsored
anti-Semitism Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...
which exclude them from full participation in public life. Sydney's gothic design Great Synagogue, consecrated in 1878, is a notable place of Jewish worship in Australia. Notable Australian Jews have included the Sir
John Monash General Sir John Monash, (; 27 June 1865 – 8 October 1931) was an Australian civil engineer and military commander of the First World War. He commanded the 13th Infantry Brigade before the war and then, shortly after its outbreak, became co ...
, the notable World War I general who opened the Maccabean Hall in Sydney in 1923 to commemorate Jews who fought and died in the
First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
and who is currently featured on the Australian $100 note; and Sir Isaac Isaacs who became the first Australian born governor general in 1930. Sir
Zelman Cowen Sir Zelman Cowen, (7 October 1919 – 8 December 2011) was an Australian legal scholar and university administrator who served as the 19th Governor-General of Australia, in office from 1977 to 1982. Cowen was born in Melbourne, and attended ...
also served as Governor-General, between 1977 and 1982. The Sydney Jewish Museum opened in 1992 to commemorate
The Holocaust The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; a ...
"challenge visitors' perceptions of democracy, morality, social justice and human rights". Until the 1930s, all synagogues in Australia were nominally
Orthodox Orthodox, Orthodoxy, or Orthodoxism may refer to: Religion * Orthodoxy, adherence to accepted norms, more specifically adherence to creeds, especially within Christianity and Judaism, but also less commonly in non-Abrahamic religions like Neo-pag ...
, with most acknowledging leadership of the Chief Rabbi of the United Kingdom. To this day the vast majority of synagogues in Australia are Orthodox. However, there is a wide range of Orthodox congregations, including Mizrachi,
Chabad Chabad, also known as Lubavitch, Habad and Chabad-Lubavitch (), is an Orthodox Jewish Hasidic dynasty. Chabad is one of the world's best-known Hasidic movements, particularly for its outreach activities. It is one of the largest Hasidic group ...
and Adass Israel congregations. There are also
Sephardi Sephardic (or Sephardi) Jews (, ; lad, Djudíos Sefardíes), also ''Sepharadim'' , Modern Hebrew: ''Sfaradim'', Tiberian Hebrew, Tiberian: Səp̄āraddîm, also , ''Ye'hude Sepharad'', lit. "The Jews of Spain", es, Judíos sefardíes (or ), ...
congregations. There had been short-lived efforts to establish Reform congregations as early as the 1890s. However, under the leadership of Ada Phillips, a sustained liberal congregation, Temple Beth Israel, was established in
Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
. Subsequently, another synagogue linked to the United States
Reform Movement A reform movement or reformism is a type of social movement that aims to bring a social or also a political system closer to the community's ideal. A reform movement is distinguished from more radical social movements such as revolutionary mo ...
, Temple Emanuel, was established in
Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
. Following these two congregations, a number of other Liberal synagogues have been founded in other cities. Since 1992 Conservative (Masorti) services have been held as an alternative service usually in the Neuweg, the smaller second synagogue within Temple Emanuel, Woollahra, Sydney. In 1999, Kehilat Nitzan, Melbourne's first Conservative (Masorti) congregation was established, with foundation president John Rosenberg. The congregation appointed its first rabbi, Ehud Bandel in 2006. In 2010 Beit Knesset Shalom became Brisbane's first Conservative (Masorti) synagogue. In 2012, the first humanistic Jewish congregation, known as Kehilat Kolenu, was established in Melbourne with links to the cultural Jewish youth movement
Habonim Dror Habonim Dror ( he, הַבּוֹנִים דְּרוֹר, "the builders–freedom") is the evolution of two Jewish Labour Zionist youth movements that merged in 1982. Habonim ( he, הַבּוֹנִים, "the builders") was founded in 1929 in the U ...
. Later in 2012, a similar congregation was established in Sydney, known as Ayelet HaShachar. The services are loosely based on the Humanistic Jewish movement in the United States and the musical-prayer group Nava Tehila in Israel.


Baháʼí Faith

The
Baháʼí Faith The Baháʼí Faith is a religion founded in the 19th century that teaches the Baháʼí Faith and the unity of religion, essential worth of all religions and Baháʼí Faith and the unity of humanity, the unity of all people. Established by ...
first arrived in Australia in 1922, and at less than 0.1% of the total population, is one of the smaller religious minorities. The
Sydney Baháʼí Temple The Sydney Baháʼí House of Worship or Sydney Baháʼí Temple is situated in Ingleside, a northern suburb of Sydney, Australia. According to Jennifer Taylor, a historian at Sydney University, it is among Sydney's four most significant reli ...
is situated in Ingleside, a northern suburb of
Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
. According to Jennifer Taylor, a historian at
Sydney University The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's six ...
, it is among Sydney's four most significant religious buildings constructed in the twentieth century. Dedicated in 1961, it was also the world's fourth
Baháʼí House of Worship A Baháʼí House of Worship or Baháʼí temple is a place of worship of the Baháʼí Faith. It is also referred to by the name ''Mashriqu'l-Adhkár'', which is Arabic for "Dawning-place of the remembrance of God". Baháʼí Houses of Worship ...
to be completed. The 1996
Australian Census The Census in Australia, officially the Census of Population and Housing, is the national census in Australia that occurs every five years. The census collects key demographic, social and economic data from all people in Australia on census nig ...
lists Baháʼí membership at just under 9,000. In 2001, the second edition of ''
A Practical Reference to Religious Diversity for Operational Police and Emergency Services ''A Practical Reference to Religious and Spiritual Diversity for Operational Police'' is a publication of the Australia New Zealand Policing Advisory Agency. History The ''National Police Ethnic Advisory Bureau'' conducted a nationwide survey i ...
'' added the Baháʼí Faith to its coverage of religions in Australia and noted that the community had grown to over 11,000. The Association of Religion Data Archives (relying on ''
World Christian Encyclopedia ''World Christian Encyclopedia'' is a reference work, with its third edition published by Edinburgh University Press in November 2019. The ''WCE'' is known for providing membership statistics for major world religions and Christian denominations ...
'') estimated some 17,700 Baháʼís in 2005, and over 19,300 in 2010. However, census data from 2016 reported a much lower population of only 13,988.


Indian/Dharmic religions


Hinduism

Hindus Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
numbered 684,000 in the 2021 census, making
Hinduism Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...
the fourth largest religious or non-religious affiliation one of the fastest growing religions in Australia (12.0% per year since 2011). In the 19th century,
Hindus Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
first came to Australia to work on cotton and sugar
plantations A plantation is an agricultural estate, generally centered on a plantation house, meant for farming that specializes in cash crops, usually mainly planted with a single crop, with perhaps ancillary areas for vegetables for eating and so on. The ...
. Many who remained worked in small business, as camel drivers, merchants and hawkers, selling goods between small rural communities. Their population increased dramatically from the 1960s and 1970s and more than doubled between the 1996 and 2006 census to around 148,000 people. Most were migrants from countries such as
Fiji Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists ...
, India,
Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
,
Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...
,
Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...
and
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
. At present many Hindus are well-educated professionals in fields such as medicine, engineering, commerce and information technology. Among Australia's best-known Hindus is the singer
Kamahl Kandiah Kamalesvaran ( ta, கந்தையா கமலேஸ்வரன்; born 13 November 1934), better known by his stage name Kamahl, is a Malaysian-born Australian singer and recording artist. His highest charting Australian single, ...
. There are around forty-three
Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
temples in Australia, the Sri Mandir Temple in Auburn, Sydney being the first established in 1977.


Buddhism

Buddhists began arriving in Australia in significant numbers during the
goldrush A gold rush or gold fever is a discovery of gold—sometimes accompanied by other precious metals and rare-earth minerals—that brings an onrush of miners seeking their fortune. Major gold rushes took place in the 19th century in Australia, New Ze ...
of the 1850s with an influx of Chinese miners. However, the population remained low until the 1960s. Buddhism is now one of the fastest growing religions in Australia. Immigration from Asia has contributed to this, but some people of non-Asian origin have also converted. The three main traditions of Buddhism—
Theravada ''Theravāda'' () ( si, ථේරවාදය, my, ထေရဝါဒ, th, เถรวาท, km, ថេរវាទ, lo, ເຖຣະວາດ, pi, , ) is the most commonly accepted name of Buddhism's oldest existing school. The school' ...
, East Asian and
Tibetan Tibetan may mean: * of, from, or related to Tibet * Tibetan people, an ethnic group * Tibetan language: ** Classical Tibetan, the classical language used also as a contemporary written standard ** Standard Tibetan, the most widely used spoken dial ...
—are now represented in Australia. According to the 2021 census, Buddhism has 615,800 adherents: 2.4% of the total population. Buddhist temples can be very active. Quang Minh Temple in Braybrook, Melbourne, Victoria gets about 2,000 people through every Sunday and gives a free vegetarian meal to about 600 people. For important events, more than 20,000 people come. Even more come to the Nan Tien Temple, or "Southern Paradise Temple", in
Wollongong Wollongong ( ), colloquially referred to as The Gong, is a city located in the Illawarra region of New South Wales, Australia. The name is believed to originate from the Dharawal language, meaning either 'five islands/clouds', 'ground near wate ...
, New South Wales, began construction in the early 1990s, adopting the Chinese palace building style and is now the largest Buddhist temple in the Southern Hemisphere. This temple follows the Venerable Master Hsing Yun of the
Fo Guang Shan Fo Guang Shan (FGS) () is an international Chinese Mahāyāna Buddhist organization and monastic order based in Taiwan that practices Humanistic Buddhism. The headquarters, Fo Guang Shan Monastery is located in Dashu District, Kaohsiung, and is ...
Buddhist order.
Bodhinyana Monastery Bodhinyana is a Theravada Buddhist monastery in the Thai Forest Tradition located in Serpentine, about 60 minutes' drive south-east of Perth, Australia. History The monastery was built in the 1980s and gained interest from Perth media over tim ...
is a Theravadin Buddhist monastery in the
Thai Forest Tradition The Kammaṭṭhāna Forest Tradition of Thailand (from pi, kammaṭṭhāna meaning Kammaṭṭhāna, "place of work"), commonly known in the West as the Thai Forest Tradition, is a Parampara, lineage of Theravada Buddhist monasticism. The ...
located in Serpentine, Western Australia.


Sikhism

Sikhism Sikhism (), also known as Sikhi ( pa, ਸਿੱਖੀ ', , from pa, ਸਿੱਖ, lit=disciple', 'seeker', or 'learner, translit=Sikh, label=none),''Sikhism'' (commonly known as ''Sikhī'') originated from the word ''Sikh'', which comes fro ...
has been one of the fastest growing religions in Australia in recent years. According to census data, Australia's Sikh population grew from 72,000 to 210,400 between 2011 and 2021, an average growth rate of 14.8% per year. Around 42% of Australia's Sikhs live in the state of Victoria.


Jainism

Jainism Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religions, Indian religion. Jainism traces its spiritual ideas and history through the succession of twenty-four tirthankaras (supreme preachers of ''Dharma''), with the first in the current ...
is currently the fourth fastest growing religion in Australia, recording 4,050 adherents in 2016 and growing an average of 7.7% per year. The overwhelming majority (94.7%) of Jains live inside the state capitals, primarily Sydney, Melbourne and Perth.


Irreligion


Non-religious

Australia is one of the least religious nations in the developed world, with religion not described as a central part in many people's lives. This view is prominent among Australia's youth, who were ranked as the least religious worldwide in a 2008 survey conducted by ''
The Christian Science Monitor ''The Christian Science Monitor'' (''CSM''), commonly known as ''The Monitor'', is a nonprofit news organization that publishes daily articles in electronic format as well as a weekly print edition. It was founded in 1908 as a daily newspaper ...
''. In the 2021 census, the ABS categorised ~9,887,000 Australians (38.9%) as having no religion, up 16.6% in real terms from 4,796,800 (22.3%) in 2011. This category includes
agnosticism Agnosticism is the view or belief that the existence of God, of the divine or the supernatural is unknown or unknowable. (page 56 in 1967 edition) Another definition provided is the view that "human reason is incapable of providing sufficient ...
,
atheism Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no d ...
,
humanism Humanism is a philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential and agency of human beings. It considers human beings the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry. The meaning of the term "humani ...
,
rationalism In philosophy, rationalism is the epistemological view that "regards reason as the chief source and test of knowledge" or "any view appealing to reason as a source of knowledge or justification".Lacey, A.R. (1996), ''A Dictionary of Philosophy' ...
, and people who are unaffiliated with any particular religion.


Atheism

While people with no religion are more than 30% of the Australian population, the Australian Bureau of Statistics does not provide information in the annual "1301.0 – Year Book Australia" on religious affiliation as to how many people fall into each sub-category. Data on religious affiliation is only collected by the ABS at the five yearly population census. Atheist interests in Australia are represented nationally by the
Atheist Foundation of Australia The Atheist Foundation of Australia (AFA) was established in South Australia in 1970, when The Rationalist Association of South Australia decided upon a name change to better declare its basic philosophy, namely atheism. The foundation defines ...
. Humanist interests in Australia are represented nationally by the
Council of Australian Humanist Societies The Council of Australian Humanist Societies (CAHS) is an umbrella organisation for Australian humanist societies. It was founded in 1965. It is affiliated with Humanists International. The official symbol of CAHS (and all member organisations ...
. Rationalist interests in Australia are represented nationally by the
Rationalist Society of Australia The Rationalist Society of Australia (RSA) promotes the interests of rationalists nationally in Australia. Originally formed as the Victorian Rationalist Association, the society originated in a meeting of freethinkers in the University of Melbou ...
. The
Global Atheist Convention Atheism, agnosticism, Religious skepticism, scepticism, freethought, secular humanism or general irreligion are increasing in Australia. Post-war Australia has become a highly Secularization, secularised country. Religion does not play a major r ...
, a prominent atheist event, has been held in Melbourne.


Other religions

The 2006 census shows 53 listed groups down to 5000 members, most of them Christian denominations, many of them national versions such as Greek,
Serbian Orthodox The Serbian Orthodox Church ( sr-Cyrl, Српска православна црква, Srpska pravoslavna crkva) is one of the autocephalous (ecclesiastically independent) Eastern Orthodox Christian churches. The majority of the population in ...
and
Assyrian Assyrian may refer to: * Assyrian people, the indigenous ethnic group of Mesopotamia. * Assyria, a major Mesopotamian kingdom and empire. ** Early Assyrian Period ** Old Assyrian Period ** Middle Assyrian Empire ** Neo-Assyrian Empire * Assyrian ...
Orthodox. Of the smaller religions,
Pagan Paganism (from classical Latin ''pāgānus'' "rural", "rustic", later "civilian") is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Judaism. ...
religions 29,328, the
Baháʼí Faith The Baháʼí Faith is a religion founded in the 19th century that teaches the Baháʼí Faith and the unity of religion, essential worth of all religions and Baháʼí Faith and the unity of humanity, the unity of all people. Established by ...
at 12,000,
Humanism Humanism is a philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential and agency of human beings. It considers human beings the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry. The meaning of the term "humani ...
about 7000. Between 1000 and 5000, are the following religions—
Taoism Taoism (, ) or Daoism () refers to either a school of Philosophy, philosophical thought (道家; ''daojia'') or to a religion (道教; ''daojiao''), both of which share ideas and concepts of China, Chinese origin and emphasize living in harmo ...
, Druse,
Satanism Satanism is a group of ideological and philosophical beliefs based on Satan. Contemporary religious practice of Satanism began with the founding of the atheistic Church of Satan by Anton LaVey in the United States in 1966, although a few hi ...
,
Zoroastrian Zoroastrianism is an Iranian religion and one of the world's oldest organized faiths, based on the teachings of the Iranian-speaking prophet Zoroaster. It has a dualistic cosmology of good and evil within the framework of a monotheistic on ...
,
Rationalism In philosophy, rationalism is the epistemological view that "regards reason as the chief source and test of knowledge" or "any view appealing to reason as a source of knowledge or justification".Lacey, A.R. (1996), ''A Dictionary of Philosophy' ...
,
Creativity Creativity is a phenomenon whereby something new and valuable is formed. The created item may be intangible (such as an idea, a scientific theory, a musical composition, or a joke) or a physical object (such as an invention, a printed literary w ...
,
Theosophy Theosophy is a religion established in the United States during the late 19th century. It was founded primarily by the Russian Helena Blavatsky and draws its teachings predominantly from Blavatsky's writings. Categorized by scholars of religion a ...
,
Jainism Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religions, Indian religion. Jainism traces its spiritual ideas and history through the succession of twenty-four tirthankaras (supreme preachers of ''Dharma''), with the first in the current ...
. There are also adherents of Tenrikyo,
Shinto Shinto () is a religion from Japan. Classified as an East Asian religion by scholars of religion, its practitioners often regard it as Japan's indigenous religion and as a nature religion. Scholars sometimes call its practitioners ''Shintois ...
,
Unitarian Universalism Unitarian Universalism (UU) is a liberal religion characterized by a "free and responsible search for truth and meaning". Unitarian Universalists assert no creed, but instead are unified by their shared search for spiritual growth, guided by a ...
,
Eckankar Eckankar is a new religious movement founded by Paul Twitchell in 1965. Its membership today is primarily in North America, Europe, Asia and Africa. The spiritual home is the Temple of ECK in Chanhassen, Minnesota. Eckankar is not affiliated ...
,
Cao Dai Caodaism ( vi, Đạo Cao Đài, Chữ Hán: ) is a monotheistic syncretic new religious movement officially established in the city of Tây Ninh in southern Vietnam in 1926. The full name of the religion is (The Great Faith or theThird Univ ...
,
Rastafari Rastafari, sometimes called Rastafarianism, is a religion that developed in Jamaica during the 1930s. It is classified as both a new religious movement and a social movement by scholars of religion. There is no central authority in control of ...
,
Pantheism Pantheism is the belief that reality, the universe and the cosmos are identical with divinity and a supreme supernatural being or entity, pointing to the universe as being an immanent creator deity still expanding and creating, which has ex ...
, Scientology and Raelianism. In general, non-Christian religions and those with no religion have been growing in proportion to the overall population. With fewer classifications, data from 1996 and 2001 showed Aboriginal religion decreasing from 7000 to 5000 while Baháʼí grew from just under 9,000 to over 11,000 and the rest of the "Other" category growing from about 69,000 to about 92,000.


Paganism

Alexandrian Wicca Alexandrian Wicca or Alexandrian Witchcraft is a tradition of the Neopagan religion of Wicca, founded by Alex Sanders (also known as "King of the Witches") who, with his wife Maxine Sanders, established the tradition in the United Kingdom in th ...
ns and
Gardnerian Wicca Gardnerian Wicca, or Gardnerian witchcraft, is a tradition in the neopagan religion of Wicca, whose members can trace initiatory descent from Gerald Gardner. The tradition is itself named after Gardner (1884–1964), a British civil servant ...
ns arrived in Australia from England and the United States around the late 1960s. In the 2011 census, 32,083 Australians identified their religion as a
Pagan Paganism (from classical Latin ''pāgānus'' "rural", "rustic", later "civilian") is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Judaism. ...
religion including 8,413 people who identified their religion as
Wicca Wicca () is a modern Pagan religion. Scholars of religion categorise it as both a new religious movement and as part of the occultist stream of Western esotericism. It was developed in England during the first half of the 20th century and was ...
or
Witchcraft Witchcraft traditionally means the use of magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually women who were believed to have us ...
.


Interfaith efforts

Interfaith efforts between various religious institutions occur. Since the early 2000s, the Abraham Conference convenes as an annual interfaith event between Christians, Muslims, and Jews.


See also

* Stolen Generations *
Freedom of religion in Australia Freedom of religion in Australia is allowed in practice and protected to varying degrees through the constitution and legislation at the Federal, state and territory level. Australia is a pluralist country with legislated principle of state ...
*''
A Practical Reference to Religious Diversity for Operational Police and Emergency Services ''A Practical Reference to Religious and Spiritual Diversity for Operational Police'' is a publication of the Australia New Zealand Policing Advisory Agency. History The ''National Police Ethnic Advisory Bureau'' conducted a nationwide survey i ...
'' *
Australian Association for Jewish Studies The Australian Association for Jewish Studies (AAJS) is a scholarly organization in Australia that promotes academic Jewish Studies. AAJS was founded in 1987 and held its first annual conference that year in Melbourne. AAJS is Australia's natio ...
* Broken Rites &
Catholic Church sexual abuse cases in Australia Catholic sexual abuse cases in Australia, like Catholic Church sexual abuse cases elsewhere, have involved convictions, trials and ongoing investigations into allegations of sex crimes committed by Catholic priests, members of religious orders an ...
*
Sexual abuse by yoga gurus Sexual abuse by yoga gurus is the exploitation of the position of trust occupied by a master of any branch of yoga for personal sexual pleasure. Allegations of such abuse have been made against modern yoga gurus such as Bikram Choudhury, Kau ...
* Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse


Notes


References


Further reading

*Berndt, R. M. ''Australian Aboriginal Religion'', E. J. Brill, Leiden, 1974 *Bouma, Gary, ed. ''Many Religions All Australian: Religious Settlement, Identity and Cultural Diversity''. Melbourne: Christian Research Association, 1997. *Carey, Hilary M. ''Believing in Australia''. Sydney: Allen & Unwin, 1992. *Eliade, M., ''Australian Religions: An Introduction'', Oxford University Press, London, 1973 * Hilliard, David. "Popular Religion in Australia in the 1950s: A Study of Adelaide and Brisbane." ''Journal of religious history'' 15.2 (1988): 219–235. * Hilliard, David. "The religious crisis of the 1960s: the experience of the Australian churches." ''Journal of religious history'' 21.2 (1997): 209–227. * Humphreys, Robert, and Rowland S. Ward. ''Religious bodies in Australia: a comprehensive guide'' (New Melbourne Press, 1995). * Hunt, A. D. ''"For God, King, and country": A study of the attitudes of the Methodist and Catholic press in South Australia'' (1979) *Jupp, James, ed. ''The Encyclopedia of Religion in Australia'', Melbourne: Cambridge University Press, 2009. *Lovat, Terence. ''New Studies in Religion''. Social Science Press pg 148 (2002) * O'Brien, Anne. ''God's Willing Workers: Women and Religion in Australia'' (University of New South Wales Press, 2005) * O'Brien, Anne. "Historical overview spirituality and work Sydney women, 1920–1960." ''Australian Historical Studies'' 33.120 (2002): 373–388. * Thompson, Roger C. ''Religion in Australia: A history'' (Melbourne: Oxford University Press, 1994), a standard scholarly survey


Anglicans

* B. Kaye, ed., ''Anglicanism in Australia: a History'' (Melbourne: Melbourne University Press, 2002) * T. Frame, ''A Church for the Nation: a History of the Anglican Diocese of Canberra and Goulburn'' (Sydney: Hale & Iremonger, 2000). * D. Hilliard, ''Godliness and Good Order: A History of the Anglican Church in South Australia'' (Adelaide: Wakefield Press, 1986) * S. Judd and K. J. Cable, ''Sydney Anglicans: A History of the Diocese ''(Sydney: Anglican Information Office, 1987) * B. Porter, ed., '' Melbourne Anglicans: The Diocese of Melbourne 1847–1978'' (Melbourne: Mitre Books, 1997)


Catholics

* Campion, Edmund. ''Rockchoppers: Growing Up Catholic in Australia'' (1983) * Dixon, Robert E. ''The Catholics in Australia'' (1996) * Hamilton, Celia. "Irish-Catholics of New South Wales and the Labor Party, 1890–1910," ''Historical Studies: Australia & New Zealand'' (1958) 8(31): 254–267 * Laffin, Josephine. "'Sailing in Stormy Waters': Archbishop Matthew Beovich and the Catholic Archdiocese of Adelaide in the 1960s." ''Journal of Religious History'' 34.3 (2010): 289–311. * McGrath, Sophie. "Women Religious in the History of Australia 1888–1950: a Case Study – the Sisters of Mercy Parramatta," ''Journal of the Royal Australian Historical Society'' (1995) 81(2): 195–212 * Murtagh, James G. ''Australia: The Catholic Chapter'' (1959) * O'Donoghue, Thomas A. ''Upholding the Faith: The Process of Education in Catholic Schools in Australia, 1922–1965'' (2001) * O'Farrell, Patrick. ''The Irish in Australia: 1798 to the Present Day'' (3rd ed. Cork University Press, 2001)


Protestants

* Brauer, Alfred. ''Under the Southern Cross: History of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Australia'' (Lutheran Publishing House, 1985) * Ellis, Julie-Ann. "'Cross-Firing over the Gulf': The Rift between Methodism and the Labour Movement in South Australia in the 1890s" ''Labour History'' (1993): 89–102. in JSTOR * Hardgrave, Donald W. ''For Such a Time: A History of the Wesleyan Methodist Church of Australia'' (1988) * Harrison, John. '' Baptism of Fire: The first ten years of the Uniting Church in Australia'' (1986) * Hunt, Arnold Dudley. ''This Side of Heaven: A History of Methodism in South Australia'' (Lutheran Publishing House, 1985)


External links


Australian Standard Classification of Religious Groups (ASCRG), 1266.0, 19961996 Census Dictionary – Religion category2001 Census Dictionary – Religion categoryYear Book Australia, 2006. Religious Affiliation section
* (History of Religion in Sydney)
CC-By-SA A Creative Commons (CC) license is one of several public copyright license A public license or public copyright licenses is a license by which a copyright holder as licensor can grant additional copyright permissions to any and all pers ...
] {{DEFAULTSORT:Religion in Australia Religion in Australia, Demographics of Australia Religion in the British Empire