Australian Beliefs
A short look at religion and worship in Australia.
Australia religious history can be most easily divided into pre-colonial and post-colonial beliefs. Its original inhabitants, Aboriginal Australians, saw the world in context of the Dreaming, a timeless state overlaying space and time. The Dreaming contained knowledge from the Dreamtime, a mythical creation period when ancestral beings shaped the landscape of Australia. It gave spiritual value to the plants, animals, and landmarks of local areas, holding deep personal meaning for each person. The Dreaming, its rites, and its stories are still observed by many, though not all, Aboriginal Australians today. Much of this knowledge is shared only with members of certain communities. Additionally, native tribes came into contact with Islamic traders and fishermen prior to European colonization.
In 1788, the First Fleet sailing from Britain brought a number of new religions to Australia’s shores. It carried people of Anglican, Catholic, Methodist, Presbyterian, and Jewish beliefs. The British encouraged Anglican worship, but the many political convicts from Catholic Ireland ensured lasting religious diversity. The 19th century, with its many immigrants, saw a corresponding influx of new religions. Chinese laborers practicing Buddhism arrived during the Gold Rush. Muslim, Sikh, and Hindu camel-drivers imported their livestock for travel across the continent’s vast, arid interior. Further Christian sects also appeared with immigrants from other European nations. Anglicans and Catholics, however, continued to dominate religious life.
Modern Australia prides itself on religious tolerance and is represented by almost every major religion in the world. Many members of indigenous communities still practice its oldest religion, that of the Dreaming. While Protestantism and Catholicism remain its most popular faiths, non-religious views are increasingly common. As of the 2016 census, over 30 percent of the population identified with no religion.
References
Bourke, Colin, Eleanor Bourke, and Bill Edwards, eds. Aboriginal Australia: An Introductory Reader in Aboriginal Studies. University of Queensland Press. 1994.
Broome, Richard. Aboriginal Australians: A History Since 1788. Allen & Unwin. 2010.
Clancy, Laurie. Culture and Customs of Australia. Greenwood Press. 2004.
Clarke, Francis Gordon. The History of Australia. Greenwood Press. 2002.
Macintyre, Stuart. A Concise History of Australia. Cambridge University Press. 2009.
“The World Factbook: Australia.” Central Intelligence Agency, Central Intelligence Agency, 6 June 2018, www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/as.html.
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