Christianity in Australia

The feature article for this edition focuses on the status of Christianity in Australia. We will also use this opportunity to showcase God’s canvass in the country, as well as its history and culture. Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia comprises the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. It is the largest country by area in Oceania and the world’s sixth largest nation. It is a megadiverse country, and its size gives it a wide variety of landscapes and climates, with deserts in the centre, tropical rainforests in the northeast, and mountain ranges in the southeast.

           Indigenous people inhabited Australia until the arrival of Dutch explorers from Europe in the 17^th century. In 1770, the eastern half of the country was claimed by Great Britain and initially settled through penal transportation to the colony of New South Wales from January 26, 1788, a date which became Australia’s national day. The European population grew steadily in subsequent decades, and by the time of the 1850s gold rush, most of the continent had been explored by European settlers and an additional five self-governing crown colonies established. On January 1, 1901, the six colonies federated, forming the Commonwealth of Australia.

             Australia’s major religion is Christianity, with the major denominations being Roman Catholic, Anglican, Uniting Church, Presbyterian, Reformed, Eastern Orthodox, Baptist and Lutheran. Atheism is also a strong force in its society. The religious composition by percentage is  Atheism (30.1%), Protestant (23.1%), Roman Catholicism (22.6%), Christian Orthodoxy (2.3%), other Christian denomination (4.2%), Islam (2.6%), Buddhism (2.4%), Hinduism (1.9%), others (10.8%).

God’s Canvass in Australia

          Surrounded by the Indian and Pacific Oceans, the country is separated from Asia by the Arafura and Timor Seas, with the Coral Sea lying off the Queensland coast, and the Tasman Sea lying between Australia and New Zealand. The country’s size gives it a variety of landscapes, with tropical rainforests in the northeast, mountain ranges in the southest, southwest and east, and desert in the centre. The desert or semi-arid land commonly known as the outback makes up by far the largest portion of the land. Eastern Australia is marked by the Great Dividing Range, which runs parallel to the coast of Queensland, New South Wales and much of Victoria.

Fauna

         The fauna of Australia consists of a huge variety of animals. It has between 200,000 and 300,000 animal species. These include kangaroos, dingos, wallabies, wombats, koala, platypus and echidna. The country’s marine environment is home to 4,000 fish species, 1,700 coral species, 50 types of marine mammal and a wide range of seabirds. Most marine species found in southern Australian waters occur nowhere else.  Some of the creatures found in the country are shown below.

Flora

       There is a high diversity of flora in the country. These include large numbers of species such as acacia, eucalyptus, melaeuca, grevillea and allocasuarina. Acacias tend to dominate in drier inland parts of the country, while eucalyptus dominate in wetter parts. The most common vegetation types in Australia today are those that have adapted to arid conditions, where the land has not been cleared for agriculture. Some plants native to the country are presented below.

Australian Beaches

Culture

The culture of the country is primarily Western in orientation, derived from Britain. It is also influenced by its unique geography, the cultural input of Aboriginals, Torres Strait islanders and other natives. The British colonisation of Australia began in 1788, and waves of multi-ethnic migration followed. Evidence of significant Anglo-Celtic heritage includes the predominance of the English language, the existence of a democratic system of government drawing upon the British traditions of Westminster Government, Parliamentarianism and constitutional monarchy. The oldest surviving cultural traditions of Australia – and some of the oldest surviving cultural traditions in the world are those of the Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islander people.

Traditional Attire

          Australians typically wear casual clothes like a pair of blue jeans, t-shirt and thongs (flip-flops). However, in more traditional settings, they don cabbage tree (palm-leaf) hats or slouch felt hats, the Akubra hats, smock frocks, checked shirts, hardwearing moleskin trousers and boots. A mythology has grown up around this masculine clothing, deeming it to be quintessentially Australian, though this his not been the case with women’s dress. Some of the traditional attires are shown below.

Australian Cuisine

A modern-nation of large-scale immigration, Australia has absorbed culinary contributions and adaptations from various cultures around the world, including British, other European, Asian and Middle Eastern. On their part, indigenous communities developed a unique hunter-gatherer diet known as bush tucker made from regional plants and animals.

From 1788 to 1900, the culinary tastes were strongly influenced by British and Irish migrants, with agricultural products such as beef, cattle, sheep and wheat becoming staples in the local diet. The gold rushes introduced more varied immigrants and cuisines, mainly Chinese, while post-World War immigration programs led to a large-scale diversification of local food, particularly under the influence of migrants from the Mediterranean, East Asia and South Asia.

          Australian cuisine in the 21^st century reflects the influence of globalisation, with many fast-food restaurants and international trends becoming influential. Organic and biodynamic foods have also become widely available alongside the revival of interest in bush tucker. Australia exports many agricultural products, including cattle, sheep, poultry, milk, vegetables, fruits, nuts, wheat, barley and canola. It also produces wine beer and soft drinks. Notable Australian delicacies are presented in the pictures below.

Status of Christianity in Australia

         The presence of Christianity in Australia began with the foundation of a British colony at New South Wales in 1788. It remains the largest religion in the country, though declining religiosity and diversifying immigration intakes of recent decades have seen the percentage of the population identifying as Christian in the national census decline from 96.1% at the time of the Federation of Australia in the 1901 census, to 52.1% in the 2016 census.

          Despite the current status, the Christian footprint in the Australian society remains broad, particularly in areas of social welfare, education, and the marking of festivals such as Easter and Christmas. Though the Australian Constitution of 1901 protects freedom of religion and separation of church and state, the Church of England held legal privileges in the early colonial period, when Roman Catholicism was suppressed. Sectarianism was a feature of Australian politics well into the 20^th century, as was collaboration by church and state in seeking the conversion of the indigenous population to Christianity.

           It is worth noting that the Aboriginal people were animists, while the religion of the Torres Strait Islanders was similar to Melanesian spirituality. Melanesian mythology is the religion of the archipelagos of New Guinea, the Torres Strait Islands, the Admiralty Islands, Solomon Islands, New Caledonia and Vanuatu. Its adherents believe in creation story that conflicts with Biblical account. Today, Christianity and European culture have had a significant impact on the indigenous population.

Christian missionaries often witness to the Aboriginals in an attempt to convert them to their faith. However, the Catholic Church has tried to blend the Aboriginal culture into its practices as evidenced in the Aboriginal “smoking ceremonies” during Papal visits to the country. The smoking ceremony involves smouldering various native plants to produce smoke. It is believed to have cleansing properties and the ability to ward off bad spirits.

           Christianity in Australia has been inflicted with the same malaise witnessed in other Western societies. The light of the gospel has grown dim; hence the rising profile of Atheism in the country. Many denominations have overtly compromised or perverted the gospel of Jesus Christ in order to please the world and be politically correct. Many Christians in Australia as in other Western countries, do not accept the Bible as the immutable word of God. Homosexuality is tolerated in some Christian circles, while most churches are silent on the critical role repentance plays in redemption and regeneration. In the light of the foregoing, it is incumbent on the children of God to pray for the country and its people; trusting that God would answer our prayers and pour out His Spirit on unsaved souls to lead them to genuine repentance.

Prayer Points

1. Pray that God would stir up the hearts of all Australians to hate sin and desire His holiness.
2. Pray that He would judge all demonic principalities and powers operating in the country and destroy their hold on its people.
3. Ask the Father to remove the veil of darkness from the hearts and minds of all Australians and cause them to embrace His mercy in Christ Jesus.
4. Pray that God would destroy all faulty spiritual foundations in the lives of all Australians.
5. Ask the Father to send workers into His harvest in the country.
6. Pray that all Christian believers in Australia would be sanctified by the word of God and filled with His Spirit.
7. Pray that Christian believers would be empowered by the Holy Spirit to preach the gospel with boldness.
8. Ask the Father to open doors of opportunity for them to minister to unsaved people in the country, especially Aboriginals that are steeped in witchcraft.
9. Pray for protection for all missionaries and other Christians involved in evangelism in the country.
10.  Ask the Father to help Christian believers in Australia to preach Jesus Christ with their lives as His ambassadors.

Intercession Checklist

1. Select a town, city or region from the political map of Australia provided in the article for focused prayer.
2. Use Psalm 2:8 as the anchor Scripture to remind God that you are asking for these souls to be saved on behalf of Jesus Christ, the Messiah. God, addressing the Messiah in the cited Scripture said, “Ask of Me, and I will give You the nations as Your inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth as Your possession”.

                 ** Culled from Australia- Wikipedia, https://en.m.wikipedia.org; Religion in Australia, https://en.m.wikipedia.org; Australian cuisine, https://en.m.wikipedia.org; Culture of Australia, https://en.m.wikipedia.org; About Australia’s Flora and Fauna, https://www.wwffaustralia.com.