Australia is a Christian Country

In 1945, Australia was a very different country to what we see today. The country was effectively monocultural, monoreligious and monoethnic. It is obvious that Australia is predominately a Christian country as 61.1% of the population is Christian. The profile of Australia’s religious affiliations has been reshaped with help of immigration over subsequent decades. The most significant reason for the increase in the diversity of religious characters in Australia is the result of immigration. Denominational switching also contributed to the major changes in religious affiliation over time. European settlers into Australia post World War II brought to Australia their traditional Christian Churches. Australia created a multi-faith population through the continual stream of diverse migrants; however some of these migrants defined themselves with a “No Religion” status. It is evident that throughout the years leading to this development of multi-faith Australian society we live in today, Australia still remains a predominately Christian country.

Immigration is a significant process in the changing nature of the Australian population. Australia is a nation of migrants. The largest change that took place was with the migration of British people in the settlement fleets after 1788. By 1951, Australia had accepted a large total of 170,000 people in the first wave of immigration, which brought a diversity of religions and denominations within religions. The ‘White Australia Policy’ was created to ensure that Australia’s population remained prominently Christian. Immigration has changed the landscape and diversity of Australia. For example, prior to 1945 Christians in Australia were mainly from Ireland and England as appose to now, Christians have come from Germany, Italy and Europe. For example, due to the end of the ‘White Australia Policy’ in 1973, immigration created a diversity of Christianity within the Australian community and lead to a multi-cultural society, and