Witches and charismatic Christians are leading religious growth in Australia with many women turning to witchcraft or paganism as a reaction against the patriarchal nature of traditional Christianity.
Dr Philip Hughes of the Christian Research Association said the numbers of people participating in nature religions - mostly witchcraft and paganism - rose by 140 per cent between 1996 and 2001. Agnostics were on the rise too, he said.
For many, nature religions were seen as environmentally friendly.
But Dr Hughes said their numbers remained small, with fewer than 25,000 adherents in Australia.
"They are never going to be really numerous as it is largely a protest movement."
Leading witch Caroline Tully says witchcraft is a religion for the weak and oppressed, especially women.
"Actually, I'm surprised the guys haven't taken advantage because there are so many single women," she said.
"There aren't many men, and a lot of them aren't particularly appealing."
Dr Hughes said growth among Pentecostals (such as Sydney's Hillsong Church) had been remarkable, along with ethnically based religions. For example, the Coptic Orthodox Church grew by 83 per cent between 1991 and 2001.
"Immigrants head to the churches in large numbers, even if they did not attend in their homelands," Dr Hughes said. However, he said he discounted fears in some church circles of mass conversions to Islam.
"The number of converts is very small, probably in the realm of less than a thousand or two. Only 2.5 per cent of all Muslims in Australia were born of Australian-born parents and some of these would be grandchildren of immigrants."
About 25,000 Australians identified themselves as Buddhist at the last census. Dr Hughes said young people liked its simplicity and ethics.
He said changes in immigration meant religion was now more diverse. Between 1996 and 2001, Buddhist numbers grew by 79 per cent, Hindus by 42 per cent and Muslims 40 per cent.
But all these groups together were still less than 5 per cent of the population.
Books You Might Enjoy:
Eliphas Levi - The Conjuration Of The Four Elements
John Ankerberg - Satanism And Witchcraft The Occult And The West Part Ii
Aj Drew - Wicca Spellcraft For Men
This neo-Pagan and Wiccan site is open to all members of the wiccan community. Wiccan community created by me. We have over 18 members and it grows everyday. If you have enjoyed visiting this website then feel free to visit and maybe even become a member of the lake community. However if you are under 18 please get parental permission.
Popular Posts
-
Titles are a little different than labels. Titles are labels that are earned. Not taken on to be impressive or to create a false sense ...
-
Bedtime Prayer I Written by: Druidh and Cricketmouse This is a little bed-time poem me and my husband wrote...actually I use to sing the ...
-
Caledonii (Hecatine) Tradition: A denomination of The Craft that comes from a Scottish origin which preserves the unique rituals of the S...
-
The Summer Solstice, or Midsummer, celebrates the longest day of the year. It falls around June 22. The Summer Solstice ritual focuses on th...
-
Infused with mystery, fear, unbelievable and grim facts and records, Witchcraft History can be traced back to centuries. The word ‘Witc...