Arbenol68, on 30 April 2012 - 08:31 AM, said:
I've heard many claims to the contrary (in general. Not about Australia in particular). Do you have a reference for this?
Not of hand although i have found and googled them before. Like most developed countries australia has an excellent census bureau which cross references and makes available, down to small districts, all sorts of data. Australia IS different to america(im not sure about other countries ) One reason is the differing form and relationship or religion in australia. Religion is seen as a force for social good and works cooperatively with govts. Prayers are still said in most of our parliaments including the federal one. Wealthy, well educated, and "powerful' people send their kids to private schools( usually church run) and about 25 % of all students in australia go to these schools. Govt schools generally have chaplains and also some form of optional religious instruction, out sourced via the school councils to local multi denominational organisations. Thus the richer and more educated adults tend to have an education which involves a spiritual base; but they also tend to see religion as a social lubricant for good. They also belong to school based/old boy networks, which include others of like mind.
Poor people have less interest in religion beause, apart from charities etc., it provides less advantages to them. Poor people tend to be less educated, hence wealthier people are both more religious and also quite ready to admit to a religious base in their lives.
Because Australias history and constitution differs from america's, also, wealthy educated people in commerce and government have always tended to be members of churches like the anglican or other religions; while the poor (convict based) or otherwise have a more cynical view of the benefits of religion. Our present PM is a professed atheist, but that is comparatively rare, historically, in political circles. It does her no harm, like it might do in america, but neither is it seen as necessarily a good or necessary thing in a member of the governing elite. Religion is both more integrated, and yet less important, in Australian society.
In Australia, 23% of Christian church attenders have earned a university or postgraduate degree, whereas the figure for the general population is 13%. Christianity is the predominant religion in Australia, although adherence is falling. Commentators on the Survey attribute the educational levels to sociological factors, such as age, class and income, making no claims about intelligence.
http://www.atheistfo...read.php?t=3304
This section from wikipedia actually illustrates that, in western countries, church attendance rises with education (even in the US) but that educated people tend to belong to less fervent( read fundamentalist) religions This reinforces what i said about australia, where being religious is seen as a socia ly worthy thing to do, because religions are seen agents for social good. running major education networks, employment agencies, welfare and charity organistions; nationwide.
However, in 65 former socialist countries "there is a negative relationship between years of education and belief in God", with similar negative correlations for other religious beliefs while, in contrast, there were strong positive correlations in many developed countries such as England, France and the US. They concluded that "these cross-country differences in the education-belief relationship can be explained by political factors (such as communism) which lead some countries to use state controlled education to discredit religion".
The study also concludes that, in the United States and other developed nations, "education raises religious attendance at individual level," while "at the same time, there is a strong negative connection between attendance and education across religious groups within the U.S. and elsewhere." The authors suggest that "this puzzle is explained if education both increases the returns to social connection and reduces the extent of religious belief," causing more educated individuals to sort into less fervent denominations. [18]
http://en.wikipedia....te_note-NCLS-18
Edited by Mr Walker, 01 May 2012 - 01:21 PM.
You are a child of the universe, no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here. And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.
Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be, and whatever your labors and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life keep peace with your soul.
With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world..
Be cheerful.
Strive to be happy.
7
But just to make clear. The decision to believe or disbelieve has nothing to do with intelligence or smartness per se For example in Australia, the better educated you are, the more likely you are to claim a religious belief.
