In the eye of the media, and perhaps public perception, Mormons are scarcely given a good wrap. Known for their polygamous marriages and revolutionary ideas regarding the Christian church and it’s rebirth with founder Joseph Smith in the 1800’s, I was not sure what to expect when I travelled to Carlingford to meet with the lovely American missionary, Sister Gardener.
Though over a month ago, the vivid and colourful images of the Cao Dai temple at Willey Park are still clear in my head. During a hot January morning, I spent two hours drinking tea with the founder of Cao Dai in Australia, Chanh-Giao Nguyen.
Whilst softly spoken and often pausing for minutes to think, my time with Chanh-Giao painted a clear picture of the religion which he brought to our shores in 1982. A religion which incorporates the leaders of other world religions may seem overwhelming and slightly bewildering to comprehend yet I found Cao Dai's inclusiveness and tolerance of other religions to be refreshing and intriguing.
Over the past two weeks I have been trekking all over Sydney to meet
various contacts of different religions, here begins my blogging series
about my experiences...
What exactly makes Generation Y religious, and what does religion mean to us?
We're perhaps the first generation that hasn't been sent to Sunday School because it was common practice and we're amongst a second generation of immigrants that brought many new religion to our shores. So does that mean there are fewer "churchies" in my generation as a result, or is Generation Y still finding a way back to church (and its variants) despite never being brought up in one?
I’m Caitlin, a second year Global Studies student at UTS, a wannabe journalist in my free time, and a Christian. Whilst this last fact about me perhaps seems out of place, it’s why I’ve decided to work on this project with Cultural Diversity News in a hope of creating discussion, debate, inquiring minds and listening ears.
Over the next four weeks, and perhaps beyond, I have proposed to venture into greater Sydney and explore every religion possible (time and accessibility permitting!) Whilst I have been going to church since I was born, and Christianity is all I’ve ever known, I am always willing and ready to learn about other religions. Religion often seems a taboo topic in Australia – we have freedom of religion, and freedom of speech yet we seem shy when it comes to religion. Why is this, when 70.1% of Australians (2006) claim affiliation with some form of religion? Is it perhaps because three quarters of the Christian-affiliates in Australia don’t attend church weekly and ‘Anglican’ is just a word we write on our forms when our children in primary school need to be sorted into scripture or non-scripture classes?
