Given the Judeo-Christian origins of our long-held tradition of caring for the frail, census data indicating the demise of Christianity and the ageing of Australia’s population could herald a perfect social storm.
The 2011 census makes clear that Christian affiliation is diminishing, falling 7 per cent over the past decade to 61 per cent. The slack has been picked up by the ”nones”, those claiming ”no religion”, with almost 5 million of us, or 22.3 per cent, turning our backs on God (or, at least, on God’s registered brands). That’s up 7 per cent since 2001.
At the same time, we’re getting older. The median age rose in the last decade from 35 to 37. That might not sound like much but it indicates a significant increase in the number of elderly people in our community. HammondCare, a leader in aged-care and dementia services, notes that by 2050, one in 20 Australians will be 85 or older. Coupled with this is an expected increase in the number of us with dementia, from 269,000 to a million. Read more
Sources
- John Dickson in The Sydney Morning Herald
- Image: Step Out
Dr John Dickson is an author and historian and the founding director of the Centre for Public Christianity.