Lee
31st January 2011, 07:27 AM
Godless Gross The Age
January 31, 2011 - 7:17AM
The census is coming up and Australian atheists are making a move. But does it matter a jot what we say on the census? Do the numbers matter? The numbers are only a part of the godly versus godless fracas.
The Atheist Foundation of Australia (AFA) is concerned about under reporting in the census taking place later this year (9 August 2011). There is a feeling, I think a justified one, that people don't say they are godless when they probably are. In fact, I am a great example. When asked, I sometimes describe myself as an atheist and sometimes as a secular Jew. If I am so confused about my identity what about others? You can imagine that it is impossible for a person to construct a questionnaire to cover a wishy washy ditherer like me (although it could be argued that I am not a ditherer, merely deep, troubled and profound - but I digress). So sometimes, I mark the 'No religion' box and sometimes I tick the Jewish one depending on whether I feel the survey is interested in belief or ethnicity.
A "mark the box" questionnaire might test the wrong thing. It could test a person's faith or what they guiltily think they ought to be. Who knows? And what might happen if the bar was raised to make the definition of faith to only include those who had a certain minimum number of times in church, synagogue or mosque or a minimum number of religious epiphanies. That would really cut the numbers. But such a demanding test might also be misleading for in our time poor world, negligence of our community obligations is the norm. The lack of participation is a measure of secularisation of society. In other words, the power of God might have declined and this is a different question to the number of devotees. The number of adherents might not change much but the content of their beliefs might change radically. That is why a superficial numbers game is just that superficial.
We godless invest a great deal of significance in the numbers. This is the fate of minorities. A minority will always have a covert eye on the stats pretending not to notice but burst into overt joy if the trend lines favour us. So it is with atheists. The recent census numbers look like this.
Percentage of "No religion" answers to the question on religious affiliation"
1996: 16.6 per cent
2001: 15.5 per cent
2006: 18.7 per cent
So there was a wobble down in 2001 (when we atheists kept mum about the figures) but an increase in the decade. In that decade the absolute number of Australians residents rose by 11.8% (to almost 20 million souls) but the number answering "No Religion" over achieved for it increased by 25.7 per cent. Yea for us! But before I pop any champagne, I would note that in the same period the absolute numbers of Buddhists, Hindus and Muslims increased by 109.6 per cent, 120.2 per cent and 69.4 per cent respectively! C'est la guerre.
A question on religious affiliation has been asked in every census taken in Australia. Since 1933, it has been explicitly stated that answering was voluntary. In 1971 the instruction 'if no religion, write none' was introduced. In 1971 the number of unbelievers was at 6.7 per cent, a huge jump from 5 years earlier when the number was 0.8 per cent. This is an important jump. Why did the number jump in the Vietnam era by 830 per cent? This leap is interesting to ponder from both statistical and political points of view. I have no idea why there was such a leap but I would bet it had something to do with the way the 1971 census changed the way the religious affiliation question was posed.
AFA is going after the under-reported. David Nicholls, president of the Atheist Foundation claims, "Unfortunately, because of the wording, many people will select the religion of their baptism or initiation at youth, despite not being a religious person at all."
The AFA will be unveiling billboards across the nation in major cities stating "Census 2011: Not religious now? Mark 'No religion' and take religion out of politics."
This campaign has gone global. Organisations across the globe are campaigning at census time. Most outstanding is the British Humanist Association's campaign titled "If you're not religious, for God's sake say so!"
There is also going to be a vigorous debate as to the nature of the answers of the young. In my household, one adult fills in the census for the whole tribe. Who knows what answer gets put to what question. My poor children will get no choice they will be damned as godless apostates without an option. And I don't even fill in the form! In fact, I cannot recall ever filling in such a form. That is one of the joys of living with an empirical economist. She leaps upon every survey with a joy that defies belief (no pun intended).
Mr Nicholls concludes, "The figures for Christian respondents in the New Zealand Census this year are expected to fall below the 50 per cent mark ...but it should be us," he said.
The numbers probably count (groan). The numbers of the godless must be important for issues like tax deductibility of religions, educational stoushes and legislation on moral issues like abortion and stem cells. But on this sort of issue, it is more complex than numbers. A number of signed up Catholics have voted for abortion legislation. I am guessing here but I reckon they are of the faith but the faith in God's will has less power. That is difficult to measure so we cannot expect the census to answer that question. So I feel in my godless waters that the numbers don't count for that much. What counts is the power of God and faiths to move people and change their behaviour. And that is palpably in decline.
So what do you think?
Is atheism under reported?
Do kids get ripped off on census night by having their faith chosen by their parents?
Which kids get ripped off most those of atheists or theists?
Are the numbers relevant given that it is the power of God or gods that is most important? If God's will cannot change behaviour any more is that issue more important than the raw numbers? Or does God still move and mould us?
Do the numbers count?
Should atheists even ask for accuracy in the census?
Should we be evangelical? Does it matter if we are a minority or majority as long as we are left alone?
Over to you guys.
http://www.theage.com.au/opinion/blogs/godless-gross/the-godless-numbers-game/20110128-1a7n6.html
January 31, 2011 - 7:17AM
The census is coming up and Australian atheists are making a move. But does it matter a jot what we say on the census? Do the numbers matter? The numbers are only a part of the godly versus godless fracas.
The Atheist Foundation of Australia (AFA) is concerned about under reporting in the census taking place later this year (9 August 2011). There is a feeling, I think a justified one, that people don't say they are godless when they probably are. In fact, I am a great example. When asked, I sometimes describe myself as an atheist and sometimes as a secular Jew. If I am so confused about my identity what about others? You can imagine that it is impossible for a person to construct a questionnaire to cover a wishy washy ditherer like me (although it could be argued that I am not a ditherer, merely deep, troubled and profound - but I digress). So sometimes, I mark the 'No religion' box and sometimes I tick the Jewish one depending on whether I feel the survey is interested in belief or ethnicity.
A "mark the box" questionnaire might test the wrong thing. It could test a person's faith or what they guiltily think they ought to be. Who knows? And what might happen if the bar was raised to make the definition of faith to only include those who had a certain minimum number of times in church, synagogue or mosque or a minimum number of religious epiphanies. That would really cut the numbers. But such a demanding test might also be misleading for in our time poor world, negligence of our community obligations is the norm. The lack of participation is a measure of secularisation of society. In other words, the power of God might have declined and this is a different question to the number of devotees. The number of adherents might not change much but the content of their beliefs might change radically. That is why a superficial numbers game is just that superficial.
We godless invest a great deal of significance in the numbers. This is the fate of minorities. A minority will always have a covert eye on the stats pretending not to notice but burst into overt joy if the trend lines favour us. So it is with atheists. The recent census numbers look like this.
Percentage of "No religion" answers to the question on religious affiliation"
1996: 16.6 per cent
2001: 15.5 per cent
2006: 18.7 per cent
So there was a wobble down in 2001 (when we atheists kept mum about the figures) but an increase in the decade. In that decade the absolute number of Australians residents rose by 11.8% (to almost 20 million souls) but the number answering "No Religion" over achieved for it increased by 25.7 per cent. Yea for us! But before I pop any champagne, I would note that in the same period the absolute numbers of Buddhists, Hindus and Muslims increased by 109.6 per cent, 120.2 per cent and 69.4 per cent respectively! C'est la guerre.
A question on religious affiliation has been asked in every census taken in Australia. Since 1933, it has been explicitly stated that answering was voluntary. In 1971 the instruction 'if no religion, write none' was introduced. In 1971 the number of unbelievers was at 6.7 per cent, a huge jump from 5 years earlier when the number was 0.8 per cent. This is an important jump. Why did the number jump in the Vietnam era by 830 per cent? This leap is interesting to ponder from both statistical and political points of view. I have no idea why there was such a leap but I would bet it had something to do with the way the 1971 census changed the way the religious affiliation question was posed.
AFA is going after the under-reported. David Nicholls, president of the Atheist Foundation claims, "Unfortunately, because of the wording, many people will select the religion of their baptism or initiation at youth, despite not being a religious person at all."
The AFA will be unveiling billboards across the nation in major cities stating "Census 2011: Not religious now? Mark 'No religion' and take religion out of politics."
This campaign has gone global. Organisations across the globe are campaigning at census time. Most outstanding is the British Humanist Association's campaign titled "If you're not religious, for God's sake say so!"
There is also going to be a vigorous debate as to the nature of the answers of the young. In my household, one adult fills in the census for the whole tribe. Who knows what answer gets put to what question. My poor children will get no choice they will be damned as godless apostates without an option. And I don't even fill in the form! In fact, I cannot recall ever filling in such a form. That is one of the joys of living with an empirical economist. She leaps upon every survey with a joy that defies belief (no pun intended).
Mr Nicholls concludes, "The figures for Christian respondents in the New Zealand Census this year are expected to fall below the 50 per cent mark ...but it should be us," he said.
The numbers probably count (groan). The numbers of the godless must be important for issues like tax deductibility of religions, educational stoushes and legislation on moral issues like abortion and stem cells. But on this sort of issue, it is more complex than numbers. A number of signed up Catholics have voted for abortion legislation. I am guessing here but I reckon they are of the faith but the faith in God's will has less power. That is difficult to measure so we cannot expect the census to answer that question. So I feel in my godless waters that the numbers don't count for that much. What counts is the power of God and faiths to move people and change their behaviour. And that is palpably in decline.
So what do you think?
Is atheism under reported?
Do kids get ripped off on census night by having their faith chosen by their parents?
Which kids get ripped off most those of atheists or theists?
Are the numbers relevant given that it is the power of God or gods that is most important? If God's will cannot change behaviour any more is that issue more important than the raw numbers? Or does God still move and mould us?
Do the numbers count?
Should atheists even ask for accuracy in the census?
Should we be evangelical? Does it matter if we are a minority or majority as long as we are left alone?
Over to you guys.
http://www.theage.com.au/opinion/blogs/godless-gross/the-godless-numbers-game/20110128-1a7n6.html