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| Martin Place, looking across Pitt Street |
| Australia is an irreligious nation. According to the 2011 Census, 61.1% of the people call themselves Christian (Catholic 25.3%, Anglican 17.1%, Uniting Church 5.0%, Presbyterian 2.8%, Eastern Orthodox 2.6%, Baptist 1.6%, Lutheran 1.2%, Pentecostal 1.1%, and other 4.5%), 7.2% of the population is affiliated with non-Christian religions (Buddhism 2.5%, Islam 2.2%, Hinduism 1.3%, Judaism 0.5%, and other 0.8%), and 22.3% of the population is non-religious. However much Australians talk about being religious, they do not walk the walk: a 2008 global Gallup poll, found nearly 70% of Australians stated religion as having no importance. According to a 2009 Nielsen survey, 84% of respondents agreed that religion and politics should be separate. Section 116 of the Constitution of Australia precludes the Commonwealth of Australia from making laws for establishing any religion, imposing any religious observance, or prohibiting the free exercise of any religion. Australia is a secular state. The French term Laïcité, pronounced " laisity", is the absence of religious involvement in government affairs, as well as the absence of government involvement in religious affairs. It is the principle of the separation of church and state, although in France it also means the equal treatment of all religions. |
| City Daily Photo bloggers post photographs on a theme on the first day of each month. On February 1, they will address this intriguing question: If you had to leave forever the city from which you usually post, what would you miss most? Find out more about the February 2015 Theme at the CDP portal. |