Year 12 Stage 6 Notes HSC
Studies of Religion II
Topic 1: Religion and Belief Systems in Australia Post
1945
Glossary; introduction to topic summary notes
Key glossary terms
● Denominational switching = transfer of adherents from one Christian denomination to another.
● Pentecostalism = strand of Christianity the is charismatic (has a strong emphasis on the gifts of the
Holy Spirit) and evangelical (focused on conversion with a fundamentalist approach to the bible).
● Interfaith dialogue = formal discussion between two or more different religious traditions in order to
gain a deeper understanding.
● White Australia Policy = Government policy enshrined in the Immigration Restriction Act of 1901
which aimed to exclude non-European people from migrating to Australia.
● Secularism = belief in which religion should not be taken within aiding social and political activities in
the country.
● Ecumenism = established religious faith group within a religion, which units a group of individual,
local congregations into a single administrative body.
● Metaphysical = type of philosophy or study that uses broad concepts to help define reality and our
understanding of it.
● Revolving Door Syndrome = phenomena whereby large numbers of Pentecostals remain with the
church form a short period of time, typically youths.
● New Age Religion = an umbrella term used to cover a wide range of spiritual beliefs and practices
aiming to foster individual fulfilment in the form of personal happiness.
● Ecumenism = movement away Christian’s communities to promote the restoration of unity among
Christian Denominations, aiming for cooperation, tolerance and understanding.
1
,Contemporary Aboriginal spiritualities
Part A: Aboriginal Spirituality as determined by the Dreaming
Define the Dreaming
● The Dreaming is a term referring to Aboriginal spiritual beliefs about creation and existence as The
Dreaming includes an explanation of the origins of the universe and how the world is created.
● The Dreaming is a metatemporal concept which means it is a concept that incorporates the past,
present and future.
Kinship, ceremonial life & obligations to the land and people summary notes
Kinship
● A complex system of belonging and responsibilities within a clan as it is based not only on familial
relations but also on relationship springing from one’s totem, usually a plant from animal.
● Kinship ties govern the day to day life of the Aboriginal people by determining the issues from whom
an individual’s responsibility is to other member’s clan.
● Influences social protocols and families.
Obligations to the Land and People
● Aboriginal people have traditionally regarded the land as their mother and hence have worked to
deepen their understanding.
● Foundation for Aboriginal beliefs, traditions, rituals and laws.
● Land is the medium through which the Dreaming is lived and communicated.
● Dwelling place for ancestral spiritual beings.
2
,Ceremonial life
● Art is a very important way of communicating the Dreaming because it illustrates the actions of the
ancestral spirit beings in the land and how they live their lives through the Dreaming.
● Rituals are important as they understood as a moment of reliving in the present moment, the creative
activities of the ancestor spirits.
● Not simply a retelling of the story as they represent the reliving of the story in a powerfully sacred
way.
● The Ancestral beings are made present through the people, objects and words and the movements
of the ritual.
● E.g. for suppose that in the Dreaming, people in a particular tribe were part echidna and part human
as this tribe would have important ritualistic responsibilities towards echidnas, as this animal
represents the embodiment of their ancestral spirit being and faith.
Part B: Issues for Aboriginal Spirituality
Dispossession
● Terra Nullius = land belonging to no one.
● This legal principle colonists were able to assume control of Australia under the premise that no one
else had legal ownership based on the courts and law.
● The principle of ‘Terra Nullius’ remained until 1992 (Mabo) when the court declared the princple void
(never legally instated).
● Within a short period Aboriginal people faced social upheaval due to a number of significant factors
including death from introduced diseases like smallpox epidemic 1789.
3
, Effect of dispossession: Separation from the Land summary notes
Kanyini
● Kanyini = principle of connectedness through caring and responsibility that underpins Aboriginal life
as it is a connectedness to tjukurrpa (knowledge of creation or 'Dreaming', spirituality), ngura (place,
land), walytja (kinship) and kurunpa (spirit or soul).
● Kanyini is nurtured through caring and practicing responsibility for all things.
● Concept of Kanyini is associated with the Northern Territory and especially with the
Yankunytjatjarapeople, one of the traditional land owner groups of Uluru (Ayers Rocks) as it is about
taking care of the land and people.
Colonisation and its effects
● Through colonisation, Aboriginal people were not only dispossessed of their traditional lands but via
other institutions as they lost their traditional religious practices, languages, cultural heritage, names,
freedoms, and values that were central to Aboriginal life.
● Loss of traditional lands, sacred sites and disruption of hunting and gathering meant that Aboriginals
became dependent on their colonial masters.
Missions and reserves
● These were places where Christianity, European lifestyles and cultures were imposed upon the
Aboriginals as they rejected many aspects of Aboriginal culture and spirituality.
● Therefore, part of the systemic segregation and assimilation processes of colonial institutions as the
Europeans officially take over the land since they thought it belonged to no one.
● As aboriginal peoples became marginalized and retreated to marginal lands (lands unwanted by
pastoralist or Colonial interests), the church missions, realising their higher responsibilities as after all
they are “smoothing the pillow of a dying race.”
4
Studies of Religion II
Topic 1: Religion and Belief Systems in Australia Post
1945
Glossary; introduction to topic summary notes
Key glossary terms
● Denominational switching = transfer of adherents from one Christian denomination to another.
● Pentecostalism = strand of Christianity the is charismatic (has a strong emphasis on the gifts of the
Holy Spirit) and evangelical (focused on conversion with a fundamentalist approach to the bible).
● Interfaith dialogue = formal discussion between two or more different religious traditions in order to
gain a deeper understanding.
● White Australia Policy = Government policy enshrined in the Immigration Restriction Act of 1901
which aimed to exclude non-European people from migrating to Australia.
● Secularism = belief in which religion should not be taken within aiding social and political activities in
the country.
● Ecumenism = established religious faith group within a religion, which units a group of individual,
local congregations into a single administrative body.
● Metaphysical = type of philosophy or study that uses broad concepts to help define reality and our
understanding of it.
● Revolving Door Syndrome = phenomena whereby large numbers of Pentecostals remain with the
church form a short period of time, typically youths.
● New Age Religion = an umbrella term used to cover a wide range of spiritual beliefs and practices
aiming to foster individual fulfilment in the form of personal happiness.
● Ecumenism = movement away Christian’s communities to promote the restoration of unity among
Christian Denominations, aiming for cooperation, tolerance and understanding.
1
,Contemporary Aboriginal spiritualities
Part A: Aboriginal Spirituality as determined by the Dreaming
Define the Dreaming
● The Dreaming is a term referring to Aboriginal spiritual beliefs about creation and existence as The
Dreaming includes an explanation of the origins of the universe and how the world is created.
● The Dreaming is a metatemporal concept which means it is a concept that incorporates the past,
present and future.
Kinship, ceremonial life & obligations to the land and people summary notes
Kinship
● A complex system of belonging and responsibilities within a clan as it is based not only on familial
relations but also on relationship springing from one’s totem, usually a plant from animal.
● Kinship ties govern the day to day life of the Aboriginal people by determining the issues from whom
an individual’s responsibility is to other member’s clan.
● Influences social protocols and families.
Obligations to the Land and People
● Aboriginal people have traditionally regarded the land as their mother and hence have worked to
deepen their understanding.
● Foundation for Aboriginal beliefs, traditions, rituals and laws.
● Land is the medium through which the Dreaming is lived and communicated.
● Dwelling place for ancestral spiritual beings.
2
,Ceremonial life
● Art is a very important way of communicating the Dreaming because it illustrates the actions of the
ancestral spirit beings in the land and how they live their lives through the Dreaming.
● Rituals are important as they understood as a moment of reliving in the present moment, the creative
activities of the ancestor spirits.
● Not simply a retelling of the story as they represent the reliving of the story in a powerfully sacred
way.
● The Ancestral beings are made present through the people, objects and words and the movements
of the ritual.
● E.g. for suppose that in the Dreaming, people in a particular tribe were part echidna and part human
as this tribe would have important ritualistic responsibilities towards echidnas, as this animal
represents the embodiment of their ancestral spirit being and faith.
Part B: Issues for Aboriginal Spirituality
Dispossession
● Terra Nullius = land belonging to no one.
● This legal principle colonists were able to assume control of Australia under the premise that no one
else had legal ownership based on the courts and law.
● The principle of ‘Terra Nullius’ remained until 1992 (Mabo) when the court declared the princple void
(never legally instated).
● Within a short period Aboriginal people faced social upheaval due to a number of significant factors
including death from introduced diseases like smallpox epidemic 1789.
3
, Effect of dispossession: Separation from the Land summary notes
Kanyini
● Kanyini = principle of connectedness through caring and responsibility that underpins Aboriginal life
as it is a connectedness to tjukurrpa (knowledge of creation or 'Dreaming', spirituality), ngura (place,
land), walytja (kinship) and kurunpa (spirit or soul).
● Kanyini is nurtured through caring and practicing responsibility for all things.
● Concept of Kanyini is associated with the Northern Territory and especially with the
Yankunytjatjarapeople, one of the traditional land owner groups of Uluru (Ayers Rocks) as it is about
taking care of the land and people.
Colonisation and its effects
● Through colonisation, Aboriginal people were not only dispossessed of their traditional lands but via
other institutions as they lost their traditional religious practices, languages, cultural heritage, names,
freedoms, and values that were central to Aboriginal life.
● Loss of traditional lands, sacred sites and disruption of hunting and gathering meant that Aboriginals
became dependent on their colonial masters.
Missions and reserves
● These were places where Christianity, European lifestyles and cultures were imposed upon the
Aboriginals as they rejected many aspects of Aboriginal culture and spirituality.
● Therefore, part of the systemic segregation and assimilation processes of colonial institutions as the
Europeans officially take over the land since they thought it belonged to no one.
● As aboriginal peoples became marginalized and retreated to marginal lands (lands unwanted by
pastoralist or Colonial interests), the church missions, realising their higher responsibilities as after all
they are “smoothing the pillow of a dying race.”
4
