Australians vote Jesus as #1 most significant figure in history

I'm indebted to Rowland Croucher for alerting me to this intriguing piece of news...

In Research commissioned by www.allaboutlife.com.au 54% of Australians - both believers and non-believers - ranked Jesus as the number one most influential person in history. He beat Albert Einstein - who came in at second place (16%) - and Charles Darwin, third at 9%.

Approximately 5 in 6 (83%) said Jesus was a real figure from history.

Of those who ranked Jesus top, 43% believed he had miraculous powers, and that he was the son of God. It seems Australia still has faith: 2 out of 5 Australians stated they practice a religion and only 27% said they didn't believe in a God or universal power of any sort.

1 in 10 (10%) thought that if Jesus returned today he would be unemployed.

While the majority of Australians don't practice a religion (60%), nearly 3 in 5 (57%) pray at various times during their lives with over a third (36%) praying to God.

Of those who pray the regularity varies dramatically, with 29% praying daily. 19% are part-time prayers, praying just several times a year.

The most common situations for prayer are when people are faced with challenging times (36%) or when a loved one has fallen ill (34%). However over 1 in 3 Australians also pray when they're thankful for something good that has happened (34%)

Surprisingly Gen Y proved the most traditional generation when it comes to praying, choosing traditional methods of prayer practices such as closing eyes, placing hands together and bowing heads, which were most common amongst young adults.

3 in 5 have no particular rules for their praying. This tendency increases with age. Older Australians (aged 64+) are the most likely to have no particular rules for their prayer.

* 63% of Australians turn to their partners/spouse for help and emotional support and half of Australians turn to other family

* Nearly half (49%) of Australians turn to their friends

* Nearly a third (28%) of Australians turn to God in their time of need, while 15% turn to Jesus

* The web offers the least support with only 6% of Australians turning to online friends and social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter

* Only 4% turn to the Internet to consult with sites such as Google.

Daniel Willis, co-founder of Jesus: All About Life, commented, “This research gives a great insight into people’s beliefs about Jesus and their faith today. The fact that Jesus is revealed to be the most influential figure in history shows his message is as relevant today as it was 2000 years ago and people still look to him as source of inspiration.

"While not all Australians follow a religion this research reveals that many people still pray expecting an answer and especially turn to others and faith when experiencing tough times and are in need of support.

"It is surprising that Gen Y appear to be more traditional, returning to the values and practices of their grandparent’s generation to help them in times of uncertainty."

The Way Forward

Aaron Thompson, who works with Student Life at Otago University, has just published an eight-page essay on alcohol and the Gen Y students who are now attending the University. The essay, called The Way Forward, is full of commonsense (something Aaron says most students lack, and which is part of the problem) and offers some well-thought out solutions. Here's a sample from early in the essay.

The day and age has come where old‐fashioned common sense just does not exist en masse, in a self‐evident fashion. Whilst our little country has been buying and trading, sunbathing and fishing, boy racing or tending roses... a gradual but certain paradigm shift has occurred in our youth. The excess of a decade of wealth production combined with the political correctness of our time have resulted in a crop of spoilt brats, who are entitled to what was promised them: whatever they want!

And now who are we to deny them such rights: to dance in the streets, to drink irresponsibly, to throw bottles, to destroy property? After all, it’s everyone’s right‐ the greatest value of Generation Y‐ to have fun. It is hardly surprising that a university that has promoted itself as the place to “get over it” should now find itself in such a predicament.

“Get over it” is the perfect slogan for today’s youth. It meets them where they’re at. Whatever marketing company harnessed the phrase is nothing short of brilliant, because this slogan met a generational desire with 100% accuracy. But there are always two edges to every sword, and in earlier years the slogan earned us student numbers. The now emerging downside is that for such students and such a culture, the same phrase is has conveniently become the stock excuse of a culture out of control. “You don’t like my behaviour – get over it!”

Read the complete essay here. By the way, this essay doesn't just apply to youth drinking in Dunedin; it's relevant way beyond our borders.