1. Second World War / Post War Era 1945-1960

2. 1950: was a boom time for Australian Catholics, numbers increased and the community had grown into a thriving Church based on the Irish model.

3. brought an enormous social change due to huge post-war influx of non- English speaking immigrants including more than one million Catholics from Italy, Malta, The Netherlands, Germany, Croatia, Hungary and other places. These Catholics had a different view of Church which didn’t fit the Irish mould. 1960-1970’s:

4. Catholic and Protestant communities were still separated socially. Protestants still clung to their conservative political and moral values. Changes in approach to Aborigines were still influenced by paternalism.

5. Immigration after the Second World War affected the religious makeup of the Australian Population. The Australian religious landscape has been enriched by: European Middle Eastern Asian immigration.

6. Post-Christian Society 1961 -1990

7. Protestant Churches lost their previous political power. Catholic Church completed its divorce with the Labor party because of state aid to schools. Majority of Australians had ceased attending Church. Many weddings were conducted outside of the Church.

8.  Even funerals were deserting the Churches for Crematorium Chapels.  A significant percentage of Australians claimed ‘no religion’. At the same time there were many indications of dissatisfaction with material values and searching for a spiritual dimension.

9. The Australian Churches took up Social Justice issues: e.g. Aboriginal social / political rights land rights, unemployment, poverty, while continuing with practical outreach services.

10. Sectarian divisions that separated Catholics, Protestants and Orthodox believers began to break down.

11. Vatican II brought about changes so rapid and extensive that many Catholics were left confused and disoriented. Many of the wounds suffered have not yet fully healed.