The religious attitude is quite different from faith associated with a specific creed.

The
latter, as a codified and dogmatized form of an original religious experience, simply
gives expression to a particular collective belief. True religion involves a subjective
relationship to certain metaphysical, extramundane factors.

A creed is a confession of faith intended chiefly for the world at large and is thus an
intermundaneEarly Attitudes to Other Religions

affair, while the meaning and purpose of religion lie in the relationship of the individual
to God (Christianity, Judaism, Islam) or to the path of salvation and liberation
(Buddhism). [Ibid., par. 507.]

Jung believed that a neurosis in the second half of life is seldom cured without the
development of a religious attitude, prompted by a spontaneous revelation of the spirit.

This spirit is an autonomous psychic happening, a hush that follows the storm, a
reconciling light in the darkness of man’s mind, secretly bringing order into the chaos of
his soul.

Early Attitudes to Other Religions

When the British convicts and soldiers first arrived in Australia, they assumed they were bringing with them
‘civilisation’. The convicts may have been people who had failed the social system in their homeland. But they were
still part of what they considered to be a civilised society, superior to any other society around the globe.
Most early European settlers regarded the Aboriginal people as entirely uncivilised, and barely human. The fact that
they did not wear the clothes of ‘civilised’ people, or live in ‘civilised’ houses was evidence enough. The Asian people
who came to Australia during the Gold Rush and in the following years were seen as little better. They were regarded
as uncivilised. Mostly, the European settlers looked down on them and had little to do with them. This was true of the
Chinese miners, the Afghan camel drivers, and the Hindu peddlers.
At the heart of this attitude was a confidence that the white Australian Christians had superior knowledge of the
world. In those days, Christianity was considered to be synonymous with civilisation. The missionaries who took the
Christian faith to the Aboriginal people often saw themselves as introducing not only a new religious faith but
civilisation. It has been remarked that:

Nicaragua: The Values, Attitudes and Beliefs of its Educated

Youth.
Kraft, Richard J.
The study examines the attitudes of young people in the secondary schools and universities of Nicaragua
toward politics, government, religion, education, and work. The report also looks at teacher's attitudes
towards education. Over 50 instruments which provide information concerning attitudes, values, and
beliefs were sent to random samples of students and teachers. Many of the instruments are described in
the paper. The report shows that there are definite changes in the belief systems of the educated young in
Nicaragua, mostly in the direction of attitudes held by people in more advanced industrialized nations.
The study's conclusions include the following: several items on politics and equality indicate a strong
shift from elitism toward a greater egalitarianism; although Nicaraguan young people still see their culture
as more spiritual than that of North America, numerous responses indicate a growing sense of
materialism; traditional political attitudes are in a state of flux and are moving towards democratic
involvement by all people; and 98% of the teachers want to take an active part in the reform of the
secondary curriculum. One part of the study compares the values and attitudes of Nicaraguan youth with
the values of college-age males in the United States, Australia, Israel, and Canada as measured by the
Rokeach Values Survey. Family security and a comfortable life are ranked considerably higher by
Nicaraguans than by youth in the other countries.

6
Youth Values, Attitudes, Perceptions, and Influencers
Youth analysts are increasingly speaking of a new phase in the life course between
adolescence and adulthood, an elongated phase of semiautonomy, variously called
“postadolescence,” “youth,” or “emerging adulthood” (Arnett, 2000). During this
time, young people are relatively free from adult responsibilities and able to explore
diverse career and life options. There is evidence that “emerging adults” in their 20s
feel neither like adults nor like adolescents; instead, they consider themselves in
some ways like each. At the same time, given the wide variety of perceived and
actual options available to them, the transition to adulthood has become
increasingly “destructured” and “individualized” (Shanahan, 2000). Youth may
begin to make commitments to work and to significant others, but these are more
tentative than they will be later. Jobs are more likely to be part-time than at older
ages, particularly while higher education, a priority for a growing number of youth,
is pursued. There is increasing employment among young people in jobs limited by
contract, denoted as contingent or temporary. Such jobs are often obtained through
temporary job service agencies. Young people are also increasingly cohabiting prior
to marriage or as an alternative to marriage.

This extended period of youth or postadolescence is filled with experimentation,

suggesting that linking career preparation to military service might be attractive to
a wider age range of youth than among traditionally targeted 17–18-year-olds who
are just leaving high school (especially extending to youth in their early and mid-
20s). But what about their values of citizenship and patriotism? Are young
Americans motivated to serve? Are their parents and counselors supportive? Is
there a