Catholicism

The figures are as follows : Total Population --> 4,861,000

Catholic Population --> 660,000

Percentage --> 13.58%

Synagogues.

According to our tradition, we can pray privately when necessary, but communal prayer in the synagogue has a much stronger effect (Talmud, Berakhot 7b-8a). Praying also strengthens the spiritual level and the bonds within the community.

The importance of prayer:
Prayer services are part of halakha (Jewish law) and tradition (Talmud, Berakhot 26a); and the Torah records several prayers of our forefathers.
Prayer is an important form of communicating with God, and maintaining a relationship with Him; and it is also good for the health of the soul, to which Torah, prayer and religious observances are a form of nourishment. Judaism sees it as centrally important to thank God, to recognize that He is the source of prosperity, and to be close to Him.
How do Jews pray?
The Jewish prayer-book has a structured order. Prayers are ancient, and often are sung or chanted. Some prayers are said in unison (such as Shir Hakavod), and some are not. Some prayers are said more than once per day (such as the Shema), some once a day (such as Yotzer Ohr), and others are said only on Sabbath, festivals or certain occasions. Some prayers are said aloud (such as Kaddish), some are sung (such as Lekha Dodi) and some are to be whispered (the Amidah). Most of the services are in Hebrew, but a couple of prayers are in Aramaic (such as Brikh Shemei).

While praying, Jews either sit, or stand, depending on the prayer. There is also some bowing forward (in the Amidah and Aleinu), but Jews today do not kneel except once a year on Yom Kippur (the Day of Atonement).
In between the prayers, Kaddish is said; and the Torah is read on many occasions (over two hundred times a year).
While formal prayer services are held in the synagogue three times each day throughout the year, many other blessings (such as those over meals) are said in the home.

See also the Related Links.

Link: What is the Jewish prayerbook?

Link: When are synagogue services held?

Link: What is the purpose of the "eternal light"?

Link: Which way does the Holy Ark face?

Australia Day (26 January) and ANZAC Day (25 April) are Australia's main national holidays, unique to the country. However, other national holidays include:

• Easter, Christmas and New Year's Day (as per the rest of the nations which celebrate Easter and Christmas)
• Labour Day (1st Monday in October in the Australian Capital Territory, New South Wales, Queensland and South Australia, 1st Monday in May in the Northern Territory where it is called May Day, 1st Monday in March in Western Australia, 2nd Monday in March in Victoria, and the equivalent public holiday in Tasmania is Eight Hours Day on the 2nd Monday in March)
• Queen's Birthday (2nd Monday in June except for Western Australia, where it is either late September or early October)

The Spanish Inquisition was a religious tribunal or court established in Spain from 1480 to 1820 AD, but most active from 1492 on. It was responsible for the jailing, trial, torture, and execution of "heretics," mostly Jews accused of not completely converting to Catholicism. During its activities many thousands of Jews had to flee the country.

The Spanish Inquisition was empowered by Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand of Spain in 1492. The Alhambra Decree, passed on March 31, 1492, ordered the Jews in all Spanish-owned lands to leave and never come back by August 31, 1492. If they chose to remain, they had to convert to Catholicism. Many Jews left, but some decided to remain and convert. Some Jews took Catholicism to heart; most did not. The Jews who pretended to believe in Christ but were really Jews at heart were called crypto-Jews and marranos. If you suspected someone of being a crypto-Jew, you could report them to one of the courts set up across Spain, and the judges/torturers at the court would test the people accused. They were tortured horribly; even if they weren't Jewish, they admitted that they were to get the pain to stop. Once they confessed, they were sent to the stake to be burned alive. This process included the auto-da-fé (act of faith, public penitence), which has come to be synonymous with execution for heresy.

A second decree in 1502 expelled Muslims and continued the tribunal, which remained active in the 1600s and 1700s, including a ban on Freemasons in 1815. The Inquisition ended shortly thereafter. Descendants of Spanish Jews were only allowed back to Spain beginning in 1924. The Alhambra Edict of 1492 was formally revoked in 1968.
The goal of the Inquisition was to enforce Catholicism in Spain and in Spanish territories. Torture was considered legitimate by the inquisitors. As under the Soviets, everyone was afraid of informers. Many thousands were tortured and killed.

As part of the Christianizing of Spain, Jews who openly remained Jewish were expelled from the country. Many died in the process, and everyone else was uprooted.

My colleague adds: The formation of the Jesuits and the following inquisition was a Catholic response to the Protestant Reformation. Sometimes this response is called the counter-reformation.

The Cardinal Archbishops of Chicago from 1939 until today:

1. Samuel Cardinal Stritch (1939-1958)
2. Albert Gregory Cardinal Meyer(1958-1965)
3. John Cardinal Cody (1965-1982)
4. Joseph Cardinal Bernardin (1982-1996)
5. Francis Cardinal George, OMI (1997-present)