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Religion as a bridge-builder

by Edward Kumaragama, Media Director, Savumia Youth Foundation

The Inter Religious Peace Foundation (IRPF) organized a religious pilgrimage with a view to promoting goodwill, reconciliation, solidarity and harmony among the different communities and to enable the devotees to know and respect values and virtues of all religions.

Madhu Shrine-hallowed presence

The new statue of Our Lady of Maradha Madhu which was blessed by the Holy Father John Paul II in December 2002 at Vatican City, Rome was taken in a motorcade from Our Lady of Fatima Church, Maradana, Colombo on August 8 which went through Wattala, Katunayake, Negombo, Chilaw, Puttalam, Anuradhapura and Vavuniya and reached Piraman Kulum Junction situated 215 k.m. north of Colombo on the 14th.

The statue was warmly welcomed at Buddhist Viharas, Hindu temples, mosques and churches by the venerable members of the Maha Sangha Kurukkals, Maulavies, priests, nuns and devotees of all religions. They offered flowers to the statue as a token of love and devotion.

On the 13th the statue was received by the parish priest of St. Joseph's Cathedral, Anuradhapura, Rev. Fr. Sunil Gunawardane and the parishioners. After a special prayer service the statue was taken in procession to the Vavuniya junction where it was warmly welcomed according to Sinhala and Tamil culture by the leaders, army personnel and devotees. Then the statue was again taken in procession led by Rambukulam College Band to the Bodhirukkarama Vihara premises and was received by the Adikarana Sanganayake of North and East Provinces, Venerable Siyabalawe Wimalawansha and members of the Maha Sangha chanted Pirith to the blessed Lady. This was followed by a peace rally.

The Nayaka Thera delivering an Anushasana said, "The Lady of Maradha Madhu whom Catholics all over the world venerate with great love and devotion is regarded by the Buddhists and Hindus here as Paththini Amma.

This gathering exhibits that all of us are ready to honour and give due respect to other religions, Thera concluded. The parish priest of St' Anthony's Church, Vavuniya, Rev. Fr. Japamala Croose in his address said, "Let me recall the bold service rendered by Dr. Jayalath Jayawardana as an M.P. some time ago. As a devoted Catholic he obtained permission from the government to go on pilgrimage to Madhu Shrine which was situated in the LTTE controlled area and did not fail to visit the refugee camps and conduct health clinics. He eventually took the initiative to urge the Government and the LTTE to stop war and commence peace talks" he added.

On the 14th the statue was received by the Maithree Pura Army personnel at the army camp and schoolchildren and teachers of colleges. At twelve noon the chariot carrying the statue escorted by the police and navy reached the destination.

The army commander of the North East region together with the colonel were present. In the midst of the clapping of all present Rev. Fr. Cyril Anthony, Fr. Japamala Croose and Fr. Augustine Kariyakarawana placed the statue in the new shrine erected at another turn off to Madhu Church.

The co-president of the IRPF, Ven. Madampagama Assaji Nayaka Thera in his keynote address said: "During the course of the seven day pilgrimage the IRPF managed to gather valuable experience. The people yearn for peace. They are ready to sink communal, religious or langauge differences and work together as human beings without getting divided in colour symbols or party and to achieve permanent peace.

It can be transformed into a dynamic force. It is clear that with this force we could proceed." Speaking further the Thera said, "It is a fact that Catholics and non Catholics as well have a great devotion and faith to the Lady of Madhu. We anticipated that when the statue is taken in procession from the South to the North devotees who are confident on such an occasion could implant peace thoughts in the hearts of the participants. Our foundation came forward to organize this spiritual exercise.

It has no involvement in politics. Dr. Jayalath Jayawardana is a devout Catholic. This statue is a donation from him. He took part in this programme only as a member of the organizing committee" the Thera concluded.

The Director of the Society for Krishna Consciousness, K. Kadamba Kanona addressing the gathering on behalf of the Hindu Community: "It was a great consolation for all of us that peace talks began with a ceasefire. War brings disaster but not an advantage to anyone. Every man and woman aspires for peace. As this religious pilgrimage was organised to promote peace and harmony among communities and religions the Hindus joined it", he added.

The convenor of the Sinhala-Muslim Friendship Association A. H. M. Navul Maulavi representing the Muslims said: "From the past, Muslims worked and lived with the Sinhalese and Tamils as brothers of one family. The war caused much harm and disaster to us. Muslim, Sinhala and Tamil patriots won independence to our country, hence let us think that it is time to join hands and work in solidarity and develop our country. As we yearn for peace we joined in this programme." The Minister of Rehabilitation, Resettlement and Refugees Dr. Jayalath Jayawardana thanked the Bishop of Mannar, Dr. Rayappu Joseph for permitting the pilgrimage and the Co-President of the IRPF and Director, Centre for Society and Religion (CSR) Rev. Fr. Oswald B. Firth and the religious dignitaries for organizing the pilgrimage successfully.

The General Secretary of the IRPF the Administrator of the Methodist Church, Nugegoda Rev. Anura Perera delivering a vote of thanks said: "On behalf of the IRPF I extend my heartfelt thanks to all religious dignitaries for organizing and conducting this religious event and also to all the devotees and well wishers who accorded a warm welcome to the statue at various places and offered flowers to show their solidarity.

Chief organizer of the pilgrimage, Rev. Fr. Cyril Anthony recited the following prayer: "Beloved Mother the people who lived around you are those who had bitter experience of war. Those who live in refugee camps are those who have lost everything that they had. Blessed Mother you exist in a peace zone. Please make the whole country a peace zone.

Our country and our people are left to your care. Please make our people religious. Bless Dr. Jayalath Jayawardana and all those who co-operate with him to make peace a reality. Give us everlasting peace."

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What if there is a return to war and the PTA?

by Prof.S.Ratnajeevan H.Hoole

Last week we saw the falsity of the idea that giving up a little of democracy for the sake of order with economic freedom ultimately yields greater democracy.

Expanding on that let me relate an experience that I used in class teaching human rights to my engineering students. We had a new servant or, to use politically correct terminology, domestic assistant or DA. It was the end of her first day. Upon leaving, suddenly with her back to me and facing my wife, she opened out her cloth-sarong. Apparently that had been the custom at her previous employer. She established that she was not stealing. Her employer would have no cause to suspect her. There was order.

But the DA was left no dignity.

My class quickly agreed that it was no way to treat a servant. That it was far better to risk losing a few things than create a suspicious environment; to lose a little through theft than alienate an honest DA treated suspiciously.

The direct experience of students then buttressed this. During industrial training at agencies like the CEB and SLT, Tamils were either denied training or not allowed into sensitive plants and asked to copy the diaries of their Sinhalese colleagues to pretend that they had undergone training. This established how the little evil we tolerate for the sake of order, grows and eats into everything we hold dear in this instance the integrity of the degree based on the training grade.

It was then easy to transition to the PTA which was operative. My arguments against the PTA were that it never really stopped the LTTE, that Tamil was a generic marker that was widely used to identify suspects contradicting our position that we are one nation; and that if we are to subject people to searches generic markers to brand an entire community should never be used. The only real option then is a negotiated political solution guaranteeing democracy and human rights for all.

The truth today is that no one really knows for sure if the ongoing peace process will lead to real peace or war. When that is the case, we need to think hard about what we would do if there is a return to war. Would there be a return to the PTA? Can we live with it after being used to these 2 beautiful years of freedom?

This is the time for that debate. If war returns "God forbid!" We must not await that time to make a knee-jerk reaction on the PTA, Some of us have had the privilege of living in mature Western democracies and know how pleasant it is to live there. We are rarely scared of the Police. In the US LTTE activists have the privilege of using the legal system to challenge the ban on the LTTE without the fear that the ban would be used against them for challenging the ban. In England, it was a privilege to go to Hyde park Corner every weekend taking a break from studies, to listen to all kinds of chronic, violent advocacy (including pro-IRA and anti Black stuff) under the protection of the Police as sometimes violent hecklers tried to handle the speakers.

The freedom given to those for violence, enhanced our freedom. Eccentric and even objectionable though they may be, the freedom we all shared made living in those countries pleasant. It can be so here too, in Sri Lanka.

But in contrast, in Sri Lanka, when Prof. G.P.V. Somaratna wrote on the Kotahena riots, those who disagreed with him used parliament to shut him down. He fled the country. S.J. Tambiah's lot was not very different. When high academics from the upper-middle class face this, I hate to imagine the lot of ordinary folk if the PTA returns.

We have been on the upswing from 1994 when the new human rights regime took hold. It made many in exile return permanently, including Somaratna. Tambiah too made a brief visit. The past two years have continued this trend with war pushed back into distant memory.

We must not be caught unprepared on the role of the PTA if there is war again. When a war is on, people tend to irrationality. For instance, I was formally charged for teaching human rights under the topic 'Engineer and Society'. Such teaching was seen as seditious. When the war is off, people are less irrational. I was cleared of the charges and the very Faculty Board that charged me is now planning a full human rights course of its own.

We must never return to that period of irrationality and there must be a national consensus on the PTA now when people are less irrational.

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"I'll cry with thee, Mother Lanka"

Preamble: This poem is dedicated to those brave sons and daughters of Sri Lanka who laid down their lives to defend their country.

It's a cry for love and peace, for unity, amity and our nation's safety

O'yonder glen not so long ago I roamed about one afternoon and dared to look. Now what I saw made my heart cry out for fallen lay bodies of our brave young men to save our lives their lives forsook.

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No one dare to cry and care, unseen, unsung scattered they lay like leaves out of a torn song book.
Far and faint were the sounds of war, but now and then the good earth shook.

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Raised high my eyes at the evening skies, saw the glory galore and swore no more for draped in crimson and gold, and veiled in violet haze, my breath the scene stole away, made low spirits to soar.

In this our other eden, the paradise of yore, to be truly happy people seemed to know no more.

How to live, and love, and die as before-had men and women gotten rotten to the core?

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Hark! Heard I the cries of an alien being a howling wind had brought on the wing.

Mother Lanka it was her voice had a woeful ring.

Made birds to fly, me to cry and bees to lose their sting.

"Alas! My son", asked she in grief, "Aren't these thy kith and kin, taught I together to sing?"

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These breasts fed them thru' night and day, to say without murmur is to speak no lie

If divided taught I will make them stumble and fall; but united they will stand tall and strong, ready to defend their country, to fight, even die.

Can't stop to cry, how much I try, but how can I,

they went away for sad farewells no time, only time to face a bullet and die.

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Begged of Mother Lanka to spare a short time to tell why wars so many, such violence and crime.

For horrors like Aids, Mad Cow, cancer and dengue; and now a deadly virus that caused SARS-its cause and cure to find need much time.

For earthquakes, forest fires, high winds and flash floods that scar her face from time to time.

Warnings were they from the big scourge above that humans were running out of time?

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Reply was swift, came like a whisper on the grapevine: "Cared only for thyself, others didn't give a dime".

Rich got richer, poor made poorer, for the needy no time.

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Many die hungry, even more die angry, 'cos medicare and medicine too costly to buy, to save a dying lifeline.

Make no mistake, the "Mills of God grind slowly but grind mighty fine"; and the Mighty.

Miller says, "I will repay, for vengeance is Mine!".

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"Beware Beloved", Mother warns all humankind.

If change for the better, no sign of any kind.

The poor, old and sick; maimed, deaf and blind - help and care can't find

Watch out! the horror next in line will freeze both body and mind.

***************

Mother Lanka's last horror line flashed scenes of terror across my mind and sent chills down my spine.

I saw a careless nuclear research worker turn on the wrong switch that triggered a Nuclear chain reaction that blew up the earth into bits in next to no time. Next saw the earth shift slightly out of orbit and go crashing into another heavenly body hundred times its size; its impact made the earth vanish in a puff of smoke out of sight and mind.

But what knocked me senseless to the ground was the sight of a man putting down roots to become half plant, half human - folly of meddling with genetic scripts, No business of humankind.

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Woke up to find Mother Lanka gone, where to, no one knew.

But leaving some fragrant thoughts to ponder upon like:

It's love not hate that makes the world go round; to love others as we do ourselves.

No greater thoughts more sound.

Brings high fences down and makes for peace and plenty all around.

For love calms barking war dogs, turns them around with their tails on the ground.

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Surprise supreme for human beings is the good news that they will never be rubbed out of their Maker's Mind, the way Dinosaurs lost are being found in the sands of time.

To think He let His only Precious Son to suffer and die upon a cross, the price divine to save our mankind, greater love than this can there be anywhere at anytime?

Yes, He shut the gates of hell forever and reopened heaven to those who bore their crosses bravely and followed their leader to a better clime.

So dearest, listen to hope's whispers that make sorrowing hearts rejoice for now they know heaven's next door to those who suffered bravely, hurts to their minds, pains and aches to their bodies, in their life time.

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Question time: "You ask if this heaven can unwrap the secret of life, love and death Good and evil, joy and sorrow, the beginning and the end of space and the eternity of time?"

The short answer is, "Of course it can, but what is unwrapped will look like a lot of mixed pickle to earthly and infantile minds, like trying to teach the Calculus to a two-year old and failing everytime".

Until heaven unfetters these minds and let them grow and expand across known horizons, thru' unknown frontiers into the Great Beyond, and come to rest at the feet of

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The mighty genetic script writer - the Master Mind. In such elite company, there will be no need to shed tears of sorrow, only cries of unspeakable joy.

Since heaven cannot be expressed in earthly terms, the best that can be said, that it is a place where hate and agony are out of bounds - only love and ecstasy abide for timeless days of delight never experienced by the human mind, heard by human ear, seen by the human eye!

Conclusion: At this point in time the whispers of hope will no more be needed since all hope will have been fulfilled.

Moddy C. Fonseka

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