-By LeN Religious Affairs Correspondent
(Lanka-e-News -21.May.2025, 11.30 PM) In Sri Lanka, where sacred saffron holds more weight than silk ties, and monks wield influence that rivals politicians, the sight of a monk being publicly disciplined is not just rare — it is seismic. This week, the venerable Katumuluwe Sumanarathana Thera, the long-standing Chief Sanghanayake of Devamedi Hatpattuwa and chief incumbent of Padeniya Rajamaha Vihara, has found himself in a particularly unenviable spot. The Malwatta Chapter — the Vatican of Sinhala Buddhism, if one dares a metaphor — has suspended the Thera over his role in hosting a Christian evangelical event on temple grounds.
And not just any event. The programme, titled “Sihinaya” (The Dream), headlined by one Brother Charles, known for his spirited sermons and penchant for invoking Jesus in Sinhala, was billed as a multifaith celebration of harmony. But it seems that in Sri Lanka’s religious ecosystem, harmony comes with a fine print. And Ven. Sumanarathana, who until last week was serenely ensconced in clerical prestige, is now staring down the austere weight of disciplinary action from the Karaka Sangha Sabha — the supreme governing council of the Malwatta Chapter.
The official charge? Conduct unbecoming of a senior monk. The unofficial charge? A naive misadventure in ecumenism that rattled the saffron order’s spiritual spine.
At the heart of the controversy is the Sihinaya programme held on 17 May within the sacred precincts of the Padeniya Rajamaha Vihara. It promised spiritual upliftment, communal love, and — apparently — theological confusion. The optics were damning: a Buddhist temple draped in festoons while a Christian preacher led rousing hymns, punctuated with cries of “Praise the Lord”, within earshot of the Bodhi Tree.
If the spirit of Anagarika Dharmapala had a Twitter account, it would have combusted.
“This is not harmony. This is heresy!” exclaimed one outraged bhikkhu from Kurunegala who wished to remain anonymous, perhaps fearing the wrath of Brother Charles’s long-limbed blessings.
To be fair to Ven. Sumanarathana Thera, he did write to the Malwatta Karaka Sabha claiming that the local Maha Sangha had granted permission. Unfortunately, that letter was later disowned by its signatories, who claimed ignorance of an earlier instruction by the Chapter not to hold the event. One might imagine they signed off on “Sihinaya” assuming it was an innocuous Dhamma talk about enlightenment — not The Sermon on the Mount, Sinhala remix.
The real tragedy is this: Ven. Sumanarathana’s suspension comes not just as a personal setback but as a symbolic defeat for those within the Buddhist clergy who have, quietly and cautiously, advocated for interfaith dialogue in a country that has often flirted with ethno-religious flashpoints. And let’s be clear — there are many such monks. But few would dare host a Christian evangelical preacher inside a Buddhist temple and expect praise from Kandy’s highest prelates.
The Malwatta Chapter's Mahanayake, Ven. Thibbotuwawe Sri Siddhartha Sumangala Thera, minced no words in his rebuke. “You have violated the order,” the letter stated, noting not just the disobedience of a direct instruction but the “disturbance to social coexistence” the event risked triggering. One suspects the Mahanayake had flashbacks of Aluthgama, Digana, and other violent stains in Sri Lanka’s recent past.
Even the Department of Buddhist Affairs weighed in — the bureaucratic equivalent of the Ministry of Magic raising a red flag — advising that the programme be postponed due to “potential disturbance of social harmony.” One can only wonder whether Brother Charles and his entourage were ever made aware of the quiet bureaucratic storm brewing in the lead-up to their event.
Who, one might ask, is Brother Charles?
In evangelical circles, he is known for his impassioned gospel sermons, blending Sinhala idioms with fire-and-brimstone fervour, and conducting miracle healing services that have, over the years, drawn quiet protests from Buddhist monks wary of their congregants being lured into charismatic Christianity.
That such a figure would be granted a stage inside one of the island’s revered temples is, to many, an act of either reckless generosity or spiritual sabotage.
Indeed, the “Sihinaya” programme is now being read less as an act of multi-religious outreach and more as a cautionary tale of liberal enthusiasm overreaching its sociopolitical leash. To some within the Sangha hierarchy, it was an affront to centuries of custodianship. To others, especially in Sri Lanka’s fragile interfaith communities, it was an opportunity — botched but brave.
Of course, this wouldn’t be Sri Lanka if there weren’t political undertones. Ven. Sumanarathana Thera has long been seen as a monk with nationalist leanings, having once shared stages with prominent Buddhist nationalist groups. Which raises the question: why now embrace interfaith harmony?
One theory, floated by temple insiders and analysts alike, is that the Thera had been attempting a strategic pivot — a rebranding of sorts. With the political tide shifting under the new AKD-led government, known for its progressive outlook, perhaps Ven. Sumanarathana was angling for relevance in the post-Rajapaksa era, where softer saffron might win more applause than firebrand rhetoric.
If so, the gamble failed spectacularly.
Suspension from a Sanghanayake post is no small matter. It is akin to a bishop being defrocked. Though the Thera remains a monk, the ceremonial and administrative stature he once enjoyed is now stripped. And the message from the Malwatta Chapter is clear: compliance first, dialogue later — if ever.
Supporters of the Thera have begun murmuring about religious gatekeeping and the dangers of monastic orthodoxy crushing attempts at inter-religious solidarity. “He was only trying to bring people together,” said one lay devotee outside Padeniya Vihara, “and now they treat him like he committed a sin.”
But in Buddhist ecclesiastical terms, disobedience — not ecumenism — is the greater sin. And in the Mahavamsa-conscious landscape of Sinhala Buddhism, holding a Christian prayer event inside a temple built before Vasco da Gama landed in India is seen as a blasphemous act, no matter how well-meaning.
Sri Lanka’s Buddhist clergy now faces an interesting fork in the path. The world — and certainly the country’s youth — are watching how religion responds to the modern moment. As societies grow more diverse and globalised, will the Sangha build fences to preserve tradition or bridges to accommodate coexistence?
The Sihinaya saga has exposed the risks of even the gentlest bridge-building. Ven. Sumanarathana’s fall from grace is likely to chill future attempts at interfaith events inside temple grounds, pushing well-meaning monks to err on the side of doctrinal caution.
There is, in this, a certain irony: the very act of dreaming (sihinaya) of a harmonious society has led to a nightmare of disciplinary consequences for one of its dreamers.
Perhaps the final word belongs to a temple aide, who summed up the matter with a dose of Sinhala wit: “You can’t serve the Dhamma with a drum and a hallelujah.”
One suspects Ven. Sumanarathana Thera, now cloistered in contemplation, might agree.
And Brother Charles? He’s moved on to the next village. Harmony, it seems, travels faster than consequence.
-By LeN Religious Affairs Correspondent
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by (2025-05-21 19:06:46)
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