Joint Liturgical Studies
Joint Liturgical Studies offers a valuable contribution to the
study of liturgy. Each issue considers a particular aspect of
liturgical development, such as the origins of the Roman rite,
Anglican Orders, welcoming the Baptised, and Anglican Missals. It
is aimed at all with an academic interest in worship.
It is published twice a year in partnership with the Alcuin
Club, which promotes the study of Christian liturgy, and the Group
for Renewal of Worship (GROW).
Volume 90: Inculturating Liturgy in Sri
Lanka
Contextualization in the Church of Ceylon
Phillip Tovey
The Church of Ceylon, in Sri Lanka, is an extra provincial
Anglican church whose two dioceses are locally run but with
oversight from the Archbishop of Canterbury. Christians, and in
them Anglicans, are a small group in a predominantly Buddhist and
Hindu country. There is a well know history of violence and
hostility between various groups in the country, including the
recent bombing of churches.
This context leads to an existential need to engage in
inter-faith dialogue and contextualization. Are Christians
essentially drawn out of their culture and become foreigner in Sri
Lanka? In the Church of Ceylon there has been a long tradition of
inculturation in dress, architecture, music, and liturgical text.
This study tries to bring this story to light.
While questions of inculturation and contextualization are
of importance throughout the Christian church, the story of the
Church of Ceylon is not well known. It deserves to be known better
and is an example to other parts of the Anglican Communion. While
each context is different some of the work in Sri Lanka will be of
help in other places where there are significant Buddhist
communities.
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