Felicitation ceremony of Rt Rev Dr Malcolm Ranjith- 9th Archbishop of Colombo at BMICH.
By Janaka Alahapperuma
A solemn ceremony was organised to felicitate the newly installed Archbishop of Colombo Most Rev. Dr. Malcolm Ranjith on Monday 10th August 2009 at the BMICH with the participation of President Mahinda Rajapaksa.
The well attended colourful and dignified ceremony which took place yesterday, saw the presence of representatives from Buddhist, Hindu, Muslim and other multi religious leaders, representatives of the diocese's various perishes and the members of other Christian churches.
Ven Dr Bellanwila Wimalarathana, Kamburugamuwe Wajira Nayaka Theros, Ven Maduluwawe Sobhitha and Ven Maha Sanga , former Archbishop of Colombo Rev. Dr Oswald Gomis, Retired Colombo Archbishop Nicholas Marcus Fernando, Archbishop Joseph Spiteri, Apostolic Nuncio to Sri Lanka, Former President Mrs. Chandrika Kumaratunga, Leader of the Opposition Mr. Ranil Wickramasinghe, Chief Justice Asoka De Silva, Members of the Parliament, Secretary to the President Mr Lalith Weeratunga, government officials and many dignitaries also participated the occasion.
All the political leaders joined with the President at the opening ceremony of lighting the traditional oil lamp of prosperity.
Addressing the gathering President Rajapaksa pointed out that there is no possibility of remaining divided and separate in the country. Divisions such as ethnic or religious separatism are not tolerated anymore. He said that Sri Lanka has been able to bestow to the world a new experience in peace and up coming Madhu feast , pilgrimages can go to holy church with out any fear or obtaining permission from anyone. He further said that the Catholics of Sri Lanka will be able to celebrate the coming Christmas in a new Sri Lanka under one flag where terrorism has been totally eliminated,”
Addressing the gathering Rev Malcolm Ranjith said, “We do know for example how much our Sri Lankan identity is intertwined with Buddhism and do respect that very much. Indeed some of us do have close family relationships and interact with our Buddhist brethren very closely. It is not our intention to encourage conversions to Christianity through unethical means. Our sole desire is to be able to practice our faith freely, living in harmony with all our fellow citizens and contributing further to the well-being of this country.”
Rt Rev Malcolm Ranjith is the 9th Archbishop of Colombo who had worked as secretary of the Vatican's Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments prior to his new appointment. Pope Benedict XVI appointed Archbishop Ranjith to his present post in June after accepting the resignation of Archbishop Oswald Gomis of Colombo, who reached the official retirement age of 75 over 18 months ago. Archbishop Ranjith, 61, was the only Sri Lankan who held top positions in the Roman Curia in the history.
At the installation Mass at St. Lucia's Cathedral in Colombo on 5th of August Archbishop Ranjith noted he was taking over the archdiocese at a difficult and challenging time. He called on all religions to work together for the betterment of Sri Lankan society ravaged by years of civil war. "We should build a democratic, peaceful, fair and free society. A 25-year civil war has just ended with the military defeat of the Tamil Tigers rebels. The civil war, besides causing havoc to the economy, also left people divided on the basis of race, language and religion. Let us not allow weak human nature to create divisions among us in the future," said Archbishop Ranjith.
A commemorative stamp was issued to mark the occasion by the Philatelic Bureau of Sri Lanka.
Pix: Sudath Silva
