Cardinal Ranjith calls for lasting peace in Sri Lanka

(August 17, 2011) The leader of Sri Lanka’s Catholics has called on all races and religions to heal the wounds from nearly three decades of civil war and unite in reconciliation efforts to achieve sustainable peace. Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith also called for the protection of the political rights of Tamils and Muslims, saying: “We have to avoid the psyche that the minority is always a threat to the majority.” His comments came in a sermon on the feast day of the Assumption of Blessed Virgin Mary 15^th August to about 200,000 Catholics at the Madhu Marian shrine in Mannar. The 400-year-old shrine, situated in the jungles of northeastern Sri Lanka, was shelled many times during the conflict. The venerated Marian statue was removed in 2008 to prevent it from being damaged during heavy fighting. It is also regarded as a symbol of unity among people of different religions. “Even though nearly 30 long years of war has ended, we still talk about peace within a divided framework of religion, nationality, caste and creed,” the cardinal said. “The war of bombs and guns is over, but now it is time to start a war against national selfishness. This war will be more difficult than the war that has ended. We should unite and sacrifice our individualistic needs for unity and resolve the problem of separatism,” he added.