2 of 3

In a tense climate of insecurity, many churches are treading with extreme caution despite the supreme court's respite.

Marius Peiris, secretary general, Catholic Bishop's Conference of Sri Lanka, said, "It is a very serious issue and we would like to comment only after studying it."

Said pastor David Deling, a member of NCEASL, "Now it is for them who brought the bill to decide whether they want to pursue it. We are watching and waiting as to what lies ahead."

Wickremesinhe said there is a mixed feeling among Christians. "The people are happy, but cautious at the same time," he said. "Happy, because the court has taken note and struck down the controversial clauses in the bill as unconstitutional. But they are also cautious as the bill is not out of the door yet."

Copyright © 2004 Christianity Today. Click for reprint information.

More Christianity Today articles on the anti-conversion bill in Sri Lanka include:

Cracking Down on Conversions | Buddhist radicals push tough new laws. (Aug. 10, 2004)

Anti-Conversion Conspiracy | Buddhist nationalists in Sri Lanka step up violence against churches. (April 26, 2004)

Articles elsewhere on the anti-conversion bill in Sri Lanka include:

Lankan anti-conversion bill hits the rocks | Sri Lanka's controversial anti-conversion bill seems to have hit the rocks given the Supreme Court's critical observations and the distinct possibility of the mainstream political parties opting for a free, "conscience vote" in parliament (Hindustan Times, India, Aug. 18, 2004)

Sri Lanka to outlaw religious conversions | Passes bill to prevent conversion by force, allurement or by fraudulent measure (Daily Times, Pakistan, Aug. 18, 2004)

Anti-Conversion Bill needs two-thirds majority | Speaker W. J. M. Lokubandara yesterday told Parliament that the Supreme Court has recommended that certain clauses of the Prohibition of Forcible Conversion of Religion Bill violate certain articles of the Constitution and that the Bill in its present form has to be passed by not less than a two thirds majority and approved by the people at a referendum (Daily News, Sri Lanka, Aug. 18, 2004)

Controversial Sri Lanka bill against religious conversion gets court nod | Sri Lanka's Supreme Court has approved a controversial bill seeking to outlaw "unethical" religious conversions in the Buddhist-majority island, the parliament was told (AFP, Aug. 17, 2004)

Church visited by Pope defies Sri Lanka's religious debate | Sri Lanka is a seat of conservative Buddhism, but a church here visited out of the blue by the Pope is standing out as a symbol of religious harmony amid a heated debate on conversions. (AFP, Aug. 3, 2004)

More Christianity Today articles on the church in Sri Lanka include:

Renewed Attacks on Christians | Christians continue to suffer in Sri Lanka. (Nov. 19, 2003)

The Joy of Suffering in Sri Lanka | How Christians thrive in the land where ethnic and religious strife is always just around the corner. (Sept. 29, 2003)

A Man of Peace | While other monks march against peace, this fierce-looking cleric seeks accord. (Sept. 29, 2003)

Being the Leaven | Why only a handful of Sri Lankan Christians wage peace via the difficult political process. (Sept. 29, 2003)

Indigenous and Evangelistic | Isolated from the infusion of foreign missionaries by Sri Lankan laws, the island's church knows that to survive, it must focus on evangelism. (Sept. 29, 2003)

Violence Erupts in Sri Lanka as Churches Look to New PM to Bring Peace | The island nation reels from an ethnic conflict which has claimed more than 64,000 lives since 1983 (Dec. 19, 2001)

next page... |  2 of 3

share this page

August (Web-only) 2004, Vol. 48