SRI LANKA is a country in which Buddhism, Islam and the Roman Catholic church all have a large following. It is also a country in which many religious faiths rally to the fight for socialism. Socialist Outlook talked to two members of the NSSI leadership, LINUS JAYATILAICE, a Catholic priest, and Buddhist monk BADDEĞAMA SAMITHA, about their faith and its relation to socialism. Linus was previously the priest at the largest church in the Negumbo region, but now devotes himself full-time to politics and trade union organisation. Samitha, while already a Buddhist priest, was a student at Lancaster University and active in solidarity work with the 1984 miners' SO: Linus, how did you get involved with Marxist politics? L.]: In the late 1950%, well before Liberation Theology developed, I was a youth leader to fight for justice, which for Linus Jayatilaice meant the struggle of the poor against the rich. I was identified as a leftist, but the hierarchy were powerless to do anything about it.
For me it started with the mustical or spiritual side of Christianity, which many Marxists might find difficult to understand. But I was struck by the history of the people of ancient Israel being k out of exploitation, towards the promised land'.
Negumbo, cople are Christians and those 1 who thought like me wanted to probe into the depths of Chrisian belief. We felt that serious Christian people have to take sides in society. position, to side with the ploited, the oppressed and the unjustly imprisoned.
After serious analysis of how you could identify with the exploited class, the working class wedecided that it was the Marxist tools of analysis that you need. SO: Samitha, as a Buddhist monk, what do you think of Christianity? BS: That's a big question! I can't give a complete answer in a short interview, but i think that, contrary establishment Jesus was a rebel who defended oppressed people. You can look at the story of how he cleared the money-lenders out of the Temple, and how he the tax collectors, Of curse that was a long time ago in the history of Christianity, but 1 think that original Christianity is definitely in contradiction with a profit-making society.
But i think a senious probiem, a serious question every Chris tace, is the whole the idea of an external 'God'.! think that Christians will find reconciliation with Marxism much more difficult than 1 do, especially since Christianity often clashes face-to-face with Marxism in Europe. 1 think 8% DELEGATE CONFERENCE Buddihst monk: Baddegama Samitha Buddhism is more logical and consistent in its concern for all living things.
My impression is that, be cause of Liberation Theology Christianity in the third world is often very different to that in the advanced countries Anyway, I think that any religion that listens to its followers, then that religion cannot ignore the cries of the people. SO: Linus, what do you think about Bhuddism? L.J: Well I try to understand original Buddhism, not bud thism as it is practised now, which seems to me to have be come too narrowly with the needs of individuals.
I think that there should be a serious attempt by all religious people, including followers of Islam, to go into the history and roots of these religions, and they responded to. Obviously you have in the roots of all religions the need to comprehend the worid, to make sense of the universe, but also deep-seated needs of human beings to express their most deep-rooted sopes and fears, including those On Buddhism, I must say that it is more logical in its basis than Christianity, and therefore has a more straightforward foundation to develop towards Marxist thinking. The problem is that its logic is not yet dialectical logic. For that you need Marxism! No:13.- Dec. 14, 1991 Page 7nema LamBo SeCTION LANDSLIDe VICTORY