Tissa Balasuriya (
Sinhala: තිස්ස බාලසූරිය) (August 29, 1924 – January 17, 2013) was a
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
n
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
priest
A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...
and
theologian
Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...
. He was educated at
St Patrick's College, Jaffna
, motto_translation = By faith and labour
, location = Mathews Road, Gurunagar
, city = Jaffna
, province = Northern Province
, country = Sri Lanka
, coordinates ...
.
Theological work
In 1971 Balasuriya founded the Center for Society and Religion; four years later he founded the
Ecumenical Association of Third World Theologians The Ecumenical Association of Third World Theologians (EATWOT) is a network of theologians coming primarily from Africa, Asia, and Latin America and interested in creating theology that is relevant for their contexts. The group tended to critique tr ...
. In 1990, Balasuriya published the book ''Mary and Human Liberation''. In 1994, the Sri Lankan bishops warned that the book included heretical content because it misrepresented the doctrine of original sin and cast serious doubts on the divinity of Christ. Balasuriya submitted a 55-page theological defense to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, which rejected it.
Doctrinal investigation
In May 1996, the Congregation demanded that he sign a profession of faith, apparently written exclusively for him, stating that he would "adhere with religious submission of will and intellect to the teachings of the Roman pontiff," even those teachings not proclaimed as definitive.
Excommunication
Balasuriya responded by signing a different profession of faith composed by Pope
Paul VI
Pope Paul VI ( la, Paulus VI; it, Paolo VI; born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini, ; 26 September 18976 August 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City, Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 to his ...
, adding a caveat that he was signing it "in the context of theological development and church practice since Vatican II and the freedom and responsibility of Christians and theological searchers under canon law." Cardinal
Joseph Ratzinger
Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the sovereign ...
ruled that the caveat rendered the profession "defective." Balasuriya appealed directly to the Pope, but was excommunicated on 2 January 1997, with the Pope's approval.
Lifting of excommunication
Balasuriya then appealed to the Apostolic Signatura but was told that his case could not go forward. He subsequently agreed to drop the caveat from his profession of faith, and after intense international publicity and six days of negotiations, the excommunication was rescinded in January 1998. Although Balasuriya did not admit to doctrinal error, he did acknowledge "perceptions of error" and agreed to submit all future writings to his bishops for the imprimatur.
Death
Balasuriya died in Colombo on January 17, 2013, aged 89.
He had been suffering from illness for some time. His funeral was due to take place on January 18, 2013, at the
General Cemetery in Borella after Mass at the Fatima Church.
See also
*
Balangoda Ananda Maitreya Thero
Balangoda Ananda Maitreya Thero ( si, අග්ග මහා පණ්ඩිත බලංගොඩ ආනන්ද මෛත්රෙය මහා නා හිමි;23 August 1896 – 18 July 1998; was a Sri Lankan Buddhist monk who was on ...
*
Marcelline Jayakody
Fr. Marcelline Jayakody ( Sinhala: මර්සලින් ජයකොඩි පියතුමා) (3 June 1902 ─ January 15, 1998) was a Sri Lankan Catholic priest, musician, lyricist, author, journalist and an exponent of indigenous cult ...
*
W.D. Amaradeva
*
Sisira Senaratne
Sisira Senaratne ( si, සිසිර සේනාරත්න; 29 March 1935 – 4 February 2015), was a Sri Lankan singer and lyricist also worked as a playback singer in Sinhala cinema. A career spanned for more than six decades, Senaratne ...
References
External links
Fr. Tissa Balasuriya's reconciliationThe excommunication of Fr. Tissa Balasuriya is lifted* - A critique of Pope
Benedict XVI
Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the sovereign ...
's social justice Encyclical ''
Caritas in Veritate
''Caritas in veritate'' (English: "Charity in truth") is the third and last encyclical of Pope Benedict XVI, and his first social encyclical. It was signed on 29 June 2009 and was published on 7 July 2009. It was initially published in Italia ...
'' (2009)
Fr. Tissa Balasuriya obituary
{{DEFAULTSORT:Balasuriya, Tissa
1924 births
2013 deaths
Alumni of St. Patrick's College, Jaffna
People from British Ceylon
People temporarily excommunicated by the Catholic Church
20th-century Sri Lankan Roman Catholic priests
Dissident Roman Catholic theologians
Sinhalese priests