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 ...

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 let ...

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 partic ...

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. 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 soverei ...

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 ''General Cemetery'' (Spanish: ''Cementerio general'') is a 2013 Peruvian supernatural horror film directed by Dorian Fernandez Moris. Written by Javier Velasquez, the plot is based on urban legends in the city's main cemetery. The film stars Air ...

in Borella after Mass at the Fatima Church.

References

External links

Fr. Tissa Balasuriya's reconciliation

The 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 sovereig ...

'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 Italian ...

'' (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