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As a Sri Lankan residing in Canada I’m grateful for your attempt to
tell us about the fighting that is taking place in the Wanni.
To learn the names of the valiant soldiers and their brave acts
brought many feelings of admiration and gratitude.
This is one area I think the Government Information Department is
lacking: the non personal nature of news reports.
We would like to hear more about personal acts of bravery and
sacrifice.
To put a name to a soldier who died in the battlefield would help
share the grief of that loss, even extend a helping hand to the
soldier’s kith and kin. I do understand that due to security reasons
names and missions cannot always be revealed but at this hour of need
the nation needs to know about the heroes that risk their lives for the
motherland.
I’m sure that there are many unsung heroes who have sacrificed a
great deal for our future.
It is our responsibility to tell the world what they did for us so
that future generations will understand and appreciate the price they
paid.
KANCHANA
This is further to the correspondence between Kumara Soysa and Tuan
Riza Rasool. There are two points in Rasool’s letter that I would like
to comment on:
1. The Genealogy of Jesus - Mathew 1:6-16 and Luke 3:23-31 do give
two different versions. In Biblical times genealogies were recorded
under the Male line only.
Whenever a family happened to end with a daughter, instead of naming
her in the genealogy, they would insert the name of her husband. Thus
the daughter’s husband would be recorded as the son of him who was in
reality the husband’s father-in-law.
Mathew’s Gospel records Joseph’s lineage. He was writing for the Jews
and wants to show Jesus’ descent from Abraham. He starts with - “Abraham
begot Isaac, Isaac begot Jacob...” down the line, ending with - “And
Jacob begot Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus who is
called Christ.” There is no doubt that Joseph’s father is Jacob - the
word begot is used throughout, but not with regard to Jesus.
Luke’s Gospel gives the lineage of Mary (mother of Jesus). He was
writing for the non-Jews (Gentiles) and wants to show that Jesus belongs
to the whole of humanity (descended from Adam).
He starts with “(Jesus) (as was supposed) the son of Joseph, the son
of Heli, the son of Matthat,...” going up to Adam. The word ‘begot’ is
not used.
Note that here Joseph’s father is named as Heli - the shortened form
for Heliachim, which is Hebrew is Joachim. Joachim and Anna were the
father and mother of the Virgin Mary, Joachim was Joseph’s
father-in-law.
2. Pslam 2:7 - As regards this psalm, I am afraid Rasool has got it
all wrong. Psalm 2 is a messianic psalm, which is a prophesy about the
Messiah.
The reference is not to David but to Jesus Himself who came from
David’s line. In Acts 13: 32-33, St. Paul in his exhortation to the
Jews, says -
“God has fulfilled this for us their children, in that He has raised
up Jesus. As it is also written in the second Psalm:
‘You are My Son,
Today I have begotten you’
And that He raised Him from the dead, no more to return to
corruption...”
The case for the divinity of Jesus Christ has been dealt with in
countless number of books and writings from the Gospels, Epistles,
writings of the early Church Fathers, down to modern times. To say that
the Koran does not support it is a futile argument.
Christianity can be debated and publicly criticised in any Christian
country. Can Rasool say the same thing about Islam in Islamic countries?
I have refrained from saying anything about the Koran or the Prophet
Mohammed.
I have only defended the wrong allegations made by Rasool regarding
the Bible. In passing, may I also advise Rasool to read at least one
book presenting the other side of the argument. The best I could
recommend is ‘The Case for Christ’ by Lee Strobel.
V. DE SILVA –
Moratuwa
All public events must be ‘banned’ until the terror threat is
diffused while diffusing a bomb here and spotting a claymore there may
not be the solution.
The terrorists will try their best to do something very big and let’s
not have anything that ‘big’, whether a religious ceremony, school
event or another. And let’s go after the bad guys in a very calm and
collected way, if they come to ‘public places’ as transport centres,
schools or any other public place with the ‘Security Committees’.
LALITH WEERASEKERA
As an expat Sri Lankan returning to the island after six years, I was
shocked at the deterioration of the City of Colombo. It looked like the
City of Garbage. There was garbage everywhere including on the roads
from the airport and to the hospitals.
Can someone in authority please take a serious look at this. Our
friends who visited Sri Lanka also remember the garbage, the traffic
jams and the beggars. If we are to develop as a major tourist
destination, can these simple things be attended to? ASOKA
It’s very regrettable to mention that the newly introduced ‘Activity
plans’ instead of ‘previous lesson plans cause much inconvenience and
problematic areas to teachers of English now.
‘Competency’, ‘Competency Level’, ‘Engagement Stage’, ‘Exploration’
and ‘Explanation’ create a lot of trouble and problems in the teaching
process carried out by any hardworking teacher in the classroom.
What I have experienced and found clearly is that there are vast
differences between the English syllabuses of Grade 6, 9, 10 etc. and
the relevant pupils’ text books, because different person/writers have
written or undesigned each syllabus and the text books.
The other point that I want to show is that all the work books of
Grade 10 were cancelled due to some errors or problems, but students
were not yet supplied the new books instead.
H.L. SUNIL SHANTHA –
Kalutara
Students attending a very prominent girls school (St. Lawrence’s) in
Colombo 6, have not been allocated school buses to transport them to and
from school.
It is most surprising that while all schools in the Western Province
have been provided with school buses, this particular girls’ school is
given step motherly treatment.
These children have not even been given the option of buying
concessionary (season) tickets for travelling to and from school in CTB
buses. With the escalating Cost of Living imagine the plight of middle
class parents who are struggling to make ends meet and cannot afford to
pay exorbitant school van charges, more so, if they have two or more
girls attending this same girls’ school and have to pay the increased
bus fares. I am sure the Transport Minister will be able to solve this
problem.
C.J. WILSON -
Dehiwela
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