In this wide-ranging and detailed discussion of the state of religious and ethnic identities in Sri Lanka, Shanthikumar Hettiarachchi offers an in-depth study of the impact of colonialism and post-colonialism on the relationships between the overwhelming Buddhist Sinhala majority and the Christian community, which constitutes a mere 7 per cent or so of the population. The work, which is based on research undertaken at the Universities of Birmingham in the UK and Melbourne in Australia, develops what is really a very simple problem, which is stated in the preface: ‘The religious shaping of Buddhism as “Sinhala Buddhism” on ethnic lines and its quasi tribal approach to the country's minorities have created a puzzling cultural phobia between the majority and the minorities in the nation's (recent) history’ (p. xix). The whole book addresses this issue in the context of the development of a particular form of Buddhist identity under British rule and after independence, as well as the distinctive shape that Christianity took because of its association with the linguistic and cultural elite of colonialism.

The author discusses the history of Sri Lanka and the creation of a religious-linguistic Sinhala identity, as well as the Tamil response in the north and east of the island, which led ultimately to the terrible civil war of late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. He offers an insightful and penetrating account of the various factors shaping Sri Lankan politics, not least of which was the colonial reshaping of historic religious and ethnic identities, especially after the election of S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike in 1956 and the Sinhala-only Act (p. 27) which made a huge impact on the history and politics of the island. Indeed this period helped forge the mythic histories of the different communities, especially the majority community, which is defined in terms of an internalized rebellion and projection of otherness. In turn, the flight of the Eurasian Burgher population, as well as the linguistic policies, helped reshape the role of the churches from the 1960s. The impact of colonialism on Sinhala-identity, however, was also crucial for the formation of Buddhist consciousness: for instance, the Theosophical Society led by Henry Olcott and Madame Blavatsky, as well as the formation of the Young Men's Buddhist Association, helped shape an intellectual identity in opposition to the colonially dominant Christian and English-speaking intellectual elite.

In addition to the history of Sri Lanka, the author also offers a lengthy account of the development of mission, following the Edinburgh Missionary Conference of 1910, and of the changed nature of inter-faith relations following the Second Vatican Council. Although this section does little to advance the thesis directly it offers useful background information for the later sections which address the impact of inter-faith relations in post-colonial Sri Lanka. The author's aim throughout is to help understand the future of dialogue more contextually so as to be able to move beyond Aloysius Pieris's description of the Buddhist-Christian encounter as a ‘matter of a deformed Christianity colliding with a misapprehended Buddhism’ (p. 144). Such deformed (missionary) Christianity which often forced the local population to change their world-view was subject to deep critique from both inside and outside Christianity after independence. The author also turns his attention to new forms of Christianity (chs. 6 and 7), especially Pentecostalism, which has often been more explicit in its desire for conversion and less respectful of the majority culture than the ‘established’ churches of Roman Catholicism and Anglicanism, as well as other protestant denominations. Through fieldwork and conversations with religious leaders, including a number of prominent bishops, Shanthi has been able to assess the current feelings about the historic grievances experienced by the majority as a legacy of the colonial times. Bishop Duleep de Chickera, who has recently stepped down as Anglican Bishop of Colombo, and who was a vociferous critic of the regime, was at the same time fully aware of the huge colonial legacy in the churches and the complexities in addressing conversion. Such sensitivity towards the majority has an impact on the nature of conversion, which is seen by many leaders of the mainline churches, including Kumara Illangasinghe, Anglican Bishop of Kurunegala, ‘as about a transformation of the individual self which can engage in the transformation of society’ (p. 187).

Later chapters seek to address some of the issues by means of what the author calls ‘a self-reflective missiology’. This he describes as a ‘device with multi-polar connections for all Christian institutions to open channels of communication and infuse lateral thinking and understanding to issues that they confront with each other’ (p. 229). The churches have a particular responsibility for the creation of a lasting peace following the 2009 cease-fire, not least because they have members from across the ethnic divide. The future requires a humility to unlearn some of the missionary thinking of the past in a properly indigenized approach to theology and ecclesiology, defined by the experiences of a people who ‘refuses to subscribe to servile obedience to European ecclesiastical centres and their symbols, which remain alien to their daily struggles’ (p. 243). This requires respect and openness to the Buddhist ‘other’ as a genuinely religious person rather than an object for conversion. There is a recognition by the author as well as many of his interlocutors throughout of the authentic fears among the majority of losing identity through the impact of what was foreign coupled with ‘political immaturity, a modern passion for power, and social ghettoization’ (p. 259). Ethnocentrism, whatever its causes, is the key to understanding Sri Lankan identity which needs to be tackled head-on through education, questioning and openness which will allow Christians and Buddhists alike to take a less defensive stance. This requires learning lessons from history and apologizing where necessary. Such an approach is inevitably political, but it is what might lead to re-imagining religion through self-examination so as to re-instate spiritual and moral integrity among the different communities and institutions (p. 272). This requires an institutional response for the sake of the future that ‘fosters and renders respect to community, people, culture and tradition with dignity and honour’ (p. 273).

All in all this is an impressive work which will introduce the reader to the complexities of religious, cultural and ethnic identity in a very troubled island. The good news is that the author remains optimistic: the seemingly intransigent identities can learn to co-exist and then enter into dialogue through rediscovering their common understanding of humanity and to respect and learn from the other. From my own recent – admittedly limited – experience of Sri Lanka and its small but influential Anglican community, I think that the dialogues need to take place at all levels of society, beginning at the grass-roots among those who remain traumatized by a long and bitter civil war. But this is only likely to happen if the integrity of public service, the rule of law and respect for human rights are defended at every level. There is little at the moment to reassure the outsider that this is what is happening among the political elite.