Abstract:
From its Latin root, ‘city’ (civitas) is closely associated with civilization
(civilis) where city life is equated with civilized life. Unfortunately, city life is
considered precarious for humanity today. The Bible too is not very positive
about cities. Sodom and Gomorrah came under the wrath of Yahweh.
Jerusalem lost its divine protection when it became a great city. Jesus
condemned the cities of his time, namely, Chorazin, Bethsaida and
Capernaum. This shows that though cities and city life mark the growth of
humankind, they also represent the decadence of human civilization. Sri
Lankan cities are not exceptional to this fact. The dissolution of the spiritual
wellbeing bequeathed from the world religious traditions is obvious in them.
This paper, along with the positive effects, analyses in detail the severe
negative effects of Sri Lankan city life from a Christian perspective. In a caste
based and gender biased background of Sri Lanka social and gender
discrimination are very much less in its cities. However, marketisation of life
and cut-throat competitions are some of the ruthless negative effects that
occupy the prime concern against the background of Christian values. The
hypothesis is that though the cities empower life with many facilities, they
have reduced the human being to be a material commodity. This paper,
therefore studies the ways how Christianity, in terms of its faith, beliefs and
practices could mediate hope to the negative issues of urbanity. Application of
the Christian values of equality, individual dignity and rights, and non-
exclusion become the purpose of studying Sri Lankan city life in the terrains
of public theology.
