New Graduate Library Opens in Sri Lanka
By Jonathan Lamb, International Programme Director, Langham Preaching
Travelling in a three-wheel tuktuk across the city of Colombo (my guidebook warned me of ‘the anarchic driving conditions’ on Sri Lanka’s roads), it was a relief to arrive at the Centre for Graduate Studies, a bright and welcoming building in the centre of the city. Part of the Lanka Bible College and Seminary, the Graduate Centre supports leadership and pastoral training, distance learning initiatives and a Masters course. The Centre has just celebrated the opening of its new library.
Its well-ordered shelves, growing stock of some 8,000 volumes, computer facilities and Internet access provide an essential resource for those engaged in theological training. Carried out in fellowship with many agencies around the world, including the Overseas Council which supported the building project and Langham Literature which supported the book stock, the library will be a welcome haven for quiet study and theological reflection, just metres away from the bustling streets of downtown Colombo.
But those streets are the mission field in this predominantly Buddhist country, where only a small percentage of the population owes allegiance to Christ. The growing church is engaging with the demands of mission in a challenging religious and political context, and the oasis of a library provides one of the essential resources for true engagement with the city and country – a necessary retreat in order to advance the cause of mission.