“Human Dignity and the ‘Displaced Other’ in Adversity.”
The Annual Living Faith Symposium of the National Seminary of Our Lady of Lanka, Ampitiya, was held on the 25th of October 2025, under the theme:
“The Integral Dignity of the Human Person in the Face of Today’s Challenges.”
This year’s keynote address was delivered by Rev. Dr. M. W. Sumeth Perera SJ, from the Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, Sabaragamuwa University of Sri Lanka, on the topic:
“Human Dignity and the ‘Displaced Other’ in Adversity.”
Fr. Sumeth offered a deeply reflective and intellectually engaging presentation that explored the intersection of theology, philosophy, and modern science. Drawing insights from Rt. Rev. Dr. Rowan Williams, former Archbishop of Canterbury, he addressed the growing tension between reductive scientific worldviews and the relational understanding of the human person.
He highlighted that human beings cannot be understood merely through mechanistic or genetic frameworks but must be seen as relational beings whose dignity arises from their capacity for communion and self-giving love. Emphasizing a threefold relational ethic rooted in kenosis — God’s self-emptying in love — Fr. Sumeth called for a renewed moral and theological response to the plight of the “displaced other” in today’s fractured world.
His thought-provoking reflections invited the participants to rediscover a language of dignity grounded in relationship, compassion, and shared vulnerability. The symposium concluded with an engaging discussion, where seminarians and formators reflected on how faith and reason together can uphold the sacredness of human life in the contemporary context.
Attached herewith the abstract:
