Cathedral of Christ the King, Kurunegala explained

Cathedral of Christ the King
Geo:7.4864°N 80.3678°W
Location:Kurunegala, Sri Lanka
Religious Affiliation:Anglican, Church of Ceylon
Consecration Year:1956
Functional Status:Active
Architect:Wilson Peiris
Architecture Type:Church
Groundbreaking:1950[1]
Completed:1960
Construction Cost:Rs 500,000
Specifications:no

Cathedral of Christ the King[2] is located on Kandy Road, Kurunegala, Sri Lanka. It is the primary Anglican cathedral of the Diocese of Kurunegala, affiliated to the Church of Ceylon.

The construction of the church (estimated at a cost of Rs 500,000) was largely funded by Most Rev. Lakdasa De Mel, the first Bishop of Kurunegala, along with other members of the De Mel family.[3] The construction of the church commenced on 21 December 1950 (the feast of St. Thomas), upon a 1.4ha site,[4] at the base of Ethagala (Elephant Rock). The chapel of the Blessed Virgin and St. Thomas the Apostle were consecrated in 1956,[5] the ceremony was presided over by Rev. Aurobindo Nath Mukherjee, Metropolitan of India, Pakistan, Burma and Ceylon. The nave, the font, the pulpit and the lectern were consecrated in 1960. The architecture, especially the nave and roof is a combination of Polonnaruwa and Kandy era architecture,[6] reflecting the brick vaulted image houses (Polonnaruwa) and the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic (Kandy).[5] The cathedral is constructed out of cement and reinforced concrete. The central tower is 33m (108feet) high and crowned by a bronze cross. The brass lamps and the communion rails depict art motifs and lacquer work of Kandyan tradition.[5] The 'Cross of Anuradhapura' is also replicated in brass. The flags of the ‘Disavas’ (the traditional districts), which constituted the Diocese of Kurunegala, have been reproduced by Ena de Silva and are displayed on an interior wall of the cathedral.[5] The modern painting, by Nalini Marcia Jayasuriya, forms the backdrop to the Lady Chapel[5] [7] and the fresco of Christ the King was painted by George Keyt.[8]

Notes and References

  1. Book: Anglicanism: A Global Communion . Church Publishing, Inc. . Wingate, Andrew . Ward, Kevin . Pemberton, Carrie . Sitshebo, Wilson . 1998 . New York . 339 . 0898697174.
  2. Web site: Cathedral Church of Christ the King . Diocese of Kurunegala - Church of Ceylon (Anglican) . 20 July 2015.
  3. Web site: History of Kurunegala Diocese . Diocese of Kurunegala . 27 July 2015.
  4. Web site: Bishop Lakdasa De Mel : Called for Justice and Uplift of Poor . . Rev. Jeffrey . Abayasekera . 27 October 2002 . 20 July 2015 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20150924111814/http://www.sundayobserver.lk/2002/10/27/fea08.html . 24 September 2015 .
  5. Web site: Quarterly Tours – No. 19 . National Trust of Sri Lanka . Cooray, Nilan . 27 August 2011 . 27 July 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160304100747/http://thenationaltrust.lk/activities/download/National-Trust-19.pdf . 4 March 2016 . dead .
  6. Web site: Kurunegala, a Regal City . . Silva . Dhananjani . 28 September 2014 . 20 July 2015.
  7. Book: Encyclopedia of Sri Lanka . Gunawardena, Charles A. . Sterling Publishers Pvt. Ltd . 2005 . 201 . 9781932705485 .
  8. Web site: Sri Lankan Christian Art . The Serendib Gallery . 27 July 2015.