The church and the temple: Catholic Sinhalese and heritage crossings in Sicily (Southern Italy)

In this article I draw on ethnographic research among Sri Lankans in the southern Italian region of Sicily. There, a conspicuous Sinhala community (mostly Catholics) has established itself since the Eighties. Focusing particularly on Sinhala Catholics living in Messina, I un-pack the entanglements of heritage and religion in two interconnected case-studies. On the one hand, I discuss the complex and multifaceted relations between Sinhala Catholics in Sicily with the pastoral and ecclesial institutions of the local Catholic Church. On the other hand, I consider ways in which the Sinhalese mobilize Sri Lankan cultural heritage (strongly connected to the Buddhist tradition) in public local events for a broad audience in Messina. Both case-studies speaks to the crucial role played by both religion and heritage in reconfiguring diaspora's identities. At the same time, contexts of transnational mobility provide the ground for the reciprocal transformation of both religion and heritage.