{"id":12971,"date":"2025-06-09T06:11:26","date_gmt":"2025-06-09T10:11:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.vivalanka.com\/slcommunity\/?post_type=at_biz_dir&#038;p=12971"},"modified":"2025-06-09T06:11:26","modified_gmt":"2025-06-09T10:11:26","slug":"sri-lankan-catholics-of-new-york-new-jersey","status":"publish","type":"at_biz_dir","link":"https:\/\/www.vivalanka.com\/slcommunity\/directory\/sri-lankan-catholics-of-new-york-new-jersey\/","title":{"rendered":"Sri Lankan Catholics of New York &#038; New Jersey"},"content":{"rendered":"<p data-sourcepos=\"3:1-3:690\"><strong>Sri Lankan Catholic Community of New York and New Jersey<\/strong>, an organization that unites Sri Lankan Catholics from these states and neighboring regions. Their primary aim is to strengthen their faith and foster a sense of belonging among fellow expatriates. A significant aspect of their shared practice is the monthly celebration of the Holy Eucharist, often conducted in Sinhala, a main language of Sri Lanka, providing a familiar and comforting spiritual environment. Our Lady of Pity Church in Staten Island, New York, is a notable venue where this community regularly gathers for Mass, creating opportunities for fellowship and cultural exchange.<\/p>\n<p data-sourcepos=\"5:1-5:582\">Beyond regular worship, the community participates in various events that reflect both their religious devotion and cultural traditions. They frequently hold special Masses, rosary processions, and commemorative services, often in collaboration with broader Catholic institutions like the National Blue Army Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima in New Jersey. These events serve to honor religious feast days, remember significant national occasions, and provide a space for collective prayer and support, particularly during times of distress, such as following tragic events in Sri Lanka.<\/p>\n<p data-sourcepos=\"7:1-7:717\">Leaders within the community, including priests like Father Nalaka Silva, who has served as a coordinator for Sri Lankan Catholics in the region, play a crucial role in nurturing spiritual life and offering pastoral care. The community&#8217;s resilience and strong bonds were particularly evident in their unified response to the Easter Sunday attacks in Sri Lanka in 2019, organizing memorial services and vigils that drew support from local Catholic leaders, including Cardinal Timothy Dolan of New York, and interfaith representatives. This demonstrates not only their deep connection to their homeland but also their integration and impactful presence within the diverse religious landscape of New York and New Jersey.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":205,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","at_biz_dir-location":[63],"at_biz_dir-category":[4226],"at_biz_dir-tags":[3722,3791],"atbdp_listing_types":[36],"class_list":["post-12971","at_biz_dir","type-at_biz_dir","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","at_biz_dir-location-usa","at_biz_dir-category-sri-lankan-community-organizations-usa","at_biz_dir-tags-community-organization","at_biz_dir-tags-religious-organization","atbdp_listing_types-general"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v21.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\r\n<title>Sri Lankan Catholics of New York &amp; New Jersey - VivaLanka.com<\/title>\r\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\r\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.vivalanka.com\/slcommunity\/directory\/sri-lankan-catholics-of-new-york-new-jersey\/\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Sri Lankan Catholics of New York &amp; New Jersey - VivaLanka.com\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The Sri Lankan Catholic community in New York and New Jersey forms a vibrant and close-knit group, actively preserving their faith and cultural heritage in the United States. This community comprises immigrants and their families who have established a strong presence in the tri-state area, particularly in places like Staten Island, which is home to one of the largest expatriate Sri Lankan populations in the U.S.\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.vivalanka.com\/slcommunity\/directory\/sri-lankan-catholics-of-new-york-new-jersey\/\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"VivaLanka.com\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/VivaLanka\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.vivalanka.com\/slcommunity\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/464563899_9043139389038115_1622216985048893023_n.jpg\" \/>\r\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"960\" \/>\r\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"636\" \/>\r\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\r\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\r\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@vivalanka\" \/>\r\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\r\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.vivalanka.com\/slcommunity\/directory\/sri-lankan-catholics-of-new-york-new-jersey\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.vivalanka.com\/slcommunity\/directory\/sri-lankan-catholics-of-new-york-new-jersey\/\",\"name\":\"Sri Lankan Catholics of New York & New Jersey - VivaLanka.com\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.vivalanka.com\/slcommunity\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2025-06-09T10:11:26+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-06-09T10:11:26+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.vivalanka.com\/slcommunity\/directory\/sri-lankan-catholics-of-new-york-new-jersey\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-CA\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.vivalanka.com\/slcommunity\/directory\/sri-lankan-catholics-of-new-york-new-jersey\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.vivalanka.com\/slcommunity\/directory\/sri-lankan-catholics-of-new-york-new-jersey\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.vivalanka.com\/slcommunity\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Sri Lankan Catholics of New York &#038; New Jersey\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.vivalanka.com\/slcommunity\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.vivalanka.com\/slcommunity\/\",\"name\":\"VivaLanka.com\",\"description\":\"VivaLanka.com - Sri Lanka&#039;s Latest News\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.vivalanka.com\/slcommunity\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.vivalanka.com\/slcommunity\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-CA\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.vivalanka.com\/slcommunity\/#organization\",\"name\":\"VivaLanka.com\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.vivalanka.com\/slcommunity\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-CA\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.vivalanka.com\/slcommunity\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.vivalanka.com\/slcommunity\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/VivaLanka-Logo-scr.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.vivalanka.com\/slcommunity\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/VivaLanka-Logo-scr.png\",\"width\":3107,\"height\":2934,\"caption\":\"VivaLanka.com\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.vivalanka.com\/slcommunity\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/VivaLanka\",\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/vivalanka\",\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@vivalankanews\"]}]}<\/script>\r\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Sri Lankan Catholics of New York & New Jersey - VivaLanka.com","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.vivalanka.com\/slcommunity\/directory\/sri-lankan-catholics-of-new-york-new-jersey\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Sri Lankan Catholics of New York & New Jersey - VivaLanka.com","og_description":"The Sri Lankan Catholic community in New York and New Jersey forms a vibrant and close-knit group, actively preserving their faith and cultural heritage in the United States. 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