34 Matthew J. Walton and Susan Hayward from every side,” noted a monk involved in interfaith peacebuilding work.39 He offered examples of monks who criticized the 969 movement and were subsequently accused of not being “true Buddhists.” If a counternarrative is to be raised that will refute the 969 movement and promote religious pluralism and tolerance, a crucial element will be sensitivity to these concerns and a grounding in Buddhist frames. A Theravada Buddhist Argument for Religious Pluralism in Contemporary Myanmar Myanmar is at a crucial moment in its history, but entrenching a sustainable and just peace will require that the country strengthen religious pluralism, develop a national identity that is inclusive, and advance social and legal norms discouraging hate speech. This will require efforts from multiple sectors, including media, policymakers, and legal activists. But the religious sector will be crucial to developing social norms that support religious pluralism, and key to this will be the Buddhist monastic community, arguably the most influential social sector in Myanmar. How might one advance support for religious pluralism within a Theravada Buddhist frame that will not only resonate with Myanmar’s Buddhist community, but also acknowledge the complex challenges delineated above? This section will suggest elements of such an argument, building on some of the arguments already being advanced by Buddhist monastics working for interfaith coexistence. In Myanmar, the teachings of high-ranking monks, both living and dead, to whom one is affiliated as a student can be authoritative, in addition to the Pali canon (teachings of the Buddha as transmitted by his disciples in early Buddhist history and recorded in suttas40) and certain commentaries on the Pali canon (for example, those by the fifth-century scholar Buddhaghosa). Examples from Buddhist history, such as the famous Emperor Ashoka, are also influential. Finally, Jataka tales are popular and can be a source of moral authority. Each of these sources is drawn from in the following construction. Right Speech. In his teachings, the Buddha described an eightfold path of practices that leads one toward liberation, the ultimate goal of Buddhism. These are a series of attitudes and behaviors that are wholesome in nature and so, according to the law of karma, bring positive