[WoCTrt0X]

Reading and studying the suttas is discouraged in favor of learning the Vinaya code.

You were in Thailand though FBM, weren't you? That may not be the case with the Forest Tradition in the west because I recall Ajahn Sumedho often refering to the suttas in his offline talks.

Also this free book doesn't suggest discouragement of sutta study either;


The Island: An Anthology of the Buddha’s Teachings on Nibbāna

by Ajahn Pasanno & Ajahn Amaro


What is presented here is an attempt by Ajahn Pasanno and myself to put together a small compendium of these ‘essence teachings’ of the Buddha, as they appear in the Pali Canon and have been conveyed by the lineages that rely upon them (the Thai forest tradition in particular), in the hope that they will be of benefit to those who rejoice in the liberation of the heart. All the other references that are made herein, whether drawing on Thai forest meditation masters, modern science, classical literature, Northern Buddhism or whatever, are made solely to help illustrate the meaning of the Pali – it is the faith of the editors that the Buddha’s words can speak for themselves and this work has been compiled with that intention.

http://www.abhayagiri.org/main/book/1788/