Opinion v policy

Published on 01/08/2012 00:00

David Robertson of Christian group Solas writes (Letters, 31 July) that I complained about special interest groups taking part in the Scottish Government’s consultation on same-sex marriage. I did not.

Any person or group has the right to respond to a consultation. My point was that, because of the potential for large organised groups of whatever view to respond to a consultation, it is not the numbers of consultation responses that should influence the government’s decisions, but the issues and policy points raised in the responses.

As far as numbers go, the independent academic study of public opinion on marriage equality is the Scottish Social Attitudes Survey, which found 61 per cent of Scots support same-sex marriage, with 19 per cent opposed.

Tim Hopkins

Equality Network

Bernard Street

Edinburgh

Mary Brown opined (Letters, 31 July) that: “Jesus did not invent Christianity, and his early followers called it ‘The Way’ – that is it was a way of living in harmony with the Divine Creator and Her creation.”

Anyone with more than a superficial understanding of the gospels will recognise Dr Brown’s view for what it is: revisionism projecting her own vague spiritual beliefs back on to Jesus, while ignoring his actual teachings.

Liberal re-interpreters of Christianity are not the “developing voice of Christianity”, but represent a small and rapidly declining sector of world Christianity.

John Murdoch (Letters, same day) is beginning to wonder if he has any right to claim to be a Christian. If Mr Murdoch has come to God in repentance, placing his faith in Christ, and now seeks to live his life in communion with God, accepting God’s guidance, then surely he can regard himself as a Christian.

However, people who just think there is probably a god of some sort and have sung a few hymns in their time, and are therefore more inclined to bow to cultural fashion than Christian teaching, should perhaps explore the faith in more depth if they want to describe themselves as Christians.

Richard Lucas

Broomyknowe

Edinburgh