Knox in mind

It was with a wry smile I noted that in calling for ''a greater unity in the Church'', the Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland has urged the Kirk to continue the reforming tradition begun by John Knox 450 years ago (your report, 24 May).

In light of such a remark, it will be of interest to observe as a layperson how the visit of the Pope to Scotland this autumn is dealt with by the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, and even Holyrood.

For as the Moderator will be well aware, in his early days at St Andrews John Knox rejected Roman Catholic beliefs and practices which still persist to this day, such as the mass, purgatory, prayers for or to the dead, and even declared many of the glistering ceremonies, to include the wearing of rich vestments by priests, as idolatrous and an abomination before God.

His plan was not just to lop off the branches, but strike at the very root and destroy the whole for, as Knox thought at the time, the Roman Catholic Church constructed its worship upon a faulty foundation: human traditions and the inventions of men, rather than in the manner as prescribed in God's word.

The Moderator must urge the Church of Scotland as he sees fit.

However, in so doing , he should be reminded of the saying "be careful what you may ask for" not least in prayer, for on this occasion he may get rather more than he bargained for.

NEIL McKINNON

Tulchan Garden

Glenalmond, Perth