Letter: Papal welcome

Even the groups protesting against the Pope's visit have said repeatedly that they have no objection to him coming to the UK to address his "flock".

Their objection is that this visit is part-funded by the hard-pressed taxpayer because it is a state visit rather than a pastoral one, and from the representative of an institution that owes its dubious statehood to the political machinations of a sympathetic fascist dictator.

In any case, are we really surprised that research commissioned by the Church should find in its favour?

Alistair McBay

Methven

Perth

IT IS pure spin by the Catholic Church to say that the majority of Scots are in favour of the Pope's visit. While it is true only 5 per cent stated they were strongly against the visit, 65 per cent of people stated that they were ambivalent towards it.

Ambivalence is hardly the "ringing endorsement" that the Catholic Church seeks to portray it as. I suspect as well if the question had been framed as "Do you, the taxpayer, favour funding a visit by the Pope at a time when police budgets are facing record cuts?" those who were sitting on the fence would overwhelmingly say no.

One also wonders if the respondents who were undecided about the Pope's visit would be of such an opinion if they knew what Joseph Ratzinger's positions on abortion, stem cell research and contraception were.

The 65 per cent who said they were undecided seem to simply not care that Mr Ratzinger is coming to Scotland.

The poll also suggests that 1.25 million Scots regularly attend some sort of church every week. I would simply ask which churches they are attending. The main denomination in Scotland is haemorrhaging money and shrinking at an exponential rate.

There simply is not enough church space in Scotland to accommodate the 1.25 million worshippers per week who this poll alleged there are in Scotland.

Alan Hinnrichs

Noran Avenue

Dundee