Wedded to beliefs

IT HAS never occurred to me, as Veronica Denyer suggested (Letters, 6 February), that same-sex marriages will come under pressure in any way from the new legislation, partly due to what she alludes to indirectly, ie the very small percentage of the population which is homosexual, the figure being quoted at 1-5 per cent of any population.

No, my dilemma is not as superficial as that. It does contain the concern that those of my belief, married or not, should be free not just to speak out, but also to live out their conviction in their daily lives. If the doubts I have prove to be unfounded, well and good. For my part, I would not hold Ms Denyer’s position on this matter to be “ridiculous”, only very different from my own.

In response to Neil Barber, (Letters, 7 February), all of us as citizens have a wider concern for practices that do not immediately impinge upon us because these practices shape the laws that govern our society.

To slap the label “homophobic” on supporters of traditional marriage is a slick put-down that makes people think twice before exposing themselves to the risk of such an insult. To presume those opposed to same-sex marriage are of the mindset this word implies is irrational.

Nancy Clusker

Edinburgh Road

Bathgate, West Lothian