Clerical garb

Sir, - In response to D.J

Sir, - In response to D.J. O'Gorman (August 5th), I admire the fact that Father Sean Healy eschews clerical garb in favour of shirt and tie. That he gains well-deserved respect by his actions and not his apparel is to his credit.

Given the direction in which some of our seminaries are heading - i.e., lowering the standard for the intake of students and, in one institution at least, releasing the seminarians from the obligation of exams in the subjects studied - I would suggest to D.J. O'Gorman that the "half-baked idiots" might not be the ones wearing the shirts and ties.

Incidentally, as D.J. O'Gorman is PC and not CC, do I assume that he wears a shirt and tie? - Yours, etc.,

Angela O'Brien, Beech Park, Athlone, Co Westmeath.