Madam, – Paul Linehan wonders how many of our politicians are going to “tackle Britain’s monarch on the sectarian nature of the state of which she is head” (March 22nd). He backs up his claim by noting that a person must be of the Anglican faith in order to hold that title.
What Mr Linehan fails to point out is that Queen Elizabeth is also the head of the Church of England and as such, it makes perfect sense that the head of a faith must also be a member of that faith.
I wonder if Mr Linehan would like our politicians to tackle the Pope on the very same issue should he visit Ireland? For Pope Benedict XVI to have gained his title, and become head of state of the Vatican City, he must first have been a member of the Catholic Church.
This too would seem to be sectarian in nature without understanding the reasoning behind it. Or perhaps it too is just another “feudal anomaly”. – Yours, etc,