Madam, – It is sad when a columnist in The Irish Timesgratuitously insults the religious beliefs of readers, but it is worse when he insults their intelligence as well. John Gibbons ("Ayatollah would have seen McQuaid as kindred spirit", Opinion, August 6th) committed a succession of such lapses, and so missed a splendid opportunity to engage with a serious readership.
One example will suffice. He imagines that an inconsistency exists between Pope Benedict XVI holding that non-Christians are in a “gravely deficient situation for salvation” and the same Pope asking Christians to build a society “marked by mutual respect among religions”.
It is precisely those with mutually exclusive convictions as to the validity of their different faiths or their absence of faith, who need to show respect for one another. This respect is founded on the human right of every person to adhere freely to their convictions.
In contrast, tolerance of those with whom one agrees is a rather minor achievement.
– Yours, etc,