Sir, – The remarks of Mary McAleese regarding the qualifications of Catholic bishops to speak on family life struck me as terribly unfair ("Asking bishops for advice on family life 'bonkers', says McAleese", June 17th) .
While bishops may not be fathers in the biological sense (we hope!), they are sons, and many are brothers and uncles. All have grown up in families. In their pastoral life, I think it is fair to say they (as priests firstly) accompany people in their family life more than any other profession, walking members of their flock through the defining moments of many families’ lives – baptism, confirmation, matrimony and death.
If failure to procreate necessarily excludes someone from commenting on the family, then a great deal of Jesus Christ’s teachings in the New Testament are also “bonkers”. – Yours, etc,
Dr SEAN
ALEXANDER SMITH,
Chao de Loureiro,
Lisbon.