From the Revd Charles Overton

Sir, — Those of us who attended a lecture on the 400th anniversary of King James’s Bible were not told in advance who would be giving the lecture. That Mr Cameron should range quite widely across history and culture as well as language and form made the event all the better.

Afterwards, I noted that when I was leading worship in other European countries, people always expressed surprise to me that we had prayed for their president and other political leaders, while here in England we prayed for the Queen and the Government as a matter of course. Mr Cameron’s quick response was: “And for the Opposition, too, I hope.”

“Indeed we do,” I assured him.

From his tone, I had detected no sniping at the Archbishop in the lecture, and I believe his private remark about the Opposition was sincere, too. Fair play to him.

CHARLES OVERTON
The Vicarage, 4 Austenway
Chalfont St Peter
Bucks SL98NW

From the Revd and Mrs Martin Culverwell

Sir, — We were very interested in David Cameron’s comments on the teaching of Christian values. My wife and I asked ourselves what we were taught when we were young. We both came up with the same answer: the 1662 Catechism.

It is not written in language entirely appropriate for the present generation. We searched the internet, however, and found a document, copyright the Church of England in 1982, The New Revised Catechism of the Church Of England. Admittedly, at the time I was in the Falkland Islands, otherwise engaged, and will almost certainly have missed its launch, if there was one.

We have have never seen this document in a religious bookshop, a church or cathedral, or in Common Worship, and would have thought that, by now, there should be a pile of them in every church in the land, and in the possession of every member of each congregation. After all, how do we know what to teach if we do not have the basics of our faith easily available?

Could this rather good small pamphlet be made available to church schools, churches, cathedral bookshops, and congregations? It is a very good reminder of who we are, where we are going, and what we believe.

MARTIN CULVERWELL
8 Sandisplatt
Fareham PO14 3 AG