From the Principal of Ripon College, Cuddesdon

Sir, — We have just completed the process of welcoming a total of 57 new ordinands on our various pathways run at and from Ripon College, Cuddesdon, and just this afternoon completed the induction of 12 new beginners on the Cuddesdon School of Theology and Ministry, a course designed for lay Christians wishing to develop their faith and witness through theological study.

This is another delightful cohort of enthusiastic Christian disciples whose ministry will be enriched by thoughtful and challenging engagement with Christian theology, and one that will, of course, be replicated in a range of other institutions and settings across the country.

To read Elizabeth Figg’s suggestion (Diary, 2 October) that participants on some discipleship courses are “bamboozled with theology” is sad, indeed.

In what sense, I wonder, does she believe that enhanced vocabulary and new tools to think and talk about the mystery of God “bamboozle”? Surely the opposite is the aim of all theological education and study at whatever level (and the achievement of most). I certainly hope so.

HUMPHREY SOUTHERN
Ripon College, Cuddesdon
Oxford OX44 9EX