Rational fear
Sir: An interesting contrast between the articles by Douglas Murray and Innes Bowen on Islamic influence in the UK (‘Save the children’, 14 June), and the one by Matthew Parris.
Mr Parris sees no essential difference between faith schools. But Christians do not on the whole advocate holy wars against non-Christians, or demand that adulterous women be stoned to death, or that anyone who insults their religion should be beheaded. True, there was a time when the Church might have done all these things, but that was hundreds of years in the past and we are now more enlightened.
Recent events in Syria and Nigeria, and now in Iraq, do not inspire confidence in Islamic moderation. But any criticism is immediately seized on as Islamophobia. I thought that a phobia was an irrational fear of something. I don’t see anything irrational in fearing the march of militant Islam.
Jerry Emery
Lewes, East Sussex
Medievalism reborn
Sir: Having been shocked by the revelations in Douglas Murray’s article, and being conscious of the decline in the traditional meaning of British values, I feel bound to propose the following.
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