Cardinal has an obligation to the Catholic Church

The cardinal has at no point suggested his views take precedence over those of other religious leaders, although they should certainly have greater weight from a Catholic's perspective. Furthermore, the cardinal's intervention did not at any point say that Catholic representatives must vote down any pro-choice legislation; what he did say was that supporting such motions was not conducive to a state in which he could see them being morally justified in receiving the Host. Therefore, abstentions are a valid course if the views of their constituents go against their conscience.

Your editorial contends that women do not, generally, take the decision without "much soul-searching". Yet, far too often, they take a decision that is not based on full knowledge of the method of abortion itself, which is cushioned in euphemisms and platitudes. Then those same women are abandoned to deal with their mental turmoil alone, or with the aid of bodies such as the church, as they come to the realisation of what they have done.

Abortion is the killing of an innocent child and in any right-minded person's view that is wrong. The church, or at least the Catholic Church, has taken a moral view on this situation: that the killing of innocent humans is wrong and should not be sanctioned, regardless of their age, ability to vote or ability to speak for themselves. In the absence of politicians courageous enough to stand up for and actively represent a morally justified view on this issue, it has fallen to Cardinal O'Brien to remind them of it.

Now it is their decision to follow a moral path or to allow these senseless murders to continue.

Michael Stringer, sixth-year student, St Ninian's High School, Giffnock, Glasgow.

Cardinal O'Brien's comments are not helpful to women facing the choice of abortion and just add more unnecessary stress to an already stressful decision.

Abortion in this country will remain debated by people who will never agree to change their opinion, and rightly so.

I have taken part in many debates and have been told I am pro-abortion (this is not the case) and a murderer. No woman is pro-abortion, but is left with a decision whether to go ahead with a pregnancy or not. Women terminate pregnancies because they see it as the right option for them and their family. They are neither selfish nor think it is an easy option, and I have 12 years experience of dealing with women in this situation.

This is the 40th anniversary of an Act of Parliament that freed women from seeking terminations at the hand of untrained help, and was brought to the fore by men and women who, on behalf of all women, gave them freedom of fertility choice. They were brave enough to put their heads above the parapet and fight for this necessary legislation. We appoint MSPs and MPs to represent our views and I am one who supports our parliaments to make the right decision for the majority, not the vocal minority.

Jackie Anderson, 10 Ottawa Crescent, Dalmuir, Clydebank.

Why is Cardinal O'Brien's sermon on abortion causing such a stir? Has it not yet dawned upon Scottish society that the Catholic Church opposes abortion as an objectively grave matter, even for politicians? It is clear that the cardinal's intention was to address this very matter. Perhaps many people in our society have still to understand that the Scottish Parliament is not, and cannot be, the highest authority in determining the obligations of Catholics and their stance on faith and morals.

There is no special dispensation granted through a politician determining the will of the Scottish people. Perhaps it is time for Scottish Catholics, especially politicians, to give some serious thought to that fact. Judging by the stir that has been caused, secular Scotland also has a job in getting to grips with this reality.

Martin Soares, 33 Lamlash Place, Motherwell.

Cardinal O'Brien was correct to draw attention to the high rates of abortion but he was utterly wrong to put ecclesiastical pressure on pro-choice Catholic parliamentarians at Westminster and Holyrood, for Britain is not a theocracy and we can be thankful for that. He has to live in the real world, a world in which self-gratification is becoming increasingly more important to the vast majority of individuals.

He has also got to face the fact that young people, although they are aware of contraception, are not apparently being made fully appreciative of its importance, benefits and failures. What is worrying is the fact that the Catholic Church appears only to advocate the methods of total abstinence, coitus interruptus and the use of the safe period, methods that are more open to failure than the widely available and more effective methods of contraception such as IUDs, condoms, oral contraceptives and implants.

Far more attention must be given to the whole topic of contraception beginning in all schools, where it does appear to be treated rather perfunctorily. Creating barriers to the implementation of successful contraception will not reduce the high abortion rates.

Ian F M Saint-Yves, Dunvegan, School Brae, Whiting Bay, Arran.

I've listened with increasing dismay to the Scottish hierarchy's advice to Catholic politicians over the issue of abortion to consider whether they should take communion. The pronouncements are but the last in line of a very troubling increase in the church's attempt to influence political issues from a standpoint of doctrine rather than reason.

I've no objection to bishops and others weighing in on issues of social justice when it's clear their arguments are rationally grounded and, indeed, they have done with good effect over nuclear arms and Third World poverty. However, to mention abortion in the same breath as Dunblane - or the Holocaust, as other members of the hierarchy have - is a serious moral misjudgment and a gross affront to those who suffered at the hands of a psychotic killer or the Nazis.

To call abortion "objectively a sin", even when applied to victims of rape or familial abuse or when a termination is the only way to save a woman's health, can cause immense personal suffering. It does not respect the right of a woman to make her own decisions about her health. While Cardinal O'Brien, whose experience and understanding of adult family life is necessarily restricted by the peculiarities of his calling, may have a lot to say about how women conduct their lives, he has had so little to say about the egregious issue of child abuse among his own clergy.

If the cardinal were to speak out as passionately about priestly child abuse, he might carry more authority on issues of abortion.

Tom Steele, 108 Roman Crescent, Old Kilpatrick.

Why are some people pretending to be shocked (or even surprised) by Cardinal O'Brien's reported remarks in relation to abortion and Catholic politicians?

Personal beliefs are not meant to be abandoned when someone goes through the doorway to a legislative chamber; conscience always should take precedence over other considerations.

Cardinal O'Brien was doing what he is called to do: to take a leading role in spreading the message of Jesus Christ in our country. His opponents are probably objecting to that rather than to anything else.

Donald Keane, principal teacher (Catholic Ethos), St Andrew's High School, North Douglas Street, Clydebank.

The issue of abortion is, of course, a profoundly moral one. Just as importantly, it is a legal issue. Cardinal O'Brien is entitled to have his own views represented in our democratically elected parliaments, as is the rest of the electorate.

He is further obliged and duty-bound by his position as our most prominent religious leader to represent the position of the Roman Catholic Church in our liberal democracy. Contrary to popular myth, his statements do, in fact, represent the views of the vast majority of Catholics.

This duty extends to making clear the position of the church to those politicians who, ignoring their conscience and the teachings of their faith, actively or passively support abortion. I sincerely wish more politicians spoke out on matters of conscience as honestly and bravely as Cardinal O'Brien.

Matthew Carlin, 33 Acacia Drive, Barrhead.

Abortion is and always will be a controversial issue. Cardinal O'Brien is entitled to his opinion, and it comes as no surprise. What the cardinal is not entitled to do, however, is hijack the appalling tragedy of Dunblane to advance his personal religious and political agenda. It is insensitive, unnecessary and inexcusable.

Alistair McBay, National Secular Society, 5 Atholl Crescent, Edinburgh.