Sir – Mr Weavers says (Letters, March 26) that Stephen Fry’s stance to suffering is no more satisfactory than Rowan Williams “mysterious”.

I don’t see the relevance of the word satisfactory. I suppose I could consider my belief that I will have no life after death as unsatisfactory, I don’t like the thought, but I can’t ignore the probability just because I don’t like what it tells me. Yes, blind forces.

He appears to suggest a continuous circle of offence and reprisal is inevitable. It is not. The answer is to grow up, and learn to live with things we don’t like to hear.

Mr Emlyn-Jones quotes Milton. I will quote Bob Dylan, he said “Even the president of the United States sometimes must have to stand naked”. The cartoon he quotes clearly refers to censorship, and the attitude of some of the religious to gay people.

He might be surprised to know that some people find homophobia offensive, and, therefore, satirise it. He can’t see that one person’s idea of what is offensive is not the same as another’s. We have to learn to disagree, and live with our personal discomfort at the things other people say that offend us. It is all too easy to hide behind offence, especially if it stops people questioning the less pleasant aspects of what some hold to be sacred.

Paul Surman
Horspath