Sir – Having read Daniel Emlyn-Jones’ letter (April 19), I am raising my head above the parapet to demonstrate my solidarity.

I would sincerely hope that Christian marriage is not fundamentally based on procreation, I have been happily married for 30 years and have never had the inclination to reproduce and I have never thought that my marriage is less than worthy.

I too would implore more Christians to demonstrate a greater degree of empathy, compassion and understanding and to refrain from thoughtless prejudice of homosexual people. I am not an expert in theology.

However, I do believe that Christians should attempt a greater analysis and comprehension of the interpretation and context of scripture before drawing conclusions from Biblical texts.

It does infuriate me that there are too many ‘own goals’ from the Christian community, resulting in hurt and damage to those who should be welcomed into the church and yet are excluded because of insensitive prejudice.

Vanessa Woodward (Mrs), (Lay Pastor Bayworth Chapel), Sunningwell