Letter: In Brief

Alexandria, Virginia, USA

Sir: David Bishop is right that Jesus nowhere uses the phrase "all people are equal" (letter, 28 December), though St Paul comes close when he says that for Christians "there is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, but all are one in Christ Jesus". But he had something much more important to proclaim: the coming of the kingdom of God. For this to happen everyone has to be treated as equal, which is why Jesus teaches us to love all our neighbours, even the outcast and despised, as we love ourselves.

The Rev MICHAEL COUNSELL

London SE23