MINISTER Joe Wright was asked to say the opening prayer at the Kansas State Senate. Usually the prayer is very prosaic and gentle. This is what he said:

"Heavenly Father we ask for your forgiveness and seek your direction and guidance. We know your word says woe to those who call evil good" But that is exactly what we have done. We have lost our spiritual equilibrium and reversed our values.

We confess that . . .

We have ridiculed the absolute truth of your word and called it pluralism;

We have worshipped other gods and called it multiculturalism;

We have endorsed perversion and called it alternative lifestyle;

We have exploited the poor and called it the Lottery; We have rewarded laziness and called it welfare;

We have culled our unborn and called it choice;

We have shot abortionists and called it justifiable;

We have neglected to discipline our children and called it building self-esteem;

We have abused power and called it politics;

We have coveted our neighbour's possessions and called it ambition;

We have polluted the air with profanity and called it freedom of expression;

We have ridiculed the time-honoured values of our forefathers and called it enlightenment!

Some Legislators walked out in protest and in the following six weeks more than 5,000 telephone calls responded positively to his message. Requests for the prayer have come from India, Africa and Korea.

St George would add only one further edict to this much overdue message and that is:

We have allowed the intrusion of political correctness into society and thereby perverted the truth in our daily lives.

STUART MADERS,

Turnbull Avenue, Prestwich.