I find the letter Late John Paul II rigid, Church inflexible to be very sad and close-minded. Looking upon John Paul and in the context of his life, teachings and his relationship to God, I must say the writer's opinions are truly misleading.

On the supposed failures of John Paul, allow me to state my opinions as a devout Catholic but one who sins and strives to do good.

Gender equality, specifically women's ordination

Pope John Paul II was profoundly for women. He adored and respected Mother Theresa and Mother Mary, the blessed Virgin Mother. Women have a role in the Church - that of the role of nuns - which should never be looked down upon and which he never did.

Each gender has a role to play, this has been developed not by chance but by divine providence. Might I add that I do not hear that men should allowed to be nuns. No calls as to why not allow men to take on the role of nuns.

Priestly celibacy

Two things - if a priest, that is not a Roman Catholic convert and who is married, he keeps his wife and with the Pope's blessing. Secondly, one who is a Catholic and decides to be come a priest knows he must choose.

Is this too hard for people to fathom? We take what comes from tradition - a priest, although a man, is married to the Church as is a nun, yet we hear no one asking for nuns to be allowed the right to marry.

Single adults' sexual rights

We are asked to lead a life of morality and is that so wrong? Is the human being still such an animal that cannot control itself. As such when we do sin, we ask for forgiveness and strive to do better. But we are first asked to live a life that has morals, ethics and behavior that is not animalistic.

Homosexuality

Who you are is who you are but I don't flaunt my heterosexuality. And it is a tradition that marriage is between a man and a woman, that they should be fruitful and multiply. Two men cannot get each other pregnant.

Family planning and the use of contraceptives

As a parent, I find the writer's statement hurtful and degrading. The rich tend not to have kids while the poor more, so is it condoms or just that some people are more greedy and ignorant as to what they can do. We human beings are not rabbits and I think we can assert some self-control over ourselves.

Safe sex

Hmm. If we practiced safe and smart sex to begin with, maybe we would not have so many cases of HIV and Aids. This says a lot about monogamy and marriage, doesn't it? Things that the Catholic church asks of its followers.

Remember the Catholic church is not made up of what we want today. It is a system of beliefs that have withstood 2,000 years of time and is still growing. And if one truly believes in the Church, it is God through the Holy Spirit who moved the cardinals to elect the new Pope. Therefore it was God who elected the Pope, not man.

And if God has faith in Benedict XVI to lead his Church, then so do I.