Letter: The Bulger killing: Church teachingson evil; fears of the British public; family failings

Sir: 'The notion of evil exists in many dimensions' ('For James's sake, do not turn away', 25 November). And evil is as often caused by carelessness as malice. One of the oldest stimuli to anti-Semitism is the contrast between the respective ethics of Judaism and of Christianity erroneously implied by your assertion that the idea of evil 'evokes vengeance in the Old Testament and calls for love and forgiveness in the New'.

It was from Jews that Christians learnt that God is love and that love costs no less than everything.

Yours sincerely,

NICHOLAS LASH

Faculty of Divinity

University of Cambridge

Cambridge

25 November