Central to the dodgy, money-spinning scam that is The Silver Ring Thing (The Argus, July 5), is the ridiculous notion that sex can only validly take place between a man and a woman who have married - and herein lies the hostility that so many Christian fundamentalists have towards same-sex unions.

"God", they declare with tedious monotony and smarty-pants smugness, "created Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve."

But what they fail to mention is that the institution of marriage, as laid out in that foolish, deeply sexist thing they call the "Holy Bible", carries with it many conditions and restrictions, many of which are nothing short of barmy.

For example, all women whose husbands have died are to refrain from intimacy and pleasure for the rest of their lives (1 Timothy 5:5-25).

No marriage may take place between a man and a woman who was previously divorced (Matthew 5:32).

No marriage should take place between a Christian and non-Christian (2 John 1:9-11; 2 Corinthians 6:14-17).

A man may not marry his chosen spouse if he has had sexual thoughts about another female (Matthew 5:28).

A rapist is required to marry his victim (Deuteronomy 22:28-29). But he is relieved of this obligation if the victim failed to cry out during the attack (Deuteronomy 22: 23-24).

No marriage should be sanctioned between a man and an aggressive or contentious woman (Proverbs 21:9, 21:19, 25:24, 27:15).

This alone, some might argue, would kill off the marriage industry at a stroke.

The fundamentalists, of course, keep schtum about all this, and much of the other nonsense contained in the bible, because they know they will appear even dottier than they actually are.

Barry Duke

-Viaduct Road, Brighton