Oh, how I agree with Sybil Foard (Letters, December 18), who disagrees with Adam Trimingham about Christ's lack of popularity at Christmas.

As Mrs Foard so rightly says of life: "Many, many folk realise the importance of emphasising its spiritual side."

I am tempted to go further than that. There is no way of knowing one way or the other but we might be spiritual beings having human experiences rather than human beings having spiritual experiences - like Jesus, I suppose, whose birthday we are supposed to be celebrating.

At risk of being accused of over-sentimentality, I have to say the birth of our first-born, Peter, remains for me the most profound experience of my life, thus far.

When his eyes first opened, I felt he had come from somewhere else.

I have my own theories as to where that somewhere might be - some call it faith and there is a certain ring of truth to Dr Carl Jung's famous reply when asked, towards the end of his life, if he believed in God: "I know I don't need to believe. I know."

-Richard W Symonds, Lavington Close, Crawley