Does the church not realise how ridiculous it sounds?

What they don't say is how the Archbishop of Canterbury is going to go round and monitor any nocturnal goings-on or indeed day-time liaisons.

You can just picture the scene. The couple have just returned from their civil marriage service and then spend the evening playing Scrabble. Overcome by tiredness, they go off upstairs to their separate bedrooms.

They could take advantage of some biblical instruction and one of the partners move next door and then claim the Bible says that you "should love thy neighbour."

Then again the Archbishop of Canterbury could come round on a visit and say to them that "you should not covet thy neighbour's ass."

It's not an easy thing to be righteous, but I am reminded of the case of the young Welsh couple who, having met in their local Welsh chapel, fell in love and married there.

After their marriage they continued to attend chapel every Sunday and after a number of weeks in a rather embarrassed way they spoke to their minister and asked: "Is it all right to have sex on a Sunday?"

The minister said he would think about it and asked them to see him after the service the next Sunday.

When they met up after the Sunday service, he said: "I have given it a lot of thought and sex on a Sunday is quite all right so long as you don't enjoy it."

Derek Hanlin

Porth