THE plight of the Siamese twins, Jodie and Mary is tragic. If the operation to separate them is not performed then neither have much prospect of life. If the operation is performed then Mary will die so that Jodie can live.

Parents, doctors, and lawyers are all putting forward a whole variety of reasons for doing either one thing or the other. In the meantime it is in the hands of the courts to come up with a ruling.

According to the press, Lord Justice Ward has suggested that it is not God's will that the severely disabled Mary, who only survives because she is connected to her sister, should live.

On the other hand the Archbishop of Westminster has said that human beings never have the right to take life in such circumstances, so it must be God's will for Mary to live.

Appealing to God's will in circumstances like this does not help because we have no absolute proof of what God's will is. Just to say that something is or is not God's will doesn't actually make anything clearer.

Surely it is God's will that we human beings should use our own common sense when faced with such difficult decisions. God wants us to grow up. He doesn't want us to keep appealing to him when we can't make up our own minds. However difficult the decision I am sure that God wants us to be adult enough to come to that decision ourselves and to take responsibility for it.

Some Christians, and some people of other faiths, believe God reserves for himself all decisions to do with life and death. I do not think this is true. God calls us to make decisions even in these very difficult circumstances.

It is for this reason that I have faith in our legal system and our judges. The parent's wishes should be listened to with great respect. The wishes of the doctors and other medical staff should also be heard but, in the end, the courts should decide.

In this country we are very fortunate to have a legal system that is independent. We should trust that system to come up with a judgement. What the courts eventually say will please some and not others. But, as our representatives, we should trust them to bear all the important concerns in mind.

Where does God come in then? God comes in with the fundamental concern for justice. The church's job, the job of people of any faith, is to strive for a just legal system that can be independent enough to make such difficult decisions.

Michael Williams

Vicar of Bolton Parish Church