Tom Heneghan’s excellent article on the clash between sacred and secular in the thinking of Olivier Roy (“Spread of the French malaise”, 27 June) throws light on something that could affect the outcome of the synod in October.Roy speaks of the “disconnect between religion and the dominant culture”. Sadly, this is evident in much preaching and in the ways many dioceses connect with the wide variety of people both within and outside the church. We just don’t seem to have the right words to speak to our culture and often offer tired and outmoded spiritualities. We don’t have the right attitude either and are too quick to condemn what we do not really understand. Whatever the synod might suggest in the difficult areas of pastoral life on its agenda, i