The article by Rennie McOwan on the Vatican claims that the papacy is the world's oldest continuous office (March 22). It is not. In order to claim that there was a papal succession beginning from Peter, a great deal of mythology must be permitted to masquerade as history.

If the same liberties with fact are permitted elsewhere, the oldest, continuously occupied and, quite remarkably, hereditary office in the world becomes the Japanese Imperial Hose, the apex of an ancient sacral society that has survived into modern times. It dates officially to 661 BCE, the present Emperor Heisei being the 125th incumbent.

As a footnote, at the institutional level, the Grand Shrine of Ise, the tutelary shrine of the Imperial Family, celebrated its 2000th anniversary last year, and Tsubaki Grand Shrine in Mie Prefecture celebrates its 2000th anniversary of founding in October of this year.

In the interests of completeness and perspective, it should not be forgotten that the Chinese Imperial institution, which was terminated in 1911, had around 4000 years of history behind it, and that the oldest continuous civilization on the planet is located in Asia, namely China.

It would therefore also seem appropriate that Mr. McOwan's claim, about the papacy having helped to shape the modern world, be revised to read "modern Western world".

Alas, it is clear that narcissistic Europe-centrism, with all the now irrelevant and burdensome historical baggage it carries, is still thriving as we move closer to the century which historians appear, in advance, to have tagged the age of the Pacific.

Professor Stuart D.B. Picken,

8 Barnwell Road, Stirling.

March 22.