The bishops of Worcester and Dudley have written to all clergy in their area saying “the time has come for the church to celebrate and honor same-sex relationships”. John Inge, a senior bishop, and Martin Gorick, a junior bishop in the diocese, said they preferred same-sex couples to be able to marry in church, although clergy should be allowed to act according to their conscience on the matter. Inge added in a tweet: “I am condemned to be silent for too long on what, I convinced myself, was the imperative of unity. I apologize to everyone who has been hurt.” The bishops of Reading, Buckingham and Dorchester tweeted an essay published on Friday by Stephen Croft, the bishop of Oxford, arguing that the C of E should end its refusal to allow same-sex couples to marry in church . Olivia Graham, from Reading, and Gavin Collins, of Dorchester, both said Croft had made “compassionate and courageous views”. Alan Wilson of Buckingham thanked Croft for “outlining an honest and godly view”. All three are junior bishops in the diocese of Oxford. Croft became the most senior bishop to publicly state his support for same-sex marriages to be officiated by the church and for clergy to be allowed to marry same-sex partners. He said the church’s refusal to treat same-sex couples equally had angered and alienated a generation. He apologized that his own views were “slow to change”. Croft’s intervention came after C of E bishops met for three days this week to discuss the issue, which has bitterly divided the church for decades. Next month, they will decide on the recommendation to go before the General Assembly, the EU’s governing body, in February. Although Justin Welby, the Archbishop of Canterbury, recently confirmed the validity of a 1998 declaration that homosexual sex was a sin, there are signs that the C of E may be moving towards allowing clergy to follow their conscience on the matter . A recent survey found that more than 1,100 licensed C of E priests were willing to perform same-sex marriages if they became legal. A separate analysis of the views of 6,400 churchgoers warned that division within the church over the issue was a “disaster that will go on and on”. Jayne Ozanne, a leading campaigner for LGBT+ equality at the C of E, said: “It is really encouraging to see a number of bishops now coming forward and adding their voices to Croft’s call for a church that seeks to honor and celebrate people of the same sex. love. Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you to the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertising and content sponsored by external parties. For more information, see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and Google’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. “The silence has been deafening and has only served to embolden conservatives while leaving LGBT+ people angry and alone.” There have also been strong condemnations of Croft’s stance. The Church of England’s Evangelical Council said it rejected the bishop’s theological argument. “CEECs continue to believe that the current EC position on human sexuality is based on the teaching of scripture and is therefore good for individuals and society as a whole.” Andrea Williams, chief executive of Christian Concern, said: “Our society is reeling from the damage caused by the sexual revolution: sexual license, divorce, pornography, abuse and gender ideology have caused untold damage.” Any move by the church “to review the doctrine of marriage will cause an open rift in the Anglican Communion, not just in the UK but around the world.” Anglican churches in the US, Scotland and Canada have already moved to start performing same-sex weddings, while the church in Wales has started offering blessings to married gay couples.
