Archbishop of Canterbury’s gay sex comments spark backlash

Evangelicals have expressed “disbelief” at comments made by the Archbishop of Canterbury by which he claimed that gay sex shouldn’t be sinful whether it is inside a committed relationship. 

Archbishop Justin Welby made the comments on The Rest is Politics podcast hosted by former Labour spin doctor Alastair Campbell and former Tory MP Rory Stewart.

Campbell used the podcast to pose an identical query to 1 he had asked Archbishop Welby in a 2017 interview for GQ magazine about whether he believed gay sex was sinful. 

Asked if he now had a “higher answer” to that query, Archbishop Welby said he did: “What the Archbishop of York and I, and the bishops, by a majority, certainly not unanimous, and the Church is deeply split over this – where we have come to is to say that every one sexual intercourse ought to be inside a committed relationship and whether it’s straight or gay.

“In other words, we’re not giving up on the concept that sex is inside marriage or civil partnership. We’ve recommend a proposal that where people have been through a civil partnership or a same-sex marriage, equal marriage under the 2014 Act, they need to find a way to return along to their local, to a church, and have a service of prayer and blessing for them of their lives together.

“So we accept that. Now, I feel it is a great distance from church same-sex marriage …”

The Living in Love and Faith Process inside the Church of England culminated in the choice to introduce prayers of blessing for same-sex couples. The Prayers of Love and Faith (PLF) have been hugely divisive and set the Church of England at odds with much of the broader Anglican Communion, which largely holds to a standard interpretation of marriage and sexuality. The Church of England leadership has continued to insist that official doctrine on marriage and sexuality shouldn’t be being modified.

The Church of England Evangelical Council (CEEC) called Welby’s latest comments “staggering”. It expressed “disbelief” that the Archbishop used the interview to suggest that sexual intimacy isn’t any longer limited to heterosexual marriage and that the Church should bless sexual relations outside of marriage. 

“It is a devastating statement since it marks a transparent departure from the doctrine of the Church of England, the Anglican Communion, and each other major Christian denomination internationally consider,” it said. 

In a critique penned for the CEEC, theologian Andrew Goddard said Welby’s comments were “simply fallacious and misleading”. 

“The Archbishop’s answer might need been ‘higher’ within the sense of probably being more appealing to Alastair Campbell. It is, nonetheless, in truth so highly misleading and inaccurate as to suggest a disturbing level of some combination of ignorance, misrepresentation, dishonesty and inaccuracy on the Archbishop’s part in his account of the church’s recent decisions, its doctrine, and its stated rationale for PLF,” he said. 

“Our dire situation as a church is bad enough in consequence of getting been so divided due to direction set by the Archbishops and a lot of the bishops. The proven fact that there are such deep theological disagreements on these matters that should be addressed cannot and must not be avoided.

“However, such significantly erroneous statements as these from a minimum of the Archbishop of Canterbury, unless swiftly followed by an apology and correction, can only add further to the widespread erosion of trust and growing sense of disbelief, betrayal, deception, anger and despair now felt across much of the Church of England in relation to each the PLF process and our archiepiscopal leadership.” 

Lambeth Palace has sought to play down the controversy by stating that the Archbishop was sharing his personal view on the matter. 

It said in a press release: “Archbishop Justin was giving a private view that reflects the position now held by himself, the Archbishop of York and lots of other bishops regarding sexual intimacy. He has been honest that his considering has evolved over time through much prayer and theological reflection – particularly through the Living in Love and Faith process – and he now holds this view sincerely. It reflects his commitment to continuing to welcome, love and include LGBTQ+ people more fully within the lifetime of the Church.

“However, there is no such thing as a consensus among the many bishops on this query, and the Church stays deeply divided. Archbishop Justin stressed his absolute commitment to those that hold a standard view having ‘a full and undoubted place within the Church of England’.

“His answer doesn’t indicate a changing of teaching from the House of Bishops. This is an ongoing conversation across the Church – and Archbishop Justin hopes that the bishops, along with clergy and laity, will keep praying and reflecting on these questions.” 

Discussing the row on the Cross Section podcast, the Evangelical Alliance’s Danny Webster said the Archbishop looked as if it would have “jumped the gun” in speaking on behalf of the Church of England when it continues to be debating these issues. 

EA UK director Peter Lynas said that the “boundary has modified” inside the Church of England. 

“It’s not who you will have sex with at this moment, as long as it’s in a committed relationship. That’s his only criteria, that is his shift in criteria, and it’s a really significant shift,” he said.