Church of England bishops stop planned trial of blessing services for gay couples

Church of England bishops have stopped a planned trial of separate blessing services for same-sex couples, saying the measure, that stoked deep divisions, needed to secure greater backing from the Church's governing body.

Same-sex blessings can still be carried out as part of regular church services. More conservative members of the Anglican faith had argued that separate blessings services would resemble a wedding, and contravene the Church's official view that marriage is between a man and a woman.

Stephen Cottrell, the Church's second most senior bishop, said they believed they had made the right decision following further legal and theological advice, but recognised for some it would be "difficult and disappointing."

The decision comes less than two weeks after Sarah Mullally was named as the next Archbishop of Canterbury, leader of the Church of England and ceremonial head of 85 million Anglicans worldwide. She is the first woman to hold the role.

Her appointment has drawn sharp criticism from conservative Anglicans, mostly in Africa and Asia, who have long clashed with their relatively liberal Western counterparts over issues such as same-sex unions and female clergy.

The bishops' decision could ease some of those tensions, but leaves Mullally in an awkward position as she had championed the services that were approved in 2023 by a narrow church vote on a trial basis for three years.

The services never began, however, as the Church could not agree on how they would be carried out in practice.

On Wednesday, bishops effectively scrapped the plan by deciding it would now need approval from a two-thirds majority of the church's governing body, made up of bishops, clergy and lay members.

The Church, which does not allow same-sex marriages in its 16,000 churches, crossed a milestone in 2022 when it decided to let priests bless same-sex couples within regular services open to the public.