Majority of Church of England Priests Support Same-Sex Marriage, Study Finds

Results from a recent study show a significant increase in attitudes towards same-sex weddings from Church of England priests. A survey from 2014 indicated that only 39% of priests approved of same-sex marriage, whereas new research from the Times has revealed that 53.4% are now in favor.

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This indicates a major shift in attitudes towards same-sex relationships from the Church of England in the past 10 years, with only 36.5% of survey participants voting against supporting a change of law to allow gay marriage.

The study, which analyzed 1,200 responses sent out to 5,000 randomly chosen serving priests in the United Kingdom, also revealed that the majority of Church of England priests would like to see the Church no longer be opposed to premarital and gay sex.

Compared to the 2014 survey, which saw 51% of priests claim that same-sex marriage was “wrong”, versus only 39% who approved, this is significant breakthrough for the Church of England.

Andrew Foreshew-Cain, founder of the Campaign for Equal Marriage in the Church of England, expressed his belief that there is now no excuse in delaying full acceptance of LGBTQ+ people into the church.

“The clergy of the Church of England are kinder, more generous, and more welcoming towards LGBTI people than the current official position allows,” he said. “The C of E, and in particular our bishops, needs to stop wringing its hands over gay people and move forward towards blessings and, in time, to celebrating same-sex marriages in our parishes.”

Robbie de Santos, director of communications at Stonewall, agreed, stating his belief that the survey results were an encouraging sign of changing times.

“We hope that church leaders reflect on these findings,” he said. “Too often, LGBTQ+ people of faith face discrimination and prejudice simply for being themselves.”

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