Bishop of Reading backs marriage for gay couples

The Bishop of Reading, the Right Reverend Olivia Graham, said she agreed with the Bishop of Oxford

Another bishop from the Diocese of Oxford has said that clergy should be able to bless and marry gay couples.

On Thursday Bishop of Oxford, The Right Reverend Dr Steven Croft published an essay saying the church's position had "caused genuine hurt, disagreement and pain".

The Bishop of Reading, the Right Reverend Olivia Graham, said he was "not a lone voice".

By law no Church of England minister can bless or marry gay couples.

In the essay, he said clergy should also be allowed to marry a same-sex partner if they wished.

He is the most senior cleric in the Church of England to so far speak out in favour of same-sex marriage.

Rt Revd Dr Steven Croft said his own views on same-sex marriage had been "slow to change"

The essay, Together in Love and Faith, sets out the ways Bishop Croft's own views on same-sex relationships have changed over the last decade.

"I need to acknowledge the acute pain and distress of LGBTQ+ people in the life of the Church," he wrote.

"I am sorry that, corporately, we have been so slow as a Church to reach better decisions and practice on these matters."

The Bishop of Reading, a suffragan bishop within the Diocese of Oxford, told the BBC the "time has come" to allow the blessing and marrying of same-sex couples by the Church of England.

"The church has dealt very badly with the whole issue of human sexuality and the stance has been very damaging to gay Christians - it's something that needs to be put right."

She said the Bishop of Oxford's comments were "hugely significant".

"Stephen Croft is a significant biblical scholar and he hasn't come to the view quickly or lightly, so what he has said carries weight.

"My personal view is that I would long for us to welcome same-sex couples into the church and bless and possibly to marry them in church, but I'm aware this is a decision the whole church has to come to and own together."