Evangelicals have expressed "disbelief" at comments made by the Archbishop of Canterbury in which he claimed that gay sex is not sinful if it is within 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 a similar question to one 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 "better answer" to that question, Archbishop Welby said he did: "What the Archbishop of York and I, and the bishops, by a majority, by no means unanimous, and the Church is deeply split over this - where we've come to is to say that all sexual activity should be within a committed relationship and whether it's straight or gay.

"In other words, we're not giving up on the idea that sex is within marriage or civil partnership. We've put forward a proposal that where people have been through a civil partnership or a same-sex marriage, equal marriage under the 2014 Act, they should be able to come along to their local, to a church, and have a service of prayer and blessing for them in their lives together.

"So we accept that. Now, I think this is a long way from church same-sex marriage ..."

The Living in Love and Faith Process within the Church of England culminated in the decision 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 wider Anglican Communion, which largely holds to a traditional interpretation of marriage and sexuality. The Church of England leadership has continued to insist that official doctrine on marriage and sexuality is not being changed.

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 is no longer limited to heterosexual marriage and that the Church should bless sexual relations outside of marriage. 

"It is a devastating statement because it marks a clear departure from the doctrine of the Church of England, the Anglican Communion, and every other major Christian denomination across the world believe," it said. 

In a critique penned for the CEEC, theologian Andrew Goddard said Welby's comments were "simply wrong and misleading". 

"The Archbishop's answer might have been 'better' in the sense of probably being more appealing to Alastair Campbell. It is, however, in fact 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 as a result of having been so divided because of the direction set by the Archbishops and most of the bishops. The fact that there are such deep theological disagreements on these matters that need to be addressed cannot and must not be avoided.

"However, such significantly erroneous statements as these from no less than 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 both 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 statement: "Archbishop Justin was giving a personal view that reflects the position now held by himself, the Archbishop of York and many other bishops regarding sexual intimacy. He has been honest that his thinking has evolved over the years 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 in the life of the Church.

"However, there is no consensus among the bishops on this question, and the Church remains deeply divided. Archbishop Justin stressed his absolute commitment to those who hold a traditional view having 'a full and undoubted place in the Church of England'.

"His answer does not 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, together 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 seemed to have "jumped the gun" in speaking on behalf of the Church of England when it is still debating these issues. 

EA UK director Peter Lynas said that the "boundary has changed" within the Church of England. 

"It's not who you have sex with at this moment, so long as it's in a committed relationship. That's his only criteria, that's his shift in criteria, and it is a very significant shift," he said.