The editor of a Christian publication has apologised for having published an ad that went viral about a father in Illinois looking for a good suitor for his daughter whom he described as "godly and gorgeous'' and a '"virgin.''

Christianity Today Editor-in-Chief Mark Galli said the ad was "rightfully seen as demeaning" and that it was "in poor taste.''

"We have taken a hard look at our ad review process, made some changes, and we can assure our readers that no ad like this will appear again,'' he wrote.

In the ad that appeared in the magazine's employment section, Stephen Stewart asked potential suitors to find out more about her daughter by applying for the "available position" of "Son-In-Law,'' Charisma News reported.

It reads: "Her: godly, gorgeous, athletic, educated, careered, humorous, travelled, bilingual, 26-year old virgin.

"You: unworthy, though becoming less so daily.''

Stewart included his email address where interested suitors could "apply.'' He also listed his daughter's blog, Breaking the Silence.

The daughter, Rachel Stewart, said she was tipped off by some "sympathetic women" in the comments of her blog of her dad's advertising acumen. "So naturally I called my dad at work and asked if he knew anything about a personal ad in the leading evangelical magazine envisioned by Billy Graham," Rachel said, according to Charisma News.

"His response was revelatory, 'One second. Let me close my door.' Then came his unapologetic admission about the entire thing that concluded with him reading it to me. Impressed, but not surprised, I laughed and then hung up. It wasn't a minute later that I received a text from my mom saying, 'I hear the cat is out of the hat.' Her Puerto Rican version of the expression was the perfect gesture to remind me why I love my parents," Rachel said.

She said she is "not angry or embarrassed'' but rather amused by the "remarkable'' ad, according to the Daily Beast.

"I'm just nervous if this doesn't work out, next I'll find my face plastered on a billboard,'' she posted. "I need a special kind of love. This gonna be fun..."

Rachel believe that his father was not "trying to sell a cattle'' as one commenter put it by placing her on jobs listing but instead provided "a platform upon which God is glorified and others are drawn toward a personal relationship with his Son, Jesus Christ.''

"This has nothing to do with money and everything to do with encouraging singles to seek first the kingdom of God,'' she said, The New York Daily News reported.