Evangelical church redirects payments after CofE gay blessing vote.
(Photo: Getty/iStock)St Ebbe's Oxford, a large Anglican evangelical church in the city centre attended by hundreds of university students, has announced a radical step towards financial independence from its diocese after the Church of England's decision to perform same-sex blessings.
St Ebbe's says it is now diverting payments it previously made to Oxford Diocese into a trust fund.
Its Rector, Canon Vaughan Roberts, said in a statement the day after the vote in the CofE's legislative body, the General Synod, on February 9: "St Ebbe's clergy have already declared that we are in impaired communion with the bishops in our diocese, which means that we will not welcome them to preach, confirm, ordain or conduct our ministerial reviews, and we will not take communion with them." CT.
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