Archbishop holds secret communion for gay clergy

A row erupted yesterday after it emerged the Archbishop of Canterbury kept the details of a communion service for gay clergy so secret that he failed to inform the Bishop of London it was taking place in his diocese.

Dr Rowan Williams reignited the row that is causing divisions within the Anglican Church after agreeing to hold a Eucharist for homosexual, lesbian, bisexual and transgender clergy.

Details of the service, attended by around 100 people, emerged yesterday, with the Archbishop said to have spoken openly about the future for gay people in the church.

The service was held at the end of last year (2007) in All Hallows by the Tower, a 7th Century church in the City of London, after the original venue, the liberal St Peter's Church in Belgravia, was "outed" on a hostile website.