THE Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, yesterday severely rebuked bickering bishops and publicly backed the appointment of the gay theologian Dr Jeffrey John as Bishop of Reading.

In his strongest public statement since his enthronement earlier this year, Dr Williams said the credibility of the Church of England had been damaged in a debate which was regarded with “real incomprehension” outside the Church.

Although he did not refer directly to the ordination of Dr John in Westminster Abbey on October 9, which he will personally perform, he made it clear that there will be no going back.

The Archbishop’s letter, e-mailed last night to the 116 diocesan and suffragan bishops in England, addressed to his fellow bishops or “Brothers in Christ”, was a vivid expression of his frustration at the Church’s apparent obsession with gay sex. But his intervention failed to calm the acrimonious debate which is leading to growing fears of a schism in the Church, both in Britain and abroad.

The Archbishop immediately came under fire from evangelicals who accused him of “not giving the leadership we were hoping for”.

Dr Williams said: “What we say about sexuality (and not just on the same-sex question) is a necessary part of our faithfulness, but the concentration on this in recent weeks has had the effect of generating real incomprehension in much of our society, in a way that does nothing for our credibility.”

He effectively ordered the bishops to get their priorities right, and spoke about poverty, war and injustice.

His letter came a week after nine senior diocesan bishops criticised the appointment in an open letter.

The nine, including the fifth most senior in the hierarchy, the Bishop of Winchester, the Right Rev Michael Scott-Joynt, said that despite reassurances that Dr John was now celibate, they were concerned by his history of being in a homosexual relationship for 20 years.

Dr Williams looked relaxed as he walked to a lectern set up in the Lambeth Palace courtyard to read his letter, but the row is unlikely to go away. The gay rights campaigner Peter Tatchell last night threatened to “out” another prominent bishop today.

Dr Williams said: “I've sent a letter to the bishops, but because this is an issue which has clearly generated a great deal of interest and controversy I took the opportunity to share it more widely.”

He said it was important to clarify basic issues and insisted that the appointment had been done by the book, with no interference from him.

He had been assured that Dr John was both personally and publicly prepared to stand by the controversial 1991 document Issues in Human Sexuality which demands celibacy from gay clergy.

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