The Diocese of London is staying tight-lipped about the Permission to Officiate (PTO) held by the Revd Rico Tice, the founder of the international Christianity Explored evangelism course, who has just announced that he has left the Church of England.
In a widely-publicised interview in May’s edition of Evangelicals Now, Mr Tice revealed that he now worships at the International Presbyterian Church in Ealing, West London.
He said he made the move when he received ‘no substantive response’ from Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby after he and five other ‘evangelical leaders of parachurch organisations’ wrote last October objecting to ‘the church’s onward trajectory toward affirming same-sex marriage, specifically the new Prayers of Love and Faith’.
Mr Tice said: ‘I retain my Permission to Preach (sic), so I can still speak in C of E churches. But I think it vital that I demonstrated clear separation from a church that no longer affirms Biblical orthodoxy, especially with regard to preaching repentance.’
The C of E’s National Register of Clergy reveals that Mr Tice holds PTO in London Diocese.
Anglican Ink contacted Luther Pendragon, the public relations agency for London Diocese, to ask what view the Bishop of London, Sarah Mullally, takes of Mr Tice’s decision to leave the C of E and yet retain her licence to preach and take services under her jurisdiction. The Archdeacon of London, the Ven Luke Miller, was also contacted.
A spokesman for London Diocese said: ‘Bishop Sarah is currently away on study leave.’
In December 2022 Rico Tice announced that he was stepping down as Senior Minister for Evangelism at All Souls Langham Place after 28 years on the staff of the conservative evangelical flagship church in central London, to join Christianity Explored Ministries full-time.
Mr Tice launched the Christianity Explored course materials in the 1990s as a theological alternative to the evangelical charismatic Alpha Course which started in 1977 at Holy Trinity Brompton in London’s West End. A DVD course presented by him, released in the early 2000s, has been widely used in conservative evangelical C of E parishes.
Christianity Explored was incorporated as a private company in the UK in 2007. Its Companies House entry reveals that Mr Tice resigned as a director in September 2023.
Christianity Explored Ministries, which has an International Operations Co-ordinator and a UK National Director, lists him as an evangelist with the West London-based organisation.
He was approached for comment via the Christianity Explored Ministries website.
Julian Mann is a former Church of England vicar, now an evangelical journalist based in the UK.
