The Church of England warned last night that it is under pressure to accept gay marriage.But two senior bishops - writing on behalf of the CofE - said it is not prepared to abandon its traditional teachings in favour of the idea of 'gender neutral' marriage.
They said that the Church of England considers 'it is vital for the Church to maintain a critical distance from the state and to resist what the state is doing if this is at odds with Scripture.'
The fears over same sex marriage were made public at a meeting of the Church's parliament, the General Synod.
They come at a time of high tension between Labour ministers and leading churches over gay rights and equality laws
The concerns were raised in a letter from Bishop of Guildford Dr Christopher Hill and Bishop of Chichester Dr John Hinds to leaders of the Swedish state church which has close and formal links with the Anglicans.
The bishops - writing on behalf of the CofE - said they could not accept beliefs 'in which the idea of a fundamental distinction between the genders is seen as irrelevant and in which marriage is therefore seen as something that can and should be gender neutral.'
Their letter was a response to moves in the Church of Sweden to offer gender neutral marriage services which could be used for either brides and grooms or for same sex couples.
But it made plain that the CofE will resist pressure from the Government in Britain to introduce any form of same sex marriage.
The said that Church of England leaders believe the Swedish proposal, 'relating as it does to the wider cultural, political and social situation, raises important ecclesiological questions about the relationship of Church and society and the essential freedom that the Church possesses to order its life according to the Gospel.
'From a Church of England perspective it is vital for the Church to maintain a critical distance from the state and to resist what the state is doing if this is at odds with Scripture and the Catholic tradition.'
The Church has been increasingly worried about state attempts to interfere with its moral teachings over recent years.
The Sexual Orientation Regulations introduced by Tony Blair following a Cabinet split in 2007 have made churches fearful they will be forced to employ gay staff and teachers and to accept gay lobby propaganda in their offices and conference centres.
They are fearful of the impact of the Equality Bill now being steered through parliament by Harriet Harman.
The worldwide Anglican church is also currently breaking apart over strains brought by the decision of US churches to ordain a gay bishop.
Last weekend one CofE bishop, Bishop of Rochester Dr Michael Nazir-Ali, deepened tensions by saying gays should 'repent'.
The two CofE bishops said they were 'acutely conscious of the immediate and negative ecumenical consequences of moves within any of the Swedish to revise traditional Christian teaching and practice in matters of human sexuality.'
It warned that changes in Sweden could 'undermine the fragile unity of the Anglican Communion.'
The bishops said one proposal under consideration in Sweden - dropping marriage services entirely to allow the state to monopolise marriage - could not spread to England.
They said they were 'very conscious that all churches are faced with similar issues about changes in Western culture.'
Roman Catholic churches have recently split with or closed down adoption agencies because of Labour laws that say gay couples must be considered to adopt children.
There is also deep concern among churches over official attempts to prevent the expression of Christian faith, for example by dismissing nurses who try to pray with patients.
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