Leading bishops in the Church of England have secretly told Vatican officials they are ready to defect to Rome, it was claimed yesterday.Senior Anglican bishops met with the Pope's advisors for 'cloak and dagger' talks about plans which would allow large numbers of priests to convert to Catholicism.
Traditionalists have been angered over the introduction of women bishops, due to be debated at a crucial General Synod meeting in July.
A group of bishops travelled to Rome last week to hold face-to-face discussions with officials from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, the most powerful Vatican department.
The Rt Rev John Broadhurst, the Rt Rev Keith Newton and the Rt Rev Andrew Burnham, the bishops of Fulham, Richborough and Ebbsfleet, discussed how clergy could convert to Catholicism, the Sunday Telegraph reported.
The move is likely to raise tensions between the two churches, ahead of Pope Benedict's planned visit to Britain in September.
One bishop was said to have compared the summit to 'a declaration of war'.
It could open the door for the biggest exodus of Anglican priests since hundreds of Church of England clergy defected to Catholicism over the decision to allow women to be ordained.
More than 1,300 clergy have written to the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, threatening to leave if women are consecrated as bishops.
The Church of England has voted in favour of female bishops but has yet to work out how the legislation will be implemented.
The breakaway bishops were said to have hoped to keep the talks secret until after the papal visit, when Dr Williams will welcome the Pope to Britain.
Plans for the visit have already been mired in controversy because of the child abuse scandal and the leaked Foreign Office memo, suggesting Pope Benedict could launch a condom range and visit an abortion clinic during his time here.
An email sent by one of the priests, Bishop Burnham, revealed the degree of secrecy surrounding the clandestine Vatican talks.
'It has all felt a little bit like Elizabethan espionage,' he wrote. 'This is not known about fully in England and Wales... Hence the cloak and dagger.'
The Vatican opened the doors for Anglican clergy to convert last year, when it set out detailed plans to allow them to serve as Roman Catholic priests.
The offer included priests who were already married, but stipulated that clergy would have to accept Catholic views on contraception and the doctrine of the Pope's infallibility.
Dr Williams has urged Anglican clergy not to leave, and has appealed for unity over the divisive issue of women bishops.
SIC: DM