A parishioner has been banned from saying prayers 'to protect the congregation' after speaking out over the War on Iraq.

Mark Jepson and his family feel they have been forced to leave St Margaret's Church in Horsforth after 17 years after he openly criticised the war in an Easter prayer in front of more than 150 parishioners.

Church chiefs have gagged Mr Jepson removing him from their prayer rota claiming it is for 'the protection of the congregation'.

Mr Jepson, from Bramhope, is deeply upset and has made the heart-wrenching decision not to attend services there.

The family has been unable to find a new church which they love as much as St Margaret's.

"It was my turn to say a prayer about things we want to improve. A number of people said it wasn't the right occasion to speak about the war, but when is the right occasion," he said.

"I believe the war was wrong and I felt I needed to say something about it. It caused quite a commotion, some people disagreed with me but they believed I had the right to say it.

"Just because it was Easter Sunday doesn't mean we should have just said nice things about bunnies.

"The Parochial Church Council minutes stated that I had been taken off all the rotas for 'the protection of the congregation'. It seems quite absurd for such a comment to be made.

"It makes my position untenable to go back into the congregation. My daughter and wife have been in the choir a long time and they have found it very difficult to leave. I could have kept my mouth shut but I felt I needed to speak out.

"By gagging me it is a break down in democracy. I felt very strongly about the war and the church has said nothing.

"We have been to other churches since but we really loved St Margaret's and we haven't found one to settle in."

Mr Jepson caused a commotion in the church after his prayer criticised the decision by President George W Bush and Prime Minister Tony Blair to go to war with Iraq.

The Reverend Rosemarie Hayes, of St Margaret's Vicarage, Church Lane, stands by her decision to ban him from leading the prayers but is urging him to return to the church.

"It was an incredibly important day in the calendar and he didn't pray, he gave a personal political statement instead," she said.

"Most of the congregation were really upset and they felt he had abused the privilege of leading the prayer by taking a political stand. I felt it was my responsibility to protect the congregation.

"Prayer leaders have a position of responsibility. I am very sorry he was upset, I like him, he is a good man, he obviously feels very deeply and I am not objecting to his opinion just that he was supposed to be praying.

"He is more than welcome to come back at any time but he has lost the congregation's trust to be able to lead the congregation. I do feel I have to stick by my decision because it is my job.

"People were tempted to walk out and one person said it was the anniversary of her father's death and she wanted to pray and she didn't feel that she was given the opportunity to.

"It was a hard thought through decision, but I genuinely would like him to come back."

The following is an extract of Mr Jepson's prayer which has caused such controversy at St Margaret's church.

"Bush and Blair have proved themselves to be dangerous people. We pray that we will be aware of evil and have the courage to stand up for justice and fairness. The evil of the American intent is profoundly worrying. Bush and Blair, these two individuals have defied the advice of major world political and religious leaders.

"Weapons of mass destruction appear not to have been found and so the apparent justification for the war vacillates; now that the quarry has apparently disappeared, there seems to be even less justification for the terror that has been unleashed on the innocents.

"We earnestly pray that the forces for good, the aid agencies, can restore a hope and real future, a future so cruelly promised by an invader who has clearly not even planned sufficiently for the restoration of any real order."

Mr Jepson was actively involved with the church has now decided not to stand for re-election to the diocesan synod and has resigned from the diocesan board of finance.