Throughout this period, the French state-owned company -- which later became synonymous with corruption and scandal -- was allegedly committing human rights abuses against the people of the oil-abundant Niger Delta.

Mr Welby, who made regular visits to the country's capital for meetings at the time, strenuously denies being aware of the claims -- or the true motivation for the Bonny LNG project.

Church of England guidelines state: "A building and any attached land which have been consecrated are said, in the deed of consecration, to be set apart for worship according to the rites and ceremonies of the Church of England forever."

We recognise that there are challenges in understanding and responding to different cultural contexts. The role of law in relation to sexual behaviour and wider social policy and cultural commitments -- such as supporting family structures and resisting global forces seen as undermining these structures -- is complex. We also confess that we and the Church of England have failed and continue to fall short in various ways in our churches and in our responses to our own culture.

The Archbishop of South Sudan, the Most Revd Justin Badi, and the Archbishop of Sydney, the Most Revd Kanishka Raffel, are expected to be present at the meetings.

The invitation email also asks that those who are invited "do not 'promote' these gatherings", as "communications around it might be a little sensitive and we need to ensure that they are overseen via the CEEC Comms team."