The Rt Revd Mark Rylands said: "I think it's absolutely surprising they are not allowing the advert to go ahead.

"It's hardly controversial. It seems so significant these days with all that's going on, with the attacks in Paris, people often turn to prayer.

"It's extraordinary that these cinemas have banned it. It's very odd and worrying they think it's so offensive.

"It seems like a stupid decision.

"Helping people to pray can be a way to help people understand a very complex world, especially when it can be so frightening."

The Archbishop of Canterbury has also claimed it was extraordinary that cinemas rule it is inappropriate for an advert on prayer to be shown in the week before Christmas when people celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ.

He added: "Billions of people across the world pray this prayer on a daily basis. I think they would be astonished and deeply saddened by this decision, especially in the light of the terrorist attack in Paris where many people have found comfort and solace in prayer.

"This advert is about as 'offensive' as a carol service on Christmas Day."

The advert was due to be played in cinemas from December 18 before showings of Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

It received clearance from the British Board of Film Classification and the Cinema Advertising Authority, but the Digital Cinema Media (DCM) agency, which handles adverts for Odeon, Cineworld and Vue cinemas, has refused to show it.

Stephen Slack, the church's chief legal adviser, warned the banning of the advert could 'give rise to the possibility of legal proceedings' under the Equality Act which bans commercial organisations from refusing services on religious grounds.

DCM's advertising policy states: "To be approved, an advertisement must ... not in the reasonable opinion of DCM constitute political or religious advertising."

As further clarification, it reads: "Religious advertising means: advertising which wholly or partially advertises any religion, faith or equivalent systems of belief (including any absence of belief) or any part of any religion, faith or such equivalent systems of belief."

Terry Sanderson, the president of the National Secular Society, said: "The Church of England is arrogant to imagine it has an automatic right to foist its opinions upon a captive audience who have paid good money for a completely different experience.

"The church does not hesitate to ban things that it deems inappropriate from its own church halls - things like yoga. The cinema chains are simply exercising the same right."

END