Cathedral is slammed over £39-a-ticket Ibiza-themed concert on All Souls' Day

Canterbury Cathedral's two silent discos also sparked uproar with crowds of ecclesiastical Christian protesters gathering outside the Kent venue to sing hymns as ravers entered in February.

 

The event will bring a 'night of Ibiza Classics' to the 12th-century religious centre.

He highlighted to The Telegraph that Cathedrals are self-funding, getting no money from the Church of England.

'Our electricity bill has gone up £120,000 this year,' he revealed. 'If we don't do other things we wouldn't be able to survive.'

The church's accounts for 2021-2022 show it ending that time with a surplus of £190,152.

Mr Stainton also hoped non-religious events such as November 2's concert might attract new faces to the cathedral and added the cathedral would be completely cleaned up and ready for normal worship by the following morning.

But some of the existing clergy questioned whether a night inspired by Ibiza – a hedonist's haven – should occur on a day of religious significance.

All Souls' Day tends to be commemorated by a candle-lit service where congregants remember fellow Christians they have lost.

The Reverend Daniel French, the presenter of the Irreverend podcast and vicar of Salcombe, said the event is 'incongruent with the Christian message'.

'An Ibiza night is going to be pumping out a message of hyper-individualism and sexual licence,' he said. 'That doesn't feel quite right.'

Mr French expressed doubt that Peterborough's clergy really believe the night will attract more people to their church, saying it is not 'a coherent form of evangelism'.

However, despite the protests outside Canterbury Cathedral in February, over a dozen churches revealed plans to hold events similar to the silent discos in the following months.