The paper, entitled 'Cohesion and Integration' - A briefing note for the House [of Bishops], argues that the effort invested in trying to integrate Muslims since the London bombings has had no positive impact on community relations and that Ruth Kelly's controversial Commission on Cohesion and Integration seems doomed to fail.
It can also be revealed that the archbishop met Miss Kelly, the Communities Secretary, last month to discuss how the Church of England could contribute. Bishops are dismayed that no Christian denomination is represented on the commission.
The bishops' document questions how effective it will be and says the focus for solving the problem should not be placed on one particular minority but "with the 'majority' communities and in the core culture".
"In relation to faith, there has been a divided, almost schizophrenic approach," the briefing paper says. The Government was misguided in "scapegoating the Muslim community as the source of the problem at the same time as believing that they should be uniquely responsible for solutions". It goes on: "The contribution of the Church of England in particular and of Christianity in general to the underlying culture remains very substantial."
The 2001 census showed that 72 per cent of Britons describe themselves as Christian. "It could certainly be argued that there is an agenda behind a claim that a five per cent adherence to 'other faiths' makes for a multi-faith society," says the document.
The concern shown by the report with regard to inter-faith relations, has been defended by one leading Church of England bishop. The Church's Bishop for Urban Life and Faith, the Rt Rev Stephen Lowe, said it did not reflect the bishops' view. But he told BBC Radio 4's Sunday show that Christians had been "sidelined" by a bid to deal with political extremism.
Bishop Lowe said: "This was a six or seven-page document which the Church of England House of Bishops used as a briefing document for their own debate about cohesion and integration, and that briefing paper led to a good debate which reflected the experience of the Church across the land," according to the BBC.
He added, "It's not the view of the bishops. The bishops did not actually agree the document, vote on it or adopt it as policy of the Church of England.
"But what I think actually they are saying is that we are worried that the government's agenda around political extremism has led to a skewing of the whole process around community cohesion and integration to a point where maybe the other faiths including the Christian faiths has actually to some extent been sidelined in this process."
The Church said the report was not meant as an attack on the government, but rather a contribution to the debate.
It comes following a week in which Jack Straw sparked controversy by describing the Muslim women's veil as "a visible statement of separation and of difference" between Muslim and non-Muslim communities. Anger was sparked as he suggested they discard them.
Also last week, further controversy was put into the debate as a Muslim police officer was excused from taking part in guard duty at the Israeli embassy in London.
