Willow Creek Church has confirmed it fired Tullian Tchividjian because of a "previously unconfessed relationship with another woman".

Tchividjian, the grandson of Billy Graham who was deposed from ministry at Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church after he and his wife both admitted extra-marital affairs, terminated his employment at Willow Creek on Wednesday.

His hiring so soon after leaving Coral Ridge was controversial but the church had said the post did not involve ministry.

Now, however, it has emerged that as well as the inappropriate relationship to which he confessed, Tchividjian was also involved with another woman. A statement from the Session (the governing body of Willow Creek Church) posted by blogger Warren Throckmorton said: "Repentance is progressive and often painful. It involves disclosing and dealing with the darkest places of our hearts and lives.

"In view of some recent disclosures of which we were previously unaware, we recently decided to end Tullian Tchividjian's employment with Willow Creek Church, effective March 16, 2016."

Willow Creek's pastor Kevin Labby told the Christian Post: "The disclosures that he made involved the fact that he had a previously unconfessed inappropriate relationship with another woman. He didn't share specifics with us."

Labby continued: "The Session did not feel that specifics were necessary for our purposes right now in making a decision about whether to keep him on staff. So they've terminated his position but they have not distanced themselves from caring for Tullian and calling him to repentance."

Tchividjian's LIBERATE ministry, whose mission is described as "to connect God's inexhaustible grace to an exhausted world through books, conferences, television, radio, social media, and a variety of other mediums", was relaunched last month, though he remained on sabbatical from its board. However, more than half its board members have now resigned, evidently in response to the recent disclosures.