Gay man wins five-figure payout after Church of England gave him 'exorcism' to try and turn him straight

Daily Mail​

15-07-2025

A gay man has won a five-figure payout after he received an 'exorcism' at a Church of England parish in an attempt to try and turn him straight.
Matthew Drapper, 37, was volunteering at St Thomas Philadelphia, Sheffield, in 2014 when he was told he had come under 'demonic possession' due to his 'sexual impurity'.
He had been in attendance at a weekend event held at the church when a husband and wife told him that performing the ritual would rid him of his homosexuality, thus releasing demons from his body.
During the exorcism, the couple, who were prayer leaders at the church, stood over him and said he had to 'break agreements with Hollywood and the media' as these were causing him to have gay feelings.
Mr Drapper said when looking back 'it seems like something out of a horror movie' and that the encounter left him 'empty' and in a state of depression.
He told The Times: 'For someone to be standing over you saying they can see the demons leaving your body is quite terrifying. But when you are deeply tied into the church, as I was at that time, it is easy to believe anything they tell you.'
Mr Drapper said this caused him to lose his Christian faith over time and led him to leave the church in 2016 before he made a formal complaint three years later.
He had requested an apology from the church but they initially claimed there was 'no evidence to substantiate' the claims - leading the Diocese of Sheffield, in agreement with Mr Drapper, to request Barnardo's charity to investigate in 2021.
A review published by Barnardo's last year said Mr Drapper's claims were a 'supported fact' which they say 'was in our view a form of exorcism'.
An extract of the report read: 'From the evidence available to us it is our view that the session took place as described by [Mr Drapper] and prayers were administered with the intention of changing his sexual identity.'
Mr Drapper then launched a legal claim against St Thomas Philadelphia which resulted in the five-figure payout.
After receiving an out-of-court settlement, he said he 'would have liked to have this matter heard in open court' but was told by insurers that his claim was beyond the legal time limit and that any processes lodged would be 'lengthy'.
Representing Mr Drapper, Richard Scorer said his client's victory 'demonstrates that churches which engage in these abhorrent homophobic practices may face legal claims and damages awards'.
After the Barnardo's review was published, the church said: 'We have accepted the outcomes of the first investigation and are saddened that eight years ago one of our community was not cared for in the way we would have liked. We sincerely apologised to them for this.'