David North said he was pressured into stepping down as a churchwarden at St Thomas of Canterbury Church in Frisby when his membership of the right-wing party came to light.

The Diocese of Leicester denied any bullying and said Mr North's views were simply challenged but the BNP has attacked the Church of England and claimed Mr North is a 'martyr'.

In response, The Right Rev Tim Stevens, Bishop of Leicester, said: "The Christian gospel is about all people being equal in the eyes of God regardless of wealth, status, intelligence colour or creed.

"The Christian Church will therefore find itself opposed to any ideology that seeks to separate or divide communities, especially on the basis of colour.

"The BNP explicitly espouses policies and agendas which include the deportation of immigrants on the grounds of colour and is accordingly in direct confrontation with the teachings of Jesus Christ in the Gospels.

"It is not acceptable for the BNP to claim to be a Christian party. It is therefore very difficult to see how any individual could be, at the same time, a credible representative of the Christian Church and the BNP."

Mr North is the father of Asfordby Parish Councillor James North who was defeated in his bid to become a BNP county councillor earlier this year.

Mr North said: "After 60 years service to my church at Frisby, I feel very let down to be asked to resign as churchwarden of some 15 years in two stints, having done nothing illegal whatsoever, only to be asked to resign because I'm a member of the BNP.

"As far as I can tell, I have done nothing wrong. To be asked to resign reasonably forcefully after 60 years' service - it hurts."

But a spokeswoman from the Diocese said it was a moral issue and had nothing to do with a legal one.