The Church of England has defended a World Cup prayer that was widely mocked online. The church said it created the prayer as an attempt to “engage people beyond” its regular followers, after a clergy member said it had been “widely ridiculed online”. Some commentary online saw it branded “cringe” while others questioned whether it was parody.Published on the first day of the tournament last month, it called on people to “see and celebrate the hand of God” and referenced “missed penalties, muddled VARs (video assistant referees)”.Ahead of the Church’s parliament – known as the General Synod – meeting from Friday in York, members posed questions about how the prayer had been put together and who had signed it off.Reverend Jeremy Moodey, representing the Diocese of Oxford, said in his writte