Crossword Genius

Feature of Church, special, I linked with Religious Education (5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

spire

'feature of church' is the definition.
(part of a church building)

'special i linked with religious education' is the wordplay.
'special' becomes 'sp'.
'linked with' means one lot of letters go next to another.
'religious education' becomes 'RE' (abbreviation).
'sp'+'i'+'re'='SPIRE'

(Other definitions for spire that I've seen before include "Piers (anag.)" , "one over the church?" , "Tall pointed structure as on church or in O'Connell St." , "Church feature visible from a distance" , "Church steeple" .)

I've seen this clue in The Times.
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