Star in a church (3)
I believe the answer is:
ace
'star' is the definition.
('ace' can be a synonym of 'star')
'a church' is the wordplay.
'church' becomes 'ce' (abbreviation for Church of England**).
'a'+'ce'='ACE'
'in' is the link.
(Other definitions for ace that I've seen before include "Expert (sl.)" , "Hole in one; card" , "Top card or winning tennis serve" , "hotshot" , "One or 11 in cards" .)