Vatican approves new institute for traditionalists

VATICAN CITY, Sep 9 (Reuters) The Vatican has established a new religious institute for French priests and their followers who are former members of an ultra-traditionalist movement that split with Rome 18 years ago, the Vatican said.

A Vatican spokesman yesterday confirmed a report earlier yesterday by the French I, Media news agency.

I, Media said the institute, called ''Le Bon Pasteur'' and based in France, would initially be composed of six priests and a number of seminarians who left the ultra-traditionalist Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX) and reconciled themselves with Rome.

The agency said the institute would be headed by Father Philippe Laguerie, who left the SSPX because of his dissenting views.

The SSPX, founded by the late French archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, rejects many of the reforms of the 1962-1965 Second Vatican Council.

It sticks to the old-style Latin Mass, which was sidelined after the Second Vatican Council opted for services in local languages, and opposes recognising the validity of other religions, particularly non-Christians.

The new group would be allowed to say the Mass in Latin without special permission from the local bishop, as is the case with members of the SSPX.

In exchange, members of the new institute and those Catholics who choose to follow them, would effectively be recognising the authority of the Vatican and the Pope.

The late Pope John Paul sanctioned the excommunication of the traditionalist leaders in 1988 when Lefebvre defied his warnings and ordained four bishops without papal permission.

This created the first schism in the Church in modern times.

Since his election last year, Pope Benedict has been trying to hold out an olive branch to the SSPX, which sees itself as the guardian of true Catholicism.

He resumed direct dialogue with the group when he held a surprise meeting with Bishop Bernard Fellay, who took over its leadership after Lefebvre died in 1991.

The traditionalists who have been separated from Rome have demanded the lifting of the excommunication -- a total cut-off from the Church -- as one prerequisite for a dialogue aimed at healing the schism.

But the establishment of the new religious institute appeared to give the Vatican an opportunity to start a dialogue with traditionalists who have become disaffected by the SSPX leadership and want to return to union with Rome.

REUTERS AB VV1034