Priestly Fraternity of St Peter continues to grow

The traditionalist Fraternity of St Peter has grown again in the past year. According to statistics published at the beginning of November, the community, which celebrates the pre-conciliar liturgy, now has 583 members. The members include 386 priests, 15 deacons and 182 seminarians. In the previous year, there were 368 priests, 22 deacons and 179 seminarians. The average age of the members is 39.

Last year, 18 priests were ordained for the Fraternity of St Peter and 15 members of the community died. In the previous year, there were 14 new priests and 12 deaths. The Confraternity of St Peter, the community of priests and lay people associated with the Fraternity of St Peter, has over 10,000 members for the first time. Compared to the previous year, it has grown from 9,546 to 10,515 members. Of these, 1,330 live in German-speaking countries, compared to 1,231 in the previous year.

The Priestly Fraternity of St Peter was founded in 1988 as a reaction to the unauthorised episcopal ordinations by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre in the Society of Saint Pius X. The Society of Apostolic Life of Clerics of Pontifical Right is in full communion with the Church, unlike the Society of St Peter. The headquarters of the German-speaking district is in Opfenbach-Wigratzbad (district of Lindau, diocese of Augsburg), where the largest of the community's three seminaries is located. (KNA)