 After retiring from the post of Superior General of the Holy Ghost Fathers , Lefebvre was approached by traditionalists from the French Seminary in Rome who had been refused tonsure , the rite by which , until 1973 , a seminarian became a cleric . They asked for a conservative seminary to complete their studies . After directing them to the University of Fribourg , Switzerland , Lefebvre was urged to teach these seminarians personally . In 1969 , he received permission from the local bishop to establish a seminary in Fribourg which opened with nine students , moving to Écône , Switzerland in 1971 . 
