Hamburg  - An arch-conservative bishop whose remarks on the Holocaust plunged the Vatican into crisis is refusing to recant, according to an interview with a German magazine released Saturday.

Bishop Richard Williamson told the news weekly Der Spiegel he wanted first to examine the historical evidence against his claims that no Jews were gassed in the Holocaust.

"And if I find such evidence then I will correct my remarks. But that will take time," the controversial member of the traditionalist St Pius X Society said.

British-born Williamson has been at the centre of a controversy over Pope Benedict XVI's decision to revoke a 1988 excommunication against him and three other bishops belonging to the society.

The move by Benedict XVI, former Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, was condemned by Jewish groups and led to an outcry in his native Germany, where Chancellor Angela Merkel joined in the criticism.

The controversial lifting of the excommunication could see large numbers of Catholics leaving the church, according to a German Vatican expert.

Reverend Eberhard von Gemmingen, head of Radio Vatican's German service, told the Passauer Neue Presse newspaper Saturday that a new "wave of departures" had already set in.

In Germany, Austria and Switzerland Catholics have the option of formally leaving the church by registering their intention with local authorities. They are then no longer considered Catholic.

"In other countries this is not possible, as baptism cannot be revoked," Gemmingen said.

The relationship of trust between the German-born pope and German Catholics has been "shaken," Gemmingen said.

According to an opinion poll by German state broadcaster ARD, only 42 per cent of Germans approve of the pope's work, down from 63 per cent when Ratzinger became head of the Catholic Church four years ago.

The St Pius X society broke with the Vatican over church reforms made by the Second Vatican Council in the 1960s.

Benedict's decision to pardon the four bishops was seen a sign that the renegade group was willing to reconcile with Rome. But amid mounting pressure, the Vatican eventually issued a statement saying Williamson would have to recant his Holocaust-denial claims before being allowed to occupy any office within the church.

In his interview with Der Spiegel, Williamson repeated his criticism of the Second Vatican Council, saying the decisions it made had led "to this theological chaos we are experiencing today."

But he added that "under no circumstances" did he want to cause further harm to the church or to the St Pius X society.

Meanwhile, an ultra-traditionalist Roman Catholic group has expelled an Italian priest who recently said he believed gas-chambers at Nazi death camps were only used to "disinfect" inmates.

The Italian branch of the Society of St Pius X said Father Floriano Abrahamowicz was expelled due to "serious disciplinary reasons," the ANSA news agency reported.

Abrahamowicz made the remarks last month when he defended Williamson. (dpa)