The priest celebrated a midnight mass on Christmas Eve at the general's home in Surrey after a court ruled he would not be allowed to leave there to attend a service.

General Pinochet and his wife Lucia have taken out an advertisement in several Chilean newspapers, asking for peace and harmony over Christmas.

General Pinochet is currently being held under police guard at the home he is renting on the exclusive Wentworth estate in Surrey, while he fights extradition to Spain on charges of alleged human rights crimes during his regime.

Private service

Chief Metropolitan Stipendiary Magistrate Graham Parkinson, sitting at Bow Street Magistrates Court, said that it would be better for a private religious service to be held.

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He said: "I would not have agreed to him (General Pinochet) going to church. It has got to come to him."

But the hearing did agree that General Pinochet should be allowed to leave his rented home if he needed urgent medical or dental treatment.

The frail 83-year-old had received some dental treatment in the house a few days ago, Mr Caplan revealed.

The Spanish government, represented in court by Campaspe Lloyd-Jacob, did not object to the bail conditions being amended to allow medical treatment.

But any of the general's movements outside his home and the number of people allowed to travel in any entourage will be subject to the agreement of the senior police officer at the scene.

Hearing pushed back

Mr Parkinson also agreed to move back the date of General Pinochet's pre-trial hearing from 18 January to 1 February next year.

This is to allow his lawyers' appeal to the House of Lords against the extradition case to be heard fully.