15 February 2017

Back to school

After navigating a Roman bureaucratic paper trail with the good assistance of a friend still studying in Rome, my diploma from the Pontifical Gregorian University finally arrived on Monday, proving that I have, in fact, completed my studies for the License in Canon Law:


It is a curiosity of the Roman system that, in addition to not giving you a diploma at the completion of your studies, no one mentions how you can obtain your diploma. As with many things in Rome, you have to ask just the right question of the right person (and sometimes at the right time of day), or happen to notice just the right form in a subsection of the web site. Since I leave for vacation later this morning, I will have it framed when I return.

Many thought this degree would be the completion of my academic studies, but I have known for some time now this would not likely be the case, something His Excellency the Most Reverend Thomas John Paprocki, Bishop of Springfield in Illinois, unexpectedly -at least to me (I knew it would be announced sometime soon, but not when) - confirmed yesterday afternoon during a regular video conference with the priests of the Diocese. I am to return to the Liturgical Institute this summer to begin studies for a Master of Arts in Liturgy (M.A.L.).

If you are unfamiliar with the work of the Liturgical Institute, here is a great little video describing its purpose:


This will be the first of five six-week summer sessions towards this degree and it will be good to return to the beautiful campus of Mundelein Seminary. I will continue in my present assignments while undertaking these studies and humbly ask for your prayers again.

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