Study Report

Mountains above Garabandal, Spain. I took this photo while hiking there a few years ago.

Dear Friends and Family,

Blessings to you all on this beautiful Sunday morning. I had a very quiet Sunday morning here --with early morning prayer on my parents' porch, a quiet 6AM Mass, and then some time of adoration at the Poor Clares' monastery nearby. A wonderful way to begin this celebration of the Lord's Day! Am currently waiting for the final stages of my visa to be completed by the New York office and then will be off to England. In the meantime, since many of you are praying for my studies, I thought it might be good to give you a progress report.

Essentially you could say that there were 4 key areas of study these past 6 months: canon law, civil law, Italian, and "people study"--in the sense of making personal contacts and spending time learning from some very good people in the Church, particularly in Europe.

Canon Law:
I've completed 70% of the coursework for the J.C.L. degree (the degree that is normally gained in 6 full-time semesters and that allows you to "practice law" within the Church using Church law). I am currently working on my thesis paper--a 40 page research paper, which will be on the historical development of the "Index of Forbidden Books"--and I will also be completing the remaining 30% of courses from this September to May, culminating in the comprehensive oral exam the first week of June.

Plans for the doctorate in canon law (J.C.D. and PhD.) are coming along nicely. In discussion with Cardinal Burke a nice thesis proposal is developing that would focus on the papal magisterium. I wouldn't formally begin this though until the summer of 2017.

Civil Law:
In April I began the four year J.D. program--thanks to a number of you all who are sponsoring me--that could lead to taking the California Bar Exam. It is a year-round program where you are supposed to spend 30 hours per week studying (though in practice it has been possible so far to spend significantly less). The first year courses are: Criminal Law, Contract Law, Torts (law suits), and Legal Writing. If I make it through this first year--the courses are challenging!--I will head to California for a few days in June 2017 to take the "First Year Law Students Exam"--that I need to pass to continue in the J.D. program.

The civil law courses have been quite interesting for understanding how our society and government functions, and in learning how historically (most of it in England), laws were developed and adapted to try to best fit the needs of various disputes. For example we studied the development of cases involving homosexuality in the U.S. from the beginning of the 20th century to more current. Beyond the content of the courses, they have been constantly pushing me to refine my analytical skills and writing skills. I think that this analytical aspect alone would make the courses worthwhile and am looking forward to the continued studies--if I continue to pass my exams!

Italian:
By the time I left Italy a week ago I was able to pretty confidently have conversations with whomever I needed to in Italy. I could understand people pretty well, though speaking (depending on the topic) can be more challenging. My grammar is still quite shaky but I can get by, and my understanding--depending on the topic and vocabulary--can be rather shaky at times; however for Church-related topics I can understand most of what people say and am able to read books and to preach in Italian.

I must admit I had hoped to be further along in this language but travels this spring meant that I had less time in Italy than I expected. However England should offer me chances to keep working on it as most of the sisters in the Carmel are Italian. My plan is to try to spend 30 minutes a day studying Italian. We'll see...

"People Study":
This part went quite well I think and will continue as different relationships are developing. I won't say more here than what I've already mentioned in my previous blogs.

This past week I spent as much time as possible catching up on the civil law courses. To be honest these next 5 months look rather daunting because of several deadlines in civil and canon law, and then of course the whole beginning of ministry in England which will need its own time. But at least I won't be able to say that I'm bored!

Lastly, I'd really encourage you all to set aside 30 minutes to watch this video. I have gotten to know personally a number of the people in it (including Cleveland's own Right-to-Life President!). This is probably not for children, but for the adults I'd really encourage you to take a look at it. http://www.onepeterfive.com/catholic-leaders-make-video-appeal-pope-francis-clarity/ ("trailer" is first and then if you scroll down you'll see full 30 minute video)

Wishing you all a very blessed Sunday,

In Cordibus Iesu et Mariae,
Fr. Anthony Pillari