Duo mensibus ubi locutus sum latine...

The entrance to the villa where we studied for two months.

Dear Friends and Family,

Salvete omnes! Gaudeo me vos, saltem vos qui habitant in Britannia, visurus esse hac hebdomada.

The past 8, highly intense, but highly fruitful, weeks, were very blessed, thanks to your prayers. For those in England, I’m eager to see you soon! All of you were in my daily prayers—those in the U.S., England, Canada, and elsewhere, but it will be very good to see some of you again in person. At the moment I am operating on very little sleep, which was hard to come by during studies—and no doubt there is much work awaiting me at Lanherne—but as I sit here in Gatwick Airport my heart is full of gratitude and joy for the graces of these past two months.

A professor-friend in the U.S. had advised me, “If you attend the 8-week summer course you will learn more than you would in several years of courses at a university.” As far as I can tell, his words were true.

 

Path on the grounds where we could walk, pray the rosary.

What was the course like?

In “Villa Falconieri”, located just outside of Frascatti, just outside of Rome, about 60 students gathered to learn Latin from 15 professors from sunrise to sundown (and beyond sundown). From 9AM – 2PM we were in class (with two 15-minute breaks), then 2PM lunch, brief break, 3:30 – 5:00 Greek class, 5:30 – 7:00 Latin class (every other day I had this period free to complete homework), 7:30 – 9:00 class, 9:00 – 10:00 dinner.

What sorts of people were crazy enough to want to spend 8 weeks where they were not allowed to speak their own languages, only being allowed to speak Latin (or occasionally Greek)? They came from Italy, Spain, France, England, the Netherlands, Bohemia, Portugal, China, India, the U.S., Brazil, and Argentina. Many were either graduate students (from Princeton, Yale, Oxford, Cambridge, etc.), many others were professors in high schools looking to learn how to speak Latin for the sake of teaching it better, a few students were children, for example a 12-year old boy from Bohemia did quite well; one was a business-man working in Africa to help developing economies, another was a computer analyst (each of whom had always wanted to learn Latin for the same of being able to read the classics in their spare time). Another was a rather-well known British author (who writes children’s stories set in Ancient Rome). Another was Korea’s former ambassador to the Vatican, along with his wife.

Students acting out a scene in Latin, with two professors holding them on their shoulders.

We were welcomed by professors who live year-round in the villa, speaking among themselves nothing but Latin or Greek, so it was a bit like going to stay with a family in Italy or Spain in order to learn Italian or Spanish.

How to describe the classes? They were not lectures! While the teachers would be constantly explaining things, or reading texts with us, they were also constantly asking us questions (in Latin of course): “how could you say this a different way? What does that mean? Please come up here and act out this part, or go to these other students and try to buy something from them, etc. etc.” The course-book for the first month was “Familia Romana”—that follows the life of an ancient Roman family. So we would have to act out, sometimes improvising with our own words, scenes from their life. At the end of the first month we were divided into groups that had to take an ancient fable and write a script and perform a play. My group had the fable of a man who goes to the netherworld to try to get his wife back. I had the part of Pluto who at first refuses but then gradually grants permission (we adapted the fable a bit. The hero was a Mexica, so we finished (putting the words in Latin) by him strumming on the guitar and singing “Ai Ai, yaiyai…” (not sure how to write that but if you heard it you would know it)). The second month we studied exceptions to the grammatical rules while reading different texts, still acting things out on occasion.

We gather in the entryway to the villa to hear a harp concert the last night (from a former student who now tours the world playing the harmp). It was a beautiful concert.

Meals, outings to the Roman Forum or Ostia, everything was in Latin. I even began to dream in Latin: one of my professors showed up as a pirate who drew his sword and marched into a city and then began to ask us to speak in Latin, to describe what was happening in the city…

The course was not Catholic, and was not designed for priests who need to spend a certain amount of time in daily prayer. So… after dinner in the evening, or early in the morning, I would spend time doing the necessary reading and homework for the classes plus celebrating Mass, praying the Divine Office, the rosary, etc. which made for short nights. But I was blessed to have a few students attending daily Mass. And on Sundays they chanted the Mass, with the full Gregorian Chant propers most weeks, and with a congregation of about 15. After the first few weeks I was able to begin preaching in Latin, with a short summary in English. There was also some apostolate through hearing Confessions and spiritual direction. Please pray for some non-Catholics who might embrace the faith.

Looking out over the gardens, overlooking Rome. Though you can't see it, St. Peter's is there, way in the distance.

Same view but at night.

So what was the impact on my knowledge of Latin and Greek? Time will tell, but as far as I can tell it was extremely helpful. I went from zero knowledge of Greek to an ability to read some very (very) basic texts. And with some additional work I am hopeful that I will be able to read the New Testament comfortably in Greek. In Latin I think the course was priceless. It was not just the quantity of information but the way it was taught. There is something about living in a language that is many times more helpful than simply reading it. And the method they used—the method used by the Jesuits from the 1500’s until about 1940—is a real gem.

View from the window of my room.

Thank you all for the sacrifice of not being able to communicate with me these past 8 weeks. I think these studies will, with time, bear good fruit and allow me to serve you better.

I had best go now to head to my flight.

For those in England… see you very soon!

In Cordibus Iesu et Mariae,

Fr. Pillari

PS I arrived safe and sound late last night, to discover the presbytery almost completely torn apart! But for a good reason, they are renovating it. I am now moved-in enough to a temporary room to be able to sit down and post this.

Sunrise, looking out window of the room I stayed in.