Beginning Classes Tomorrow

 

St. John Lateran visible in the distance, looking through the Colosseum.

Dear Friends and Family,

Blessed Feast of St. Francis of Assisi! As one of the patron saints of Italy, his feast is liturgically a "first-class feast," which means that it takes precedence here even over the Sunday Mass. Thus, I had the blessing this morning of celebrating the Mass of St. Francis. He is such a wonderful saint. And the gospel for his feast day is one of my favorites. Even though you know it, I'll write it here again:

At that time Jesus declared, “I thank thee, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that thou hast hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to babes; ²⁶ yea, Father, for such was thy gracious will. ²⁷ All things have been delivered to me by my Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and any one to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. ²⁸ Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. ²⁹ Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰ For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

Wonderful words to meditate on.

Tomorrow classes begin. I will spend the morning at the Gregorian going through introductory classes in how to do research and writing according to their methodology. Given the presence of COVID, it will be interesting to see how we will be given access to the library. It will also be interesting to meet the other doctoral candidates. Apparently, we are 17 this year beginning the doctorate in canon law.

Then the afternoon will be spent at the Angelicum, hopefully getting to know their library system and also attending a class on the historical development of the doctrine of the Trinity. The class should be interesting because much of this semester we will be reading the original texts of authors such as Athanasius, Basil, and Gregory--Fathers of the Church who were key in the articulation of the great mystery of the Trinity.

After much preparation, it is a joy to be able to finally begin classes and research! Please say a prayer for me tomorrow, and this week, as I begin this next chapter of God's will for my life. 

This week had many other blessings. Rather than give you a long list I will simply describe one of them. I was pleased to discover that one of the neighboring ancient churches here along the ancient Roman Forum--namely, the Church of St. Sabastian--has daily Eucharistic adoration from 5PM to 6PM. I went there yesterday and it was very quiet and conducive to prayer, which is not always the case in the churches frequented by tourists in this area! The church is built on the site of St. Sabastian's martyrdom. Saint Sabastian was a Roman soldier renowned for his courage, who became a captain of the Praetorian Guard. Eventually, his faith was discovered, after he had helped a number of others to convert, and he was martyred and went to his eternal reward. 

I will be returning to the church in a little bit to make a Holy Hour, and will pray for you all there, for the virtue of courage in today's world.

May St. Sebastian intercede for you, and may Our Lady be your counsel and guide.

In Cordibus Iesu et Mariae,

Fr. Pillari