Latin in the Seminary

Fr. Daniel Gallagher, a colleague here at Sacred Heart Major Seminary in Detroit, has just published a fine essay on the importance of Latin training for men preparing for priesthood. Of course, I think that anything promoting Latin, and anything by Fr. Gallagher, warrants reading, but among the many excellent points made about the importance of Latin competence was Fr. Dan's highlighting of 1983 CIC 249, which calls for proficiency in Latin among those seeking ordination, as well as competence in other pastorally useful languages. Nice use of canon law by a non-canonist. Anyway, do check out his "Apologia pro Munere Suo", New Oxford Review, Nov. 2006, pp. 38-41.

As an aside, I read Fr. Dan's article (that starts by recounting some in-flight conversations he has had about Latin occasioned by his Roman collar) the morning after I returned from an out-of-town conference, during which flight I found myself in almost exactly the same conversation about my teaching Latin. My exchange was occasioned, though, not by a Roman collar (obviously!), but by someone seeing me reading Auvray's Sacred Languages (1960).

In short, more evidence that great minds run alike.