Ecclesiastical Latin
Beginner and Intermediate levels
A one-year distance-learning programme at two levels
Introduction
The Latin language, which as the Second Vatican Council affirmed remains today the language of the Western Rites of the Church (Sacrosanctum Concilium, 36), has been an integral part of the evangelisation and unification of European culture. It is particularly appropriate therefore that the School respond to the Church’s call that those to be formed in depth in the Catholic intellectual tradition should be provided with the means of studying Latin (on this see, for instance, the Code of Canon Law, 249).
A central aspect of the vision for the work of the new evangelisation to be carried out by the School of the Annunciation concerns its collaboration with, and location at, the Benedictine Abbey of St Mary at Buckfast, whose foundation has roots in the 11th century. As the Benedictines played such an essential role in the first evangelisation of Europe, forming a unified European Christian culture, so the School of the Annunciation, with its Benedictine character and ethos, desires to contribute to the new evangelisation by building upon and in some way revitalising that deep, historical origin and resource.
There is evidence of renewed interest in the study of Latin in general; one local example is the introduction of Latin recently at Plymouth College. In the Church the need for Latin study is evident from the Church’s teaching on the liturgy, as regards both the ordinary and extraordinary forms of the Roman rite, and in Catholic higher studies in philosophy and theology.
The course provides a flexible, distance-learning way of studying ecclesiastical Latin
making it available to priests, religious and lay people
who cannot be involved in full-time study.
The Aim of the Course1
The course aims to enable students to access, participate in, and engage with the Latin liturgical and intellectual texts of the Catholic tradition.
Course Content and Delivery
The programmes are delivered through two short residential periods at Buckfast Abbey involving class-room teaching, Latin Seminars and Latin in the Liturgy.
For the main part of the year the programme follows the basic text of the course, supported by regular interaction and support by personal tutors.
The required text for the course is:
- Carol Byrne, Simplicissimus (London, 1999)
- John F. Collins, A Primer of Ecclesiastical Latin (Washington, 1985)
- YouTube items and other internet resources on Latin learning will be referred to
The student study-guide will assign sections of the textbooks with the aim of completing a fortnightly exercise. Appropriate internet resources will, in addition, be specified to support preparation for the exercise. By the end of the year the Beginner Group will have covered the first half of the Byrne text; the Intermediate Group will have covered the second half of the Byrne text.
Assessment
A fortnightly exercise is to be submitted for marking by the personal tutor allocated to you.
Credit levels
On successful completion of each one-year course, students will receive a School of the Annunciation award with an official transcript. Successfully completing both beginner and intermediate levels will place students at a level approximately equivalent to the GCSE award.
Introductory Residential Visit
The first residential to be held at Buckfast Abbey will run from:
Thursday evening 6th October - Sunday lunchtime 9th October 2016
The second residential will take place in May of the following year. This residential will be of a similar length to the first. You will complete your course of studies in July 2017.
Course dates for 2017-18 will be posted here soon.
Cost and Admission
Admission to the first year of this course is not dependent on any previous qualifications. Applications for intermediate level are open to those who have completed the first year of our course.
The cost of each course in 2016 is £905. There is also a £50 application fee payable upon application. For the 4-day residential weekend, the cost is £345 with an application fee of £20 payable upon application.
Cancellation Rights:
You have a 14 day cooling-off period which starts from the date of application.
Apply
Download an application form here.
If you would like to fill in an online application, you can do so here: Apply Online.
Contact
For further information or to request an application form, please contact us by phone 01364 645660 or email [email protected]. We will be happy to deal with any enquiries you have.
1 Course – this term refers to an entire series of studies which may result in a qualification, for example the Diploma in the New Evangelisation (referred to as a program in US terminology).