The Canon Law Society of America Podcast

Jenna Cooper is a canonist who directs the tribunal in the Diocese of Wynona-Rochester in Minnesota. She is also a consecrated virgin. Listen to her recent conversation with Donna Miller, Executive Coordinator of the Canon Law Society of America, as Jenna describes her path to achieving and harmonizing her two vocations.   

The recent Vademecum released by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith has been much read and discussed in the latter half of July 2020. We asked an expert to give us some initial insights into the document. John Paul Kimes is a priest of the Eparchy of Our Lady of Lebanon of Los Angeles and an Associate Professor of the Practice at Notre Dame Law School. For more than a decade he served as an Official of the Discipline Section of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. He has taught the norms of Sacramentorum sanctitatis tutela and the praxis of the CDF for nearly a decade and has multiple publications on the modifications made to SST, various aspects of the delicts described therein, the praxis of the CDF in cases of sexual abuse of minors and, most recently, the jurisprudence of the College for recourses instituted by Pope Francis in 2014 and that of the Supreme Apostolic Tribunal of the CDF.   

Each year the Canon Law Society of America presents its distinguished Role of Law Award to an individual considered to be outstanding in the field of canonical science. The By-Laws of the Society directs the Board of Governors to select a person who demonstrates in his or her life and legal practice the following characteristics:   Embodiment of pastoral attitude, commitment to research and study, participation in the development of law, response to needs or practical assistance, facilitation of dialogue and the interchange of ideas within the Society and with other groups.   These qualifications are a concise re-statement of the constitutionally-expressed purposes of the Society.   The person to whom this award is given is viewed by us as one who embodies all that we, as members of the Society hold dear, as one to whom we can look for guidance and inspiration. Such an official statement alone is perhaps the greatest honor that can be bestowed on anyone – to be selected by one’s friends and peers as outstanding among them.   Our recipient this year has the unique honor of being the first (and I think, the only) chaplain to take the DePaul University men’s basketball team to an NCAA Final Four game.   He was ordained a presbyter in 1976. He received a licentiate in canon law in 1977 and earned his doctorate in canon law at the Catholic University of America in 1992. He has taught canon law at DeAndreis Seminary located outside of Chicago, at St. Thomas Seminary in Denver, and Kenrick Seminary in St. Louis. He has served as a judge in the tribunals of the Archdioceses of Chicago, Denver, and St. Louis. He was judicial vicar of the Metropolitan Tribunal of the Archdiocese of St. Louis and the Tribunal of the Diocese of Memphis.   The recipient is a past president of the CLSA. He was chair of the Religious Law Committee and co-editor of Procedural Handbook for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life. He also has served as chair of the Committee on Convention Planning and has presented several times at the Annual Convention. He currently serves as a canonical consultant and as an advocate in ecclesiastical proceedings. He continues to advise several institutes of consecrated life and societies of apostolic life.   The 2021 Role of Law Award goes to Vincentian Father Michael Joyce, the Congregation of the Mission.

This is the second episode in our new Member Spotlight podcast series. Dr. David Keene is a student member of the CLSA. His varied career has led him to special opportunities in and service to the Church. Because of his training and expertise as an archaeologist, Dr. Keene has been called upon to assist with the exhumation of the remains of two Servants of God as part of their respective journeys to prospective sainthood. In this podcast, Dr. Keene shares with us his background and why, at an age when many Americans are enjoying retirement, he accepted the challenge to study canon law. 

Dr. Baasam F.M. Shahatit is a member of the Melkite Greek Catholic Archeparchy of Petra and Philadelphia in Amman, Jordan. He earned his doctorate in canon law at the Lateran in Rome in 2013. He also holds degrees in philosophy and theology, is a member of the Bible Society of Jordan, and is head of the ecclesiastical court in Amman. In this interview session, Father Shahatit shares with our listeners his observations on the Catholic Church in Jordan and what he wants canonists from other countries to know about being a canonist in a country that is 92% Muslim.  

Role of Law Introduction 2008 by Reverend Paul Counce   The nominee for the annual Role of Law award is usually introduced only gradually, beginning with early glimpses in infancy and childhood, when none of us – including the awardee – knew that a canonical future was waiting to blossom. The hints then thrown out are crafted to keep the ultimate revelation of the honoree’s identity a mystery until the last moment.   I am going to do this in similar manner, yet still a bit differently. It seems to me that we can begin instead with the honoree’s mysterious present, and work backwards. At the present time, this year’s recipient of the Role of Law award proudly represents an institution of higher learning in this country as the official Faculty Representative to the NCAA – the National Collegiate Athletic Association. This has helped our honoree to be unofficial “mascot” of the field hockey and women’s basketball teams. I think you’d agree with me that this is unusual for a canonist!   Also unusual is the recipient’s lifestyle: in a dormitory with almost three score undergraduates, as a faculty resident there. This seems a far cry from the quiet, placid environment one normally associates with canonical research among the dusty stacks of the library, doesn’t it?   Yet our honoree this evening is scholar in the best sense of the word. The recipient of our award has done more than a lion’s share of research while authoring over 50 major canonical articles and commentaries. The university setting has seen this professor supervise numerous dissertations and theses, too, as well as do editing work for journals and commentaries with which we are all familiar. Of course, the core of any professorial job is teaching, and some 2 undergraduate and 14 graduate courses in canon law taught have marked our awardee’s academic career over the better part of the past two decades.   In these critical times as a result of the clergy sex abuse scandals, particular mention must be made of the four-weekend training courses our nominee offered to bishops already in 1995 – with others – on how to make use of the heretofore underused penal law of the Church in addressing situations of clerical misconduct and so remove those unsuitable from ministry. One of the university courses taught by our recipient was entitled Special Issues in Clergy Law, and dealt with dealing with and prosecuting abuse cases. These teaching moments have been supplemented by personal involvement in many a canonical process. In fact we can hardly call it an occasional sidelight, given the honoree’s work in this area, and the voluminous advice offered to bishops, major superiors, diocesan officials, canonical colleagues, and accused clerics over the years.   As we continue to work backwards, we see that other involvement with the Church also has been a hallmark of our recipient’s canonical service as well. A familiar face and voice at national CLSA and regional canonical meetings, our honoree served in Tribunal ministry and as assistant chancellor. In fact, in 1983, the advent of the revised Code of Canon Law had found our recipient already hard at work studying for the licentiate and then the doctorate in canon law at The Catholic University of America. Before embarking on a canonical career path, our honoree served as high school assistant principal and before that as a high school teacher.   Even earlier, this year’s awardee returned to this country from graduate theological studies at The Catholic University of Louvain in Leuven, Belgium, to be ordained a priest for his home diocese in 1974. It’s a safe conclusion to make that his college, high school, elementary school, and even kindergarten years prepared him well for all that was to come.   At the end of this reverse biography, then, we meet at birth the bouncing baby, destined one day to stand in our midst and to know of our esteem as one of our most distinguished colleagues in the craft of canon law. And he proudly has more hair today than he did at the beginning!   My friends, it is my pleasure and privilege to announce that the 2008 Role of Law award of the Canon Law Society of America is given to a priest of the Diocese of Erie and professor of canon law at The Catholic University of America in Washington, DC: the Reverend John P. Beal, III.

Role of Law Introduction 2008 by Reverend Paul Counce   The nominee for the annual Role of Law award is usually introduced only gradually, beginning with early glimpses in infancy and childhood, when none of us – including the awardee – knew that a canonical future was waiting to blossom. The hints then thrown out are crafted to keep the ultimate revelation of the honoree’s identity a mystery until the last moment.   I am going to do this in similar manner, yet still a bit differently. It seems to me that we can begin instead with the honoree’s mysterious present, and work backwards. At the present time, this year’s recipient of the Role of Law award proudly represents an institution of higher learning in this country as the official Faculty Representative to the NCAA – the National Collegiate Athletic Association. This has helped our honoree to be unofficial “mascot” of the field hockey and women’s basketball teams. I think you’d agree with me that this is unusual for a canonist!   Also unusual is the recipient’s lifestyle: in a dormitory with almost three score undergraduates, as a faculty resident there. This seems a far cry from the quiet, placid environment one normally associates with canonical research among the dusty stacks of the library, doesn’t it?   Yet our honoree this evening is scholar in the best sense of the word. The recipient of our award has done more than a lion’s share of research while authoring over 50 major canonical articles and commentaries. The university setting has seen this professor supervise numerous dissertations and theses, too, as well as do editing work for journals and commentaries with which we are all familiar. Of course, the core of any professorial job is teaching, and some 2 undergraduate and 14 graduate courses in canon law taught have marked our awardee’s academic career over the better part of the past two decades.   In these critical times as a result of the clergy sex abuse scandals, particular mention must be made of the four-weekend training courses our nominee offered to bishops already in 1995 – with others – on how to make use of the heretofore underused penal law of the Church in addressing situations of clerical misconduct and so remove those unsuitable from ministry. One of the university courses taught by our recipient was entitled Special Issues in Clergy Law, and dealt with dealing with and prosecuting abuse cases. These teaching moments have been supplemented by personal involvement in many a canonical process. In fact we can hardly call it an occasional sidelight, given the honoree’s work in this area, and the voluminous advice offered to bishops, major superiors, diocesan officials, canonical colleagues, and accused clerics over the years.   As we continue to work backwards, we see that other involvement with the Church also has been a hallmark of our recipient’s canonical service as well. A familiar face and voice at national CLSA and regional canonical meetings, our honoree served in Tribunal ministry and as assistant chancellor. In fact, in 1983, the advent of the revised Code of Canon Law had found our recipient already hard at work studying for the licentiate and then the doctorate in canon law at The Catholic University of America. Before embarking on a canonical career path, our honoree served as high school assistant principal and before that as a high school teacher.   Even earlier, this year’s awardee returned to this country from graduate theological studies at The Catholic University of Louvain in Leuven, Belgium, to be ordained a priest for his home diocese in 1974. It’s a safe conclusion to make that his college, high school, elementary school, and even kindergarten years prepared him well for all that was to come.   At the end of this reverse biography, then, we meet at birth the bouncing baby, destined one day to stand in our midst and to know of our esteem as one of our most distinguished colleagues in the craft of canon law. And he proudly has more hair today than he did at the beginning!   My friends, it is my pleasure and privilege to announce that the 2008 Role of Law award of the Canon Law Society of America is given to a priest of the Diocese of Erie and professor of canon law at The Catholic University of America in Washington, DC: the Reverend John P. Beal, III.

2006 Role of Law Citation Presented by Msgr. Daniel Hoye   Since 1971, our Society has presented the Role of Law Award to a distinguished canonist.   The Board of Governors is asked to select someone who has the following characteristics in the practice of canon law:   Embodiment of pastoral attitude, commitment to research and study, participation in the development of law, response to needs or practical assistance, facilitation of dialogue and the interchange of ideas within the Society and other groups.   The recipient of this year’s Role of Law is a person who loves to play golf. Not a Tiger or a Tigress Woods perhaps, but, weather permitting, our recipient is a weekly golfer. No word on what the handicap is.   Ireland is a favorite vacation spot and every February the plane leaves for some warm spot where golf is the major attraction.   More ad rem, our recipient has been involved in many CLSA committees. Projects involving Lay Ministry, Diocesan Pastoral Councils and convention planning benefitted from this person’s expertise.   A graduate of the Catholic University of America, our recipient was awarded a JCD in 1988. Many regional meetings have benefitted from presentations made by this person. At our national conventions we have heard a major address and several seminars have been given.   As one member of the Board remarked, “This person has always said yes to anything regarding CLSA.”   Our recipient has taught canon law at the graduate level as well as in a seminary. This person has worked as a judge in an Archdiocese where the wind blows a lot. She then became a multiple office holder in a place where beer flows a lot: some of HER titles are Chancellor, Judge, Promoter of Justice and Director of Administrative Services.   Tonight, we honor our 2006 recipient of the Role of Law, Barbara Anne Cusack.

2006 Role of Law Citation Presented by Msgr. Daniel Hoye   Since 1971, our Society has presented the Role of Law Award to a distinguished canonist.   The Board of Governors is asked to select someone who has the following characteristics in the practice of canon law:   Embodiment of pastoral attitude, commitment to research and study, participation in the development of law, response to needs or practical assistance, facilitation of dialogue and the interchange of ideas within the Society and other groups.   The recipient of this year’s Role of Law is a person who loves to play golf. Not a Tiger or a Tigress Woods perhaps, but, weather permitting, our recipient is a weekly golfer. No word on what the handicap is.   Ireland is a favorite vacation spot and every February the plane leaves for some warm spot where golf is the major attraction.   More ad rem, our recipient has been involved in many CLSA committees. Projects involving Lay Ministry, Diocesan Pastoral Councils and convention planning benefitted from this person’s expertise.   A graduate of the Catholic University of America, our recipient was awarded a JCD in 1988. Many regional meetings have benefitted from presentations made by this person. At our national conventions we have heard a major address and several seminars have been given.   As one member of the Board remarked, “This person has always said yes to anything regarding CLSA.”   Our recipient has taught canon law at the graduate level as well as in a seminary. This person has worked as a judge in an Archdiocese where the wind blows a lot. She then became a multiple office holder in a place where beer flows a lot: some of HER titles are Chancellor, Judge, Promoter of Justice and Director of Administrative Services.   Tonight, we honor our 2006 recipient of the Role of Law, Barbara Anne Cusack.

ROLE OF LAW Introduction & Presentation 2009 Convention  This year’s Role of Law recipient has received many earlier recognitions.  Among them is the ‘Order of the Arrow’ which he earned as an Eagle Scout.  As a person with a great zest for life, his curriculum vitae provides not just professional efforts, but also more personal achievements: a football official, a gourmet cook who auctions off dinners for charitable causes, and acknowledgment as the ‘Italian of the year in religion’ from the Italian Sons & Daughters Cultural Association in his area.  Indeed, one of the most charming things about our recipient is his well-developed humanness.  He is a person of great energy and enthusiasm.  Again, his curriculum vitae describes his work in parishes, in his diocese, in health care, with the youth, with diocesan administration and with non-denominational civic projects.  When he was the President of our Society, he attended most, if not all, of the Regional Conventions; having been to a few this past year as your President, I can tell you that he established a standard in that regard not easily met. But our Role of Law award recognizes someone who has served the People of God in canonical ministry.  In numerous writings of our Society, this is specified as research, study and assistance to the community of God’s people, singularly and collectively.  Our recipient has certainly provided our Society and the wider Church with research and study.  From matrimonial jurisprudence to educational and formational disputes to questions of consultation, he has assisted us in the use of all seven books of the Code of Canon Law.  Currently, he is the one in his diocese responsible for the Department of Canonical Services.  In other words, not only unofficially but officially, he is responsible for the research and study of any and all canonical questions; most of the questions involve if not actual disputes at least disturbing confusion.  I would be remiss if I did not comment on his most current assistance to the Church as one called upon to judge penal trials of clerics.  As many of you know, it is not easy for a Tribunal, mandated by Rome but sitting locally, to move to a thoughtful conclusion through all the emotion, the bureaucracy, the procedural uncertainties and the particularities of a case.  Our recipient this year adjudicates these cases with canonical skill, common sense and courtesy for all. In all of this, however, our recipient focuses on the person, the individual, not the office or the title.  In doing that, he demonstrates a real grasp of law in the Church: it is part of the living reality of God’s People.  Context is everything, and our recipient never takes law out of the context of the community.  Indeed, it is his humanity, which I noted at the beginning, that makes his canonical ministry so effective.  As your President, and as a fellow Episcopal Vicar for Canonical Concerns, it is my pleasure to present to you the recipient of the 2009 Role of Law Award from the Canon Law Society of America, the Episcopal Vicar for Canonical Concerns for the diocese of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Fr. Larry DiNardo.

CITATION ROLE OF LAW AWARD by Rev. Msgr. Mark L. Bartchak One of the most pleasant moments of the Annual Convention of the Canon Law Society of America is the announcement and conferral of the Role of Law Award. According to number 15 of The By-Laws of the Canon Law Society of America, the specific duty of determining the recipient of the Role of Law Award is assigned to the Board of Governors.  The By-Laws do not specify the process, but the criteria to be observed in selecting the recipient are clearly established: (1) Embodiment of pastoral attitude, (2) Commitment to research and study, (3) Participation in development of law, (4) Response to needs of practical assistance, (5) Facilitation of dialogue and the interchange of ideas within the Society and with other groups, (6) The recipient shall not be anyone currently serving on the Board of Governors. The process by which the Board of Governors makes this selection is done thoughtfully and prayerfully.  It is a time for the Board of Governors to take stock in the good work that is done by so many of you, the members of the Canon Law Society of America.  This moment in which the Role of Law Award is conferred is a time for all of us to reflect on our dedication to the purpose of this society as expressed in the very first sentence of our Constitution: We, the members of the Canon Law Society of America, ever eager to fulfill our role in the Church through the proper use of canon law, hereby proclaim our desire to promote every method of serving God’s people that comes under the concept of law. While this purpose and dedication pertains to all of us, each year we have the privilege of recognizing one member of the Canon Law Society of America who has been and continues to be ever eager to fulfill that role in the Church.  I thought of sharing the identity of this year’s recipient at the very outset, but I was advised that the proper protocol is to save it to the end.  However, I am sure that you will quickly know the name once you have heard a just few highlights of this person’s life and ministry. The recipient of the 2004 Role of Law Award is a cleric and a member of an institute of consecrated life.  He was born in Fort Smith, Arkansas on November 29, 1929.  He made his first vows as a Missionary Oblate of Mary Immaculate in 1950 and was ordained to the priesthood in 1956. He has held a number of positions in his religious community, including professor of moral theology and canon law at the Oblate Scholasticate in Pass Christian, Mississippi from 1957 to 1965.  He was associate pastor and then pastor of St. Patrick Parish, McCook, Nebraska from 1965-1969.  From 1969-1975 he was director of the National Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows in Belleville, Illinois.  He was provincial superior of the Central United States Province of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate in St. Paul, Minnesota from 1975-1981 and director general of the Missionary Association of Mary Immaculate and secretary of the Oblate Sharing Fund at the O.M.I. Generalate in Rome from 1981-1986.  The missionary dimension of his religious life is also reflected in his appointment to the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples by Pope John Paul II, where he served as a consultor from 1985-1993. This breadth of experience in pastoral duties and religious life added a unique dimension to his role as professor of canon law at St. Paul University from 1986-2000.  He was likewise well-prepared for the role of professor by his own studies.  He received licentiate degrees in philosophy and canon law from the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome and a doctorate in canon law from the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas, also in Rome.  He later obtained the Diploma of Advocate for the Roman Rota after completing the course at the Studia Rotale. Our recipient has always been ready to share his knowledge of the law not only in the classroom, but through his writings.  He is the author of numerous articles published in The Jurist, Monitor Ecclesiasticus, Newsletter of the Canadian Canon Law Society, Pastoral Sciences, The Priest, and Studia Canonica.  He has authored or edited several books including his doctoral dissertation, The Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate: A Clerical Religious Congregation with Brothers, first published in 1984, with a revised edition published in 1995.  Many of these works have been translated into other languages and published simultaneously in various places around the world, especially for the benefit of the Church in developing nations.  His writings touch on a variety of topics including marriage jurisprudence and procedures, sacraments, clergy issues, and penalties.  His publications are always a treasure-trove of English translations of all sorts of Papal and curial documents.  This individual has gone beyond the classroom and print media in order to educate others in the field of canon law.  His first effort with electronic media was a CD-ROM version of the 1956-2000 volumes of Canon Law Abstracts. It appears that when our recipient was named professor emeritus in the Faculty of Canon Law at St. Paul University in 2001, he ignored the fine print of the decree which indicated that he was retired.  Instead, he accepted the invitation of the Cardinal Archbishop of Chicago to serve as associate episcopal vicar for canonical services and promoter of justice in the Archdiocese.  If that wasn’t enough, he has continued to research in new areas and to update some of his earlier works, always looking for additional information and jurisprudence to share.  Since the promulgation of the USCCB, Charter for the Protection of Children and Youth and the corresponding Essential Norms, he has offered his assistance in educating and advising canonists, bishops, and religious superiors in the proper application of the penal law of the Church.  He is often spoken of with grateful affection by his former students at St. Paul University and is certainly well-regarded by any who have sought his counsel. I have had the pleasure of participating in meetings with him and I have always been impressed by the way he shares his wisdom and knowledge of the law with a sense of dignity and humility, and with deep respect for the good of the Church and the good of each and every person who is served by its law.  It is obvious that he is inspired by the missionary spirit of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate and committed to the mission of promoting every method of serving God’s people that comes under the concept of law. With gratitude and sincere respect, it is my privilege on behalf of the Board of Governors and the entire membership of the Canon Law Society of America to present the 2004 Role of Law Award to Reverend William H. Woestman of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate.

Role of Law Award Citation The Reverend Monsignor John J. M. Foster  At every annual convention since 1973, the Canon Law Society of America has recognized one of its members with the Role of Law Award, the Society’s highest honor. The Board of Governors selects the recipient based on his or her (1) embodiment of pastoral attitude, (2) commitment to research and study, (3) participation in the development of law, (4) a response to needs or practical assistance, and (5) facilitation of dialogue and the interchange of ideas within the Society and with other groups.  This year’s recipient was born and raised in the upper Midwest, attending public schools until the third grade and then switching to Catholic schools through the completion of college. Our honoree was both a high school valedictorian and college valedictorian. Discerning that he was not called to the priesthood, our colleague became a National Defense Education Fellow in the counseling psychology program at Colorado State University. As a fellow, he interned at the VA hospital in Palo Alto, California before earning both masters and doctoral degrees in psychology.  Following the completion of his training in psychology, tonight’s honoree served as an assistant professor of psychology and director of the Counseling Center at Clarke College before moving to Loras College, where he rose to be an associate professor of psychology and education and Vice President for Student Development and Dean of Students. His résumé in the field of psychology highlights his chairmanship of the Iowa Board of Psychology from 1984 through 1990 and again in 2008 and his service as vice president and president of the Federation of Associations of Regulatory Boards and the Association of State and Provincial Psychology Boards. In 1995, our honoree served as the general secretary of the First International Conference on Licensure, Certification, and Credentialing of Psychologists in New Orleans. Named a fellow of the Association of State and Provincial Psychology Boards in 1993, he received the Association’s Morton Berger Award in 1996.  Taking the Divine Master at his word to place his talents at the service of the Church, the recipient of this year’s Role of Law Award started his studies for the JCL at the Catholic University of America in 1994. He sat directly behind me in class during the two summers we studied together. In fact, our honoree was the first person I ever heard use the term 1095—as if he knew what he was talking about. Come to find out, he did!  Graduating from CUA in 1998 with a licentiate in canon law, our colleague has served this Society as the chair of the Marriage Research Committee, on the Board of Governors as secretary and consultor, and on tribunal review teams. He has used his education, training, and experience in psychology in numerous presentations at national and regional canon law meetings; as an advocate, promoter of justice, and judge in penal cases; and as a peritus, assessor, and judge in marriage cases. His publications in both psychology and canon law are numerous.  In 1979, tonight’s honoree was ordained as a permanent deacon for the Archdiocese of Dubuque. Since then, he has served as the assistant director and director of the Office of the Permanent Diaconate in Dubuque. At the national level, he has served as the treasurer and secretary of the National Association of Diaconate Directors.  For the first time, the Role of Law Award is presented to a permanent deacon—and a most worthy one at that. Please join me in congratulating Deacon Gerald Jorgensen.

ROLE OF LAW AWARD CITATION The Reverend Monsignor John J. M. Foster At every annual convention since 1973, the Canon Law Society of America has recognized one of its members with the Role of Law Award, the Society’s highest honor. The Board of Governors selects the recipient based on his or her (1) embodiment of pastoral attitude, (2) commitment to research and study, (3) participation in the development of law, (4) a response to needs or practical assistance, and (5) facilitation of dialogue and the interchange of ideas within the Society and with other groups. This year’s recipient was born and raised in the upper Midwest, attending public schools until the third grade and then switching to Catholic schools through the completion of college. Our honoree was both a high school valedictorian and college valedictorian. Discerning that he was not called to the priesthood, our colleague became a National Defense Education Fellow in the counseling psychology program at Colorado State University. As a fellow, he interned at the VA hospital in Palo Alto, California before earning both masters and doctoral degrees in psychology. Following the completion of his training in psychology, tonight’s honoree served as an assistant professor of psychology and director of the Counseling Center at Clarke College before moving to Loras College, where he rose to be an associate professor of psychology and education and Vice President for Student Development and Dean of Students. His résumé in the field of psychology highlights his chairmanship of the Iowa Board of Psychology from 1984 through 1990 and again in 2008 and his service as vice president and president of the Federation of Associations of Regulatory Boards and the Association of State and Provincial Psychology Boards. In 1995, our honoree served as the general secretary of the First International Conference on Licensure, Certification, and Credentialing of Psychologists in New Orleans. Named a fellow of the Association of State and Provincial Psychology Boards in 1993, he received the Association’s Morton Berger Award in 1996. Taking the Divine Master at his word to place his talents at the service of the Church, the recipient of this year’s Role of Law Award started his studies for the JCL at the Catholic University of America in 1994. He sat directly behind me in class during the two summers we studied together. In fact, our honoree was the first person I ever heard use the term 1095—as if he knew what he was talking about. Come to find out, he did! Graduating from CUA in 1998 with a licentiate in canon law, our colleague has served this Society as the chair of the Marriage Research Committee, on the Board of Governors as secretary and consultor, and on tribunal review teams. He has used his education, training, and experience in psychology in numerous presentations at national and regional canon law meetings; as an advocate, promoter of justice, and judge in penal cases; and as a peritus, assessor, and judge in marriage cases. His publications in both psychology and canon law are numerous. In 1979, tonight’s honoree was ordained as a permanent deacon for the Archdiocese of Dubuque. Since then, he has served as the assistant director and director of the Office of the Permanent Diaconate in Dubuque. At the national level, he has served as the treasurer and secretary of the National Association of Diaconate Directors. For the first time, the Role of Law Award is presented to a permanent deacon—and a most worthy one at that. Please join me in congratulating Deacon Gerald Jorgensen.

Role of Law Award Citation Dr. Zabrina R. Decker  Our Role of Law recipient was born in the previous millennium, and lived in the same city up until retirement. The public school system educated our recipient for elementary school and then he attended four diocesan seminaries, three of which are now closed.  He did not have an outstanding academic career, but managed to obtain a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology, before Mastering Divinity and being ordained a diocesan priest in 1977.   Early in his career as a parish priest, he became involved in the newly-established ministry to the separated and divorced, which led him to ask the Tribunal if it needed any assistance. He did not envision that lasting 27 years. After a two year internship at the diocesan tribunal, during which time he became a member of the Canon Law Society of America, he pursued canon law studies at St. Paul University in Ottawa, Ontario, where he obtained his Doctorate of Canon Law in 1987, under the guidance of Frank Morrisey, with Dean Jean Thorn occasionally having to scrape him off the ceiling.   After the completion of his degree, he returned to the diocesan tribunal, where he served at various times as Advocate, Promoter of Justice, Defender of the Bond, Adjutant Judicial Vicar, and Judicial Vicar. He also had several terms on the Interdiocesan Court of Appeals. For the last ten years, the job of Vicar for Canonical Services was added to his duties, during which time he had to learn the ins and outs of penal law, often with the help of Bill Woestman’s books.  He also served in parochial ministry at two different parishes, mostly in intercultural settings, and participated in various types of canonical education throughout the diocese, as well as on the presbyteral council and college of consultors.  After leaving full-time canonical ministry, he was appointed chaplain to the Catholic students in a university setting, where he served until his retirement in 2017. From 1996 to 2009, he was an adjunct professor at the only diocesan seminary he has not closed. Since 2005, he has taught canon law at Catholic Theological Union and, since 2009, in the Catholic University of America’s summer program. He has given several pre-convention workshops for the CLSA, as well as a number of seminars and major addresses.  His articles have appeared in The Jurist and Studia canonica, among other publications.  I am honored to present this year’s Role of Law Award to Monsignor Patrick Lagges.

ROLE OF LAW AWARD CITATION Dr. Zabrina R. Decker Our Role of Law recipient was born in the previous millennium, and lived in the same city up until retirement. The public school system educated our recipient for elementary school and then he attended four diocesan seminaries, three of which are now closed. He did not have an outstanding academic career, but managed to obtain a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology, before Mastering Divinity and being ordained a diocesan priest in 1977. Early in his career as a parish priest, he became involved in the newly-established ministry to the separated and divorced, which led him to ask the Tribunal if it needed any assistance. He did not envision that lasting 27 years. After a two year internship at the diocesan tribunal, during which time he became a member of the Canon Law Society of America, he pursued canon law studies at St. Paul University in Ottawa, Ontario, where he obtained his Doctorate of Canon Law in 1987, under the guidance of Frank Morrisey, with Dean Jean Thorn occasionally having to scrape him off the ceiling. After the completion of his degree, he returned to the diocesan tribunal, where he served at various times as Advocate, Promoter of Justice, Defender of the Bond, Adjutant Judicial Vicar, and Judicial Vicar. He also had several terms on the Interdiocesan Court of Appeals. For the last ten years, the job of Vicar for Canonical Services was added to his duties, during which time he had to learn the ins and outs of penal law, often with the help of Bill Woestman’s books. He also served in parochial ministry at two different parishes, mostly in intercultural settings, and participated in various types of canonical education throughout the diocese, as well as on the presbyteral council and college of consultors. After leaving full-time canonical ministry, he was appointed chaplain to the Catholic students in a university setting, where he served until his retirement in 2017. From 1996 to 2009, he was an adjunct professor at the only diocesan seminary he has not closed. Since 2005, he has taught canon law at Catholic Theological Union and, since 2009, in the Catholic University of America’s summer program. He has given several pre-convention workshops for the CLSA, as well as a number of seminars and major addresses. His articles have appeared in The Jurist and Studia canonica, among other publications. I am honored to present this year’s Role of Law Award to Monsignor Patrick Lagges.

Sister Rose McDermott is a Sister of St. Joseph of Chestnut Hill. Among her numerous ministries, she has been a teacher and professor, a writer of articles and books, a consultant to bishops and the Holy See, and one bishop's diocesan delegate for institutes of consecrated life. The members of the Canon Law Society of America are extremely grateful to Sister Rose for her dedication to helping anyone who calls upon her. She was the Society's 2002 Role of Law Award recipient.

In 1986 when he won the CLSA's prestigious Role of Law Award, Monsignor John Alesandro delivered an abridged version of his prepared response. The full talk was published in the CLSA Proceedings from the 1986 Convention. In this recording, Msgr. Alesandro reads his unabridged talk, injected with the sense of humor that his friends and fellow canonists love about him. This recording was made on May 14, 2020. 

Monsignor John Alesandro is a priest of the Diocese of Rockville Center, New York. His unwavering dedication to the Church is obvious when he speaks of the many ministerial roles he has played, both in his diocese and in the Canon Law Society of America. In addition to his canon law expertise, Monsignor Alesandro earned a degree in civil law in his "spare time" in the 1990s. He also is an accomplished pianist and a connoisseur of Bernard Lonergan's theological writings. It was no real surprise that Monsignor Alesandro was honored by the CLSA in 1986 as the Role of Law Award recipient. He continues to inspire and encourage young canonists in the United States and throughout the world today. 

Father Paul Golden, the CLSA's  2005 Role of Law honoree, is a priest and a religious. He was born in San Francisco, California in 1939, entered the Congregation of the Mission, the Vincentians, in 1961 and was ordained a priest in 1965. Active in his religious community, he has served the Vincentians and their ministries in many capacities: as teacher, formation director, college professor and president, and as Founding Director of Vincentian Canonical Services. In addition to involvement with his religious community Fr. Paul has remained an active member and representative of our Society for over 45 years. He served as the BOG Secretary in 1973-74, Vice-President in 1987-88 and President in 1988-89. He has been a presenter at conventions and contributed generously to Roman Replies on a variety of topics of interest to canonists and church leaders. We are immeasurably grateful to Fr. Paul Golden for his dedication and pastoral presence in our Society.