Latin as a Living Language of the Church
The Diploma Latinitatis Ecclesiasticæ (DLE) is a comprehensive academic program designed to restore Latin to its central role in the intellectual and spiritual life of the Church. As the flagship offering of the Veterum Sapientia Institute, this Vatican-accredited diploma responds directly to the mandate of Pope St. John XXIII’s Apostolic Constitution Veterum Sapientia, preparing a new generation of Latinists formed in the heart of the Church’s living tradition.
The DLE offers a deeply integrated experience of Latin as the sacred and unifying language of Catholic thought, prayer, and literature. Through instruction, active Latin pedagogy, and engagement with foundational texts, students progress from basic literacy to advanced fluency, becoming capable of serving the Church in scholarly, pastoral, and educational roles.
Program Objectives
In alignment with our mission to safeguard and revitalize the Latin patrimony of the Church, the DLE seeks to:
- Form Fluent Latinists for the Church: Cultivate mastery in reading, writing, speaking, and understanding Ecclesiastical Latin, enabling navigation of the Church’s full magisterial and theological corpus.
- Engage the Church’s Primary Sources: Equip students to read, interpret, and analyze the Latin texts that define Catholic doctrine, liturgy, and tradition—from the Church Fathers and Ecumenical Councils to modern Magisterial documents.
- Unite Language and Mission: Empower students to express theological and liturgical truths in Latin with elegance and precision, thereby becoming agents of continuity and renewal.
- Immerse Students in a Living Latin Culture: Employ active, spoken Latin methods that enable internalization of the language, fostering not only competence but true linguistic immersion.
- Shape Ecclesial Leaders and Educators: Prepare students for service in dioceses, seminaries, universities, and curial institutions where Latin remains essential to the Church’s life and governance.
Program Structure: First Milestone
The DLE is structured around a two-milestone system designed to be completed over approximately four academic years:
Foundational Mastery
Core Language Sequence:
Latin 101–104: Fundamentals of the Latin Language I–IV (Familia Romana)
Each of these Latin 100-level courses will cover the entirety of Hans Ørberg’s Familia Romana textbook, according to the Spoken Latin Teaching Pedagogy that is unique to VSI. Students will begin to speak and understand Latin with the same efficacy as in other modern languages. Each courses carries 2 credits, and will meet online twice a week for 50 minutes each.
Courses Offered:
- Latin 101 – Fundamentals of the Latin Language, Level 1
- Latin 102 – Fundamentals of the Latin Language- Level 2
- Latin 103 – Fundamentals of the Latin Language- Level 3
- Latin 104 – Fundamentals of the Latin Language- Level 4
- Latin 201 – Latin Composition
- Latin 202 – Intermediate Ecclesiastical Latin Readings
Classical Studies:
Classical Poetics I & II (e.g., Virgil, Ovid, Catullus, Horace)
Courses Offered:
- LLC 321 – Classical Latin Poetry 1
- LLC 322 – Classical Latin Poetry 2
Classical Prose I & II (e.g., Cicero, Caesar, Sallust)
Courses Offered:
- LLC 331 – Classical Latin Prose 1
- LLC 332 – Classical Latin Prose 2
Ecclesiastical Core Courses:
Catechism I: Catechismus Romanus & Catechismus Ecclesiae Catholicae
Courses Offered:
- THC 350 – Catechesis I
Magisterium II: Conciliar Documents (Vatican II & Acta Synodalia)
Courses Offered:
- THD 370 – Magisterium I
Liturgy I: Order of the Roman Mass
Courses Offered:
- TLL 360 – Liturgy I: Ordinary of the Mass
Liturgy II: Orations of the Roman Missal
Courses Offered:
- TLL 361 – Liturgy II: Propers of the Mass
Assessment
First Milestone Examination
This examination, which involves external examiners as well as VSI examiners, consists of a summative Oral exam intended to test proficiency in spoken Latin; a 250-word summative written essay analyzing a text; a grammatical analysis of a text; an aural component in which the student answers in writing questions about a text heard but not seen.
Program Structure: Second Milestone
The DLE is structured around a two-milestone system designed to be completed over approximately four academic years:
Specialized Proficiency
Advanced Thematic Courses:
Philosophy I & II (e.g., Thomistic texts in Latin)
Courses Offered:
- PHI 400 – Philosophy I
- PHI 401 – Philosophy II
Theology I & II (History, Dogmatic, Moral)
Courses Offered:
- THH 400 – History of Theology
- THD 400 – Dogmatic Theology
- THM 400 – Moral Theology
Sacred Scripture I & II (Old & New Testaments, Vetus Latina, Novus Vulgata)
Courses Offered:
- SSB 400 – Sacred Scripture I
- SSB 401 – Sacred Scripture II
Canon Law I: Latin of the Codices Iuris Canonici
Courses Offered:
- JUS 400 – Canon Law I
Specialized Electives:
Neo-Latin Authors (remote students)
Courses Offered:
- LAT 501 – Neo-Latin Authors
Christian Archaeology (Rome-based students)
Courses Offered:
- ARC 501 – Christian Archaeology
Latin Patristics
Courses Offered:
- TPP 501 – Latin Patristics
Roman Curial Latin
Courses Offered:
- JUS 501 – Curial Latin
Capstone Project
Final Research Paper (written in Latin or Latin-based research)
A thirty- to fifty-page research paper in Latin, written under the supervision of VSI staff, to be evaluated by the Pontificium Institutum Altioris Latinitatis.
Assessment
Second Milestone Examination
This Oral examination, conducted by external examiners, will examine the candidate’s aptitude in defending and discussing his Research Paper orally in Latin.
Distinctive Features
- Vatican Accreditation: Official recognition from the Pontifical Institute for Higher Latin (PIAL)
- Immersive, Spoken Latin Pedagogy: Latin learned as a living language through active use
- Online & In-Person Study Tracks: Flexible options for remote learning, with the possibility of completing the course in Rome.
- Global Latin-speaking Community: Join a network of ecclesiastical Latinists worldwide
- Final Research Thesis in Ecclesiastical Latin: Demonstrate mastery through original work
Admissions Information
- Enrollment Periods: Fall and Spring semesters
- Location Options: Online or Rome-based study
Contact/Questions
For any questions, please contact Monica Charles, VSI Registrar and Director of Student Services.
Meet Our Faculty
Dr. Nancy Llewellyn, PhD (UCLA)
Co-Founder, Veterum Sapientia Institute
Magistra - Introductory Latin
Magistra Annula is Associate Professor of Latin at Belmont Abbey College, coming to North Carolina after a decade at Wyoming Catholic College. She teaches Latin at the Charlotte Diocese’s new St. Joseph College Seminary in addition to her work at Belmont. Earlier in her career she studied with Fr. Reginald Foster and at the Pontifical Salesian University in Rome. Returning to her native California, Nancy founded SALVI in 1997 and served on its board until 2019, directing SALVI workshops (Rusticationes) around the country and abroad. She holds her PhD (2006) from UCLA.
Magister Tod Post, MA
Magister
Mr. Post holds a B.A. in philosophy from St. John’s Seminary College in Camarillo, CA and an M.A. in Medieval Studies from the Centre for Medieval Studies at the University of Toronto. His areas of study and interest include codicology and palaeography and creating medieval and classical inks and writing materials. He particularly enjoys working in his garden surrounded by plants from the classical world such as papyrus, acanthus, figs, olives and grapes which also gives him an opportunity to practice his botanical Latin. He is a lifelong resident of southern California where he has been teaching and promoting Latin since 2004 and where he resides with his wife and six children.
Fr. Dylan Schrader, PhD
Magister - Scholastic Theology
Pater Pelagius is a priest of the Diocese of Jefferson City, Missouri, ordained in 2010. He holds a PhD in systematic theology from the Catholic University of America and is the translator of several Scholastic works, including On the Motive of the Incarnation, the first volume in CUA’s Early Modern Catholic Sources series, and Book 2 of Thomas Aquinas’s Commentary on the Sentences, edited by the Aquinas Institute for the Study of Sacred Doctrine. Fr. Schrader is the author of The Shortcut to Scholastic Latin, published by the Paideia Institute Press. He has attended every Veterum Sapientia conference since its inception.
