Sacramental Law (J.C.D.)

Program Overview

The Doctor of Canon Law (J.C.D.) in Sacramental Law studies the law that governs the church's worship — the law of Book IV, the sanctifying office. Sacramental questions are where canon law touches ordinary parish life most directly: who may be baptized, who may be admitted to communion, who may confirm, who may absolve, what makes an anointing valid, what a parish may and may not record. Students work through baptism and its registration, confirmation and the faculty to administer it, the Eucharist and admission to it, the seal of confession and the faculties for hearing confessions, the anointing of the sick, orders and the requirements and impediments attaching to them, and the sacramentals and funeral rites. The program pays sustained attention to validity and liceity, to the difference between them, and to the pastoral reasoning that should govern a decision when the law leaves room. Liturgical law, the authority of the diocesan bishop over worship, and the canonical status of liturgical books are treated as part of the same subject. Graduates advise dioceses and parishes, teach sacramental law, staff chanceries and tribunals, and prepare canonical opinions on sacramental practice. The dissertation takes up a real sacramental-canonical problem, such as the treatment of a disputed baptism record, the scope of a faculty, or the canonical questions raised by a widely adopted parish practice.

Core Courses

• JCD 801 — General Norms and the Structure of Church Law (6 credits)
• JCD 812 — Baptism, Confirmation, and Christian Initiation (6 credits)
• JCD 824 — Eucharist, Penance, and the Anointing of the Sick (6 credits)
• JCD 836 — Orders, Faculties, and Sacred Ministry (6 credits)
• JCD 848 — Liturgical Law and Sacred Places (5 credits)
• JCD 860 — Doctoral Research Design in Canon Law (4 credits)
• JCD 899 — Doctoral Dissertation in Sacramental Law (24 credits)

Admission Requirements

• Master's degree or ecclesiastical licentiate in canon law, theology, ministry, or law
• Experience in tribunal, chancery, diocesan, religious institute, or church governance work
• Statement of purpose describing canonical interests and intended service to the church
• Reading ability in Latin, or willingness to develop it during the program
• Current curriculum vitae or ministry profile
• Official transcripts from prior institutions when available
• Writing sample, canonical opinion, or research paper when requested