The P. José Fernández San Román, LC, defended his dissertation in March to obtain a doctorate in canon law at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome. The thesis is titled: «La admisión al matrimonio de los que notoriamente abandonaron la fe y de los censurados». The panel was composed of P. Juji Sugawara, S.I., president and dean of the Faculty; P. Janusz Piotr Kowal, S.I., thesis director; and Prof. Carlo Fantappié, second reviewer. The grade was Summa cum Laude. The act of defending the dissertation concluded with the recitation of the Salve Regina.

The thesis offers a historical-canonical study of the sources and drafting process of canons 1065 and 1066 of the 1917 Code (substantially reproduced in the current Code), which deal with the so-called marriage cum indignis. It is complemented by the analysis of three pronouncements of the Holy See on the admission to marriage of those who ignore Christian doctrine (1918), members of atheistic sects (1934), and communists (1949), thus reaching the thresholds of the Second Vatican Council. Confronted with the pastoral situation of those approaching marriage with little personal faith, an attempt is made to clarify, in light of the sources, the affirmation of the Familiaris Consortio exhortation that establishing criteria for marriage admission that consider the degree of faith of the future spouses is in contradiction with ecclesial tradition. An appendix with documentary sources is also included. The work concludes by referencing the Sacred Heart of Jesus, Good Shepherd who goes out to seek the most lost sheep.

Currently, P. José teaches some courses in canon law at the university centers of Rome of the Legion of Christ and is a reviewer of several Laurea theses in jurisprudence. Among other studies, he is also licensed in Civil Law and holds a special Laurea in canonical and royal jurisprudence.