Learn More About the Fellowship

Yes. The Fellowship is designed to financially support and develop lay ecclesial leaders anticipating long-term, fruitful service to the Catholic Church in the United States.

Therefore,  to be eligible to receive initial and ongoing scholarship funding, as well as participation in the Fellowship, each SRF fellow must be:

• a practicing, lay Catholic in good standing
• a US Citizen or permanent resident (green card holder)
• under 46 years of age at the time of acceptance to the Fellowship
• Recommended by a Catholic pastor
• academically qualified, demonstrated by academic prerequisites
• Maintaining at least a 3.0 GPA while enrolled at CUA

The purpose of the Fellowship and associated scholarships is religious formation, specifically preparation of lay canon lawyers for long-term service to the Catholic Church in the United States. The Fellowship is not a general, educational scholarship. Recipient fellows are selected based upon their suitability for service to the Church as lay leaders.

Canon law formation requires a significant period of education and training, and the Fellowship is making a substantial financial investment in each recipient. The Fellowship, therefore, reasonably expects recipients to provide substantial service to the Church following completion.

Because the scholarship fund is limited, the Fellowship has determined that the investment is best directed toward candidates who have a substantial anticipated period of service following completion. Hence eligibility requirements, especially the age limit, are therefore financial/resource-allocation criteria tied directly to the religious purpose of the program, not a judgment concerning the intellectual ability, worth, or capacity of persons over 45 or otherwise not meeting eligibility requirements.

In partnership with CUA and through the generosity of donors, the Fellowship covers the tuition and fees for fellows, as well as housing and travel expenses related to the summer in-person sessions at CUA.

Fellows also receive compensation and benefits as employees of the Archdiocese of Portland for the duration of their participation in the Fellowship.

Funding is contingent upon maintaining eligibility requirements.

Yes! Fellows benefit from mentorship by the professional staff of the Metropolitan Tribunal for the duration of their studies and participation in the Fellowship.

Also, the Archdiocese of Portland is committed  to promoting the spiritual well-being of SRF fellows through frequent prayer, daily Mass, the sacrament of confession, and other opportunities for spiritual and social growth.

Prospective fellows must meet the School of Canon Law's academic prerequisites. 

In addition, they must observe the requirements and process of CUA's Graduate Admissions. For more information, click here.

Fellows commit to the 4-year hybrid, summer program at the School of Canon Law at The Catholic University of America (CUA). This hybrid program leads to a licentiate in canon law (J.C.L.) and equips the fellow for professional service in the Church as a canon lawyer. For more information, click here.

The CUA Summer Program involves online courses in the fall and spring semesters  and in-person coursework during 4 summers at CUA's campus in Washington, DC.

Online courses will be taken while residing in the Archdiocese of Portland in Oregon, where SRF fellows serve part-time in the Portland Metropolitan Tribunal.

During their studies in CUA's JCL summer program, fellows will serve part-time, in person, at the Portland Metropolitan Tribunal as notaries and then auditors.  

A notary is an ecclesiastical office which is essential to the documentary work of the Church, especially in judicial processes. Notaries are responsible for drafting and authenticating official documents, as well as managing cases and interactions with interested parties.

An auditor is an ecclesiastical office in the Church's judicial processes responsible for taking testimony through depositions. The auditor works under the direction of a judge in collecting information necessary to adjudicate the central matter under investigation.

Fellows serve in the Portland Metropolitan Tribunal while concurrently studying canon law through CUA.

Once a fellow receives the JCL, he or she is under no obligation to seek employment in the Archdiocese of Portland.  It is our expectation that wherever a fellow eventually serves as a canon lawyer, the Church will be strengthened for the good of the faithful.

Saint Raymond fellows will take with them their hands-on experience in the best practices in Tribunal ministry, matched by the excellent academics of CUA's School of Canon Law. 

Upon receiving the JCL from CUA, fellows may be offered full-time employment -- subject to availability and the discretion of the Archdiocese -- as canon lawyers, serving the Tribunal as advocates or defenders of the bond.

Advocates represent clients in ecclesiastical processes, such as marriage nullity cases, and are bound to promote their interest and right of defense, give sound advice, and contribute toward the truth and justice of the process.

Defenders of the bond represent the Church's interest to safeguard and protect the bond of marriage. This crucial office exists to ensure that a declaration of nullity is only granted when there is moral certainty that a given marriage was invalid.

Other opportunities for service in the Archdiocese of Portland may be available as well.

Those who are interested and meet the eligibility requirements can apply here. There is no application fee other than the application fee for CUA, if the fellowship candidate advances to that stage of the application process.

Applications are reviewed regularly by the Fellowship director, and top candidates will be invited to interview and, thereafter, apply to CUA.

Once accepted to the canon law program at CUA, selection of fellows is at the discretion of the Fellowship director in view of the the full application, the needs of the Metropolitan Tribunal and the Archdiocese of Portland in Oregon, as well as the existing cohort of fellows.

Selected fellows will begin by serving first for at least one semester in the Portland Metropolitan Tribunal as a notary or assistant notary.

At the end of this initial, provisional period and provided the experience was mutually favorable, the fellow will be invited to enroll at CUA for the summer program with the recommendation and sponsorship of the Fellowship.