Ecclesiastical and Pontifical universities have a slightly different system of degrees than the system we are most familiar with in the United States. The licentiate is the second of three degrees in the progression of graduate studies: Baccalaureate, Licentiate, and Doctor of Sacred Theology.
In 1995, as a student in the Licentiate in Sacred Theology program at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, I submitted my thesis, The Christian Meaning of Suffering: As Found in the Writings of St. Catherine of Siena, as one of the requirements for that degree. Although papers like this are typically not published, I am happy to share it with you now on my blog.
St. Catherine of Siena, pray for us!