Fr. Jason Borkenhagen earns his doctorate in sacred theology

It is not uncommon for academic writers to say they are sick to death of a subject by the time they finish a book-length project about it. After years of immersing oneself in focused research on a matter such as (to choose a random example) innovative tactics in the Battle of Saratoga followed by all the writing, re-writing, and re-re-re-re-writing, who wouldn’t want to steer clear of anything about the battle – or for that matter, all towns named Saratoga – for a while?

And yet, after completing and successfully defending his 250-page dissertation, “Aquinas’ Concept of the Priesthood, of the New Law and the Virtue of Religion,” to obtain his doctorate in sacred theology from the University of St. Mary of the Lake, Fr. Jason Borkenhagen is happy to report as much affection as ever for his chosen subject.

“St. Thomas Aquinas was my primary source for most of my material, and I just love everything that St. Thomas ever wrote,” said Fr. Borkenhagen, who is pastor of Blessed Sacrament parish in Wichita. “I am glad to be done with the process of obtaining the doctorate, but I am not tired of the things that I wrote about.”

That’s not because the dissertation went off without a hitch. Even if the final product did not veer sharply away from what he originally envisioned, he said, it also did not exactly mirror Plan A.

“At one point I actually changed my outline because my research helped me more clearly see something on which I had not planned to place as much emphasis,” he said. “It was not that I thought it unimportant, only that I had not clearly seen how important it was.”

According to Fr. Borkenhagen, that entailed a broader view of the subject matter. 

“Originally, I set out to focus on the ministerial priesthood and the virtue of religion,” he said. “The research really led me to draw together the importance of the virtue of religion in the life not only of the priest, but of the faithful too.”

Although the University of St. Mary of the Lake is associated with Mundelein Seminary near Chicago, Fr. Borkenhagen was able to undertake much of the project in either Rome or Wichita. 

The first year of work was going well until the world was disrupted by the Covid-19 pandemic. “The first semester was somewhat fruitful,” he recalled. “The second semester, not so much.”

However, his undergraduate alma mater, Newman University, agreed to provide him with an office at Dugan Library. “That was very helpful,” Fr. Borkenhagen said. “Newman has a good library with a lot of the material I needed. Whatever it didn’t have, the people there were very good about helping me get it.”

By December 2021 he had submitted, and would get approval for, his dissertation proposal. 

Although Fr. Borkenhagen already was well-versed in his subject matter, he said, a doctorate imposes a higher responsibility. Before this project, if his research made him aware of a pertinent lecture, book, or article he had not already examined, he could tell himself he would look it up someday. 

But the pursuit of a doctorate meant someday was today. “You have to follow those things because the goal is not only to write a dissertation, but to become an expert,” he said. “Not all of that research will go into the dissertation, but you need to be ready to discuss it at the defense. You should have a pretty good idea of all of the disputes, big issues, and everything that goes into that. Your work is linked to that of others who have made a case that contributed to your own stances, and so you have to be ready to discuss all kinds of related matters.”

For many, the doctoral defense can be an intimidating ordeal that places the candidate literally in the center of a room facing a panel of experts who have read the dissertation. The candidate also is flanked on either side by other interested parties. Under this format, Fr. Borkenhagen gave a 20-minute presentation on his submission, after which each of the three panelists discussed it and posed questions, followed by questions from the floor. 

“I was surprised I wasn’t more nervous,” Fr. Borkenhagen said. “I was well-prepared, but I thanked our parishioners in the bulletin for their prayers. I may have been a little nervous as I pulled out my presentation and got started, but once I got going there was a serenity that lasted even as I started fielding questions. The panelists said I did a good job.”

Although the dissertation sought to advance theological scholarship, Fr. Borkenhagen said, he also worked to avoid unnecessary academic jargon and esoteric references that would be lost on most readers. 

“My goal was to write something accessible,” he said. “It is specific theology of St Thomas, but I think a lot of people could get something out of it.”