A native of Shelton, CT, Monsignor William V. Millea entered the Pontifical North American College in 1976 after two years as a resident master at Suffield Academy and was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Bridgeport in 1980 by Pope John Paul II. He served four years in parish work at St. Joseph’s, South Norwalk before returning to the Pontifical Gregorian University to complete a license in patristics and the history of theology, and a doctorate in canon law in 1989.
Since 1989 he has worked at the English Language desk of the Vatican Secretariat of State. In addition, he was the first American to serve as a Papal Master of Ceremonies. He performed these duties from 1993-2009, in which capacity he accompanied Pope Benedict to the United States in 2008 and to the Holy Land in 2009.
This month the Holy Father appointed Msgr. Millea to the College of Protonotaries Apostolic de numero. He is one of seven prelates who authenticate the Holy Father’s more solemn documents. The institution is itself ancient: in the early centuries, the group was responsible for collecting and certifying the acts of the martyrs. In more recent centuries they have been charged with drawing up and notarizing official acts of the Pope and the Consistory.
We had the opportunity to ask Msgr. Millea about his Greg experiences both as a student and a teacher. He shared, “I am grateful to the University on any number of counts, but especially for exposing me, as a young seminarian, to the fullness of our Catholic theological tradition. It was a tremendous grace for us to study under professors like Fathers Latourelle, Sullivan, O’Collins, Becker, Anton, Alszeghy and Alfaro, who were central figures in the renewal of theology in the years of the Council and its immediate reception. What they communicated above all was a solid confidence in the illuminative power of the Church’s dogmatic and spiritual tradition and the courage to confront new issues and challenges by drawing from its richness.”
Of his doctoral studies in canon law at the University, he said, “I was fortunate to be trained by distinguished canonists like Fathers Beyer, Gordon, Urrutia and Ghirlanda, who approached the law from a profound theological and historical perspective. Although I have never “practiced” canon law, the fine ecclesial education I received has been invaluable for my work in the Holy See. More importantly, it has been a source of great enrichment for me personally and as a priest. When I get together with my classmates, we are all agreed on that last point. Needless to say, we also have wonderful memories of our student days in Rome, at the Greg, in the heart of the Church.”
For the past twenty-five years, he has taught a Gregorian seminar for first-year theologians from the North American College. The seminar is conducted in English, and allows the students to review and integrate the material covered in their classes. Msgr. Millea reflected that, “studying theology at the Greg challenges young Americans to engage with an unfamiliar culture, to approach issues in a new context, and to think them through using a different language and different concepts. So they tend to welcome the chance for a guided peer discussion. Much of my personal satisfaction has come from seeing how the students help and support one another, generously and respectfully, as they share in the common enterprise of learning. And, needless to say, I learn a lot myself each year from seeing a new generation, whose experiences are very different from my own, grapple with perennial questions and issues.”
We asked Msgr. Millea what are the benefits of studying at the Greg today? He explained that “theology today is very much a frontier discipline, called to bring the truth, the beauty and the joy of the Gospel to a rapidly changing world. Historically, Rome has always been a place where universality encounters particularity, where unity is experienced in diversity. Experiencing that encounter, not only on an intellectual level, but in daily walks through the city, visits to the tombs of the martyrs, the celebration of Mass with the successor of Peter – all these things are part of what makes a Roman education uniquely “catholic”. So I believe that the Gregorian’s educational mission, forged in the vision of Saint Ignatius, remains as valid today as ever. And I think its power to challenge every form of provincialism has a particular value for the building of tomorrow’s Church and tomorrow’s world.”