Roviano: For those who remember....

When Oblates get together to take a walk down “Memory Lane,” they often swap stories of their summer holidays as seminarians.  Summer was a much-anticipated escape from heavy-duty philosophy and theology classes.  Some of the Oblate scholasticates (major seminaries) had “summer camps” where the seminarians could forget about their books for a few weeks of leisure, hiking in the woods, boating, swimming, fishing, etc.  For many of the seminarians, summer also meant helping out with various projects throughout the provinces … everything from constructing a new dining room for the minor seminary in Belleville, IL, to overseeing prospective seminarians at the “Vocation Workshop Weeks” held at the minor seminaries.

For the Oblate seminarians who did their studies at the International Scholasticate in Rome, Italy, there was Casa dell’Assunta, nestled in the Apennine Mountains about 40 miles from the Eternal City.  This summer retreat was located in the village of Roviano where the fortress castle that protected the citizens was existent at least by 997 A.D.  Today, Roviano has about 1400 permanent residents and many more who come back on weekends to escape the bustle of Rome.  Some still live in remodeled homes that date to the 11^th century.

In the mid-1970’s, the General Administration of the Missionary Oblates decided to sell the Oblate property in Roviano: house, vineyards, olive trees and all.  In the new system of seminary formation, the scholastics would spend their summers in ministry throughout Europe and in language studies (French, English, German).

The former Oblate villa has passed into the hands of several owners in the past 30 years.  Some have tried to develop the house into a tourist attraction and even a nursing home.  But financing has always fallen short.  For the most part, the house is simply an empty shell, suffering the effects of weather and abandonment.

But the citizens of Roviano continue to have fond memories of their “Padri Oblati” who taught them, as children, how to play baseball and introduced them to that oval shaped pigskin which was so different from the soccer ball the youth of Roviano played with.  Many say that the most recent generations have missed something in not have experienced the international group that lived up on the hill in the “convento.”

This  omiusa.org webmaster, who spent many happy hours in Roviano as a young seminarian, recently made a nostalgic visit to Roviano.  May those who loved our time there be moved by the photos that appear below.