Rolando Maria Rivi was an Italian seminarian killed by Communist partisans in odium fidei.
Background
Rolando was born 7 January 1931 in a village in the municipality of Castellarano (Reggio Emilia), a rural village in the foothills of the Apennines, between the Secchia and Tresinaro Rivers. His young father, 28 years old at the time of his birth, was the son of Alfonso Rivi and Anna Ferrari, who had moved to Levizzano-Baiso to work the land there, and since the 1920s lived in a large country house, named "Poggiolo", with their nine children, of whom Roberto was the eldest son, born in 1903.
Education
Before going to work in the fields every morning, he attended the celebration of the Mass and received Holy Communion.
Career
Second of the three sons of Roberto Rivi and Albertina Canovi, he was baptised by the parish priest Luigi Lemmi. Rolando grew up educated in the Catholic faith due to the influence of his mother Anna, and in the strong Catholic atmosphere of 1920s Italy, was a fixture in his parish. He can not walk the middle ground."
At the age of six, he began attending elementary school.
He was admitted to receive the First Communion almost immediately, because he was among the better prepared children and eager to do southern
His First Communion was on June 16, 1938, the Feast of Corpus Christi. Rolando changed after that day: while remaining lively, he became more mature and responsible, a change which was accentuated after receiving Confirmation on June 24, 1940.
In the meantime, his parish priest, Father Marzocchini Olinto (who by March 1934 had taken the place of the deceased Father Lemmi) became his teacher and a spiritual father to Rolando. Rolando availed himself to the Sacrament of Penance every week, and every morning he got up early to serve Mass and receive Communion.
As was the custom, he wore the cassock as a seminarian.
Rolando was proud of the garment, viewing it as a sign of his belonging to Christ and the Church. Martyrdom
Rolando was murdered by Communist partisans, whose hatred of the Catholic faith was such that they were willing to kill him in order to have "one less future priest.".