(ANS – Rome) – On the evening of Saturday, June 28, during Vespers in the chapel of the Zeffirino Namuncurà community, via della Bufalotta in Rome, the Rector Major Fr. Fabio Attard installed the new Rector, Fr. Giovanni Rolandi, who succeeds Fr. Silvio Roggia, elected Councillor for Formation at General Chapter 29. The ceremony took place in the presence of the confreres, relatives, and friends who were also present for the diaconate ordinations celebrated in the morning, the staff who collaborate with the community, and Fr. José Aníbal Mendonça, Superior of the Mary Seat of Wisdom Vice-Province – UPS.

In an atmosphere of joy and serenity, the Rector Major emphasised the importance of the Salesian way of life that one has the grace of being able to undertake, particularly during this phase of specific formation. He reaffirmed his closeness to this formation community, of which he too was a part as a student when he was at the Gerini, in Via Tiburtina, and which represents a large part of the Salesian world, with confreres from 28 provinces in the 8 regions of the Congregation. The evening ended with a festive dinner in the open air, an opportunity to express congratulations and best wishes for the beginning of Fr. Rolandi’s service, and for the beginning of the ‘diakonia’ of the 16 confreres ordained in the morning; together to greet and thank those who conclude their mandate or presence in the community, including the deacons who will be ordained priests in the coming months in their provinces.

Fr. Gianni Rolandi, a native of Castelnuovo Don Bosco, was a missionary in East Africa for over 30 years, where he held various roles of animation, often in the field of formation, as Rector of the Theologate at Utume and professor of theology at Tangaza College. He was also the formation coordinator in the Africa-Madagascar region, Provincial of AFE, and, at the end of his term, a member of the Missions sector team at Headquarters. He then took on the direction of the Colle Don Bosco community, before returning to Headquarters to follow several Extraordinary Visitations entrusted to him by the Rector Major. With generosity, he accepted this new assignment in a community characterised by strong internationality, which is among the most typical, challenging, but also very enriching elements for those who live at 550 Via della Bufalotta in Rome. His vast experience and genuinely Salesian roots will be a precious gift for the animation and guidance of this community, which, like Ratisbonne in Jerusalem, stands out for being at the service of the whole Congregation.