According to the Ethiopia tradition a mass is celebrated 40 days after the burial of the deceased. On October 13, 2025, we celebrated the mass in remembrance of both Fr. Gebregziabher Gebru and Fr. Antonio Vismara, who both died in the month of September.
By Marco Marini *
The mass, in Ghe’ez rite, was presided by the auxiliary bishop of Addis Ababa, Mons. Tesfaye Tadesse Gebresilasie, MCCJ. Several Consolata missionaries were also present at the mass, together with the Consolata Sisters, and a substantial number of lay people.
Mons. Tesfaye recalled the main characteristics of the two missionaries, and how they are still dearly remembered by many Catholics. And not only Catholics, but Orthodoxes and Muslims. In fact, at the mass was present a group of ten lay people, Orthodoxes, Catholics and Muslims, who represented all those of Meki mission who were benefited by the work of Fr. Antonio Vismara.
Another smaller group represented the members of Fr. Gebregziabher’s family. The members of that group of 10, were wearing a t-shirt with the image of a younger Fr. Antonio Vismara when he was working in the vicariate of Meki.
After the celebration of the mass, as usual, local bread (Defo Dabo) and water was offered to all those who took part in the celebration. A smaller group was invited for breakfast in the dining hall of the provincial house, and during a cup of coffee and a bite of bread a spontaneous sharing took place. The group with the T-shirt introduced themselves as those young people who were helped by Fr. Antonio Vismara during the terrible famine of the year 1984 in Ethiopia; and how nowadays they hold important positions in society, working for the American Embassy, with the government administration, with ministry of education, an army colonel, and others running businesses.
All these people were suggesting that without Fr. Vismara’s help they would not be where they are right now, so a great sense of gratitude to Fr. Vismara and the Consolata missionaries. During this exchange they addressed Mons. Tesfaye thanking the Catholic Church, and requested that something should be done to keep alive the memory of Fr. Vismara. They also read a message in honour of Fr. Vismara, and how they were taken by surprise by the news of Fr. Vismara’s death, whom they called and felt like a father to them; he educated them in the school of Meki, and helped them and many others during the famine that killed thousand people in 1984.
They recalled a few anecdotes of that hunger time: a lorry carried bags of Bulgar wheat and cooking oil, but realising that it was not enough, Fr. Vismara jumped on the lorry and instructed the driver to drive to the south of the country to buy local traditional food, kocho, made from the fermented root of the enset plant, false banana.
Another anecdote is the renaming of the cooking oil brought by Fr. Vismara, as Antonio’s oil. Even nowadays in Meki town cooking oil is still called Antonio’s oil. These few people were but a small representation group of the thousands of people that were saved from hunger by Fr. Antonio Vismara and the other Consolata missionaries who used to work in Meki mission and vicariate.
At the end, before the blessing by Mons. Tesfaye, it was suggested that to keep alive the name of Fr. Vismara and his charitable work an association could be created to help young people in need; or to have a statue posed in Meki mission to remember Fr. Vismara tireless work to save lives.
For many of us, who came recently in Ethiopia, it was a pleasant surprise to hear those witnesses who recalled the works of consolation carried out by our predecessors, and an encouragement to continue the legacy of those missionaries.
* Father Marco Marini, IMC, Consolata Missionary, Ethiopia.
