TRIVELLI Fiorenzo (Brother) - Italy

From the homily of Fr. Piero Trameri scj, Regional Vicar

We have all been called -priests, consecrated and lay people– to work in the Lord’s vineyard. Each one has been called at the time which has pleased Him.

Fiorenzo was called early in the morning, at the dawn of his life, when he was 14, to work in the Lord’s vineyard. First, he prepared himself, in the seminary, in Colico and in Monteporzio, to improve the technics and style of life of those working for Him. This style appeared at once nearly innate in Fiorenzo, because of the simple, strong education he had received from his family. It is the style described by Paul in the letter to the Colossians : ‘Clothe yourselves with tenderness and compassion, kindness, humility, sweetness and patience’, magnanimity of those who have a great heart. (cf. Col.3, 12-17).

Judging from the numerous messages received these days from brothers and friends, I may say that all have caught a glimpse of and underlined these features in Br. Fiorenzo. This is why, it seems to me, all remember him with so much fondness.

After the rst hour, after this training period, Br. Fiorenzo went on working hard in the Lord’s vineyard, at every hour of his lifetime ; and not only in the spiritual and communal eld, but also very concretely and practically, navigating with his tractor between the rows of vineplants and along the slopes of the olive plantation of the farm in the community of Monteporzio, which became and always remained the house of his heart. Nothing could stop him, not even a dreadful car accident, when 24, which left him with bodily after-effects. And he worked without asking the Lord more than a denarius than those who had only worked for an hour. He never pretended to special gratefulness, but showed himself happy to live in a community, to contribute by his work to the studies of his brothers preparing for priesthood. Happy to be, like Saint Francis, ‘brother of all’, also called to remind his priest-brothers with the value of community, of fraternal life, valorizing his specific vocation of ‘religious brother’, so dear also to St. Michael Garicoïts, our Founder.

The Lord also called him to bring his discreet, concrete help in other fields : as a sacristine in the Sanctuary of the Caravina, near here..., as a help in the welcome house of Albiate... And think, even in a mission, far away, in a lost place of the Argentinian pampa, in El Cimarron, to back up a rough, rather severe old-fashioned-style missionary, taking care of a crowd of young children starving for bread and tenderness, and trying to educate them, where of course Fiorenzo wore with dignity the garment drawn by Saint Paul, worn since the first hour and becoming his uniform.

After sixty, Fiorenzo went on servingthe Lord : first in Rome, in the General House, doing with simplicity and service spirit everything the community asked him, and especially welcoming –with all the delicate attention typical of him– all the persons –friends, brothers, parents, visitors– whom he accompanied with enthusiasm and skill to make them enjoy the beauties of the eternal town.

This mission, for which he had been called since dawn, Fiorenzo went on accomplishing it with the same style, including when the evening of his life was coming near. First in his beloved Monteporzio, where he showed himself near the AIDS sick people as much by his heart as by his smile, then in Albiate to cure his tired body and prepare himself to receive the denarius promissed by the Lord to all those generous and kind like him. He abandonned himsel into the Lord’s arms, during the long days of his stay in intensive care, without complaining, always saying to his visitors : ‘Everything is O.K., and you, how are you ?’