1937-2005

Father Attilio was the son of Nazzareno Ravasi and Maria Stucchi. He was born on February 6, 1937 in Bellusco (Milan) and entered our Congregation in 1959. He made his first profession on October 2, 1965 and was ordained to the priesthood on December 19, 1970. After a year as assistant for the boys at Rovereto he left for Kenya where he arrived in 1972. From 1973 to 1980 he performed pastoral work in the diocese of Meru, in the missions at Kanyakine, Amug’enti, Matiri and Gatunga.
In 1981 he joined the formation personnel and acted as treasurer at the Langata seminary and then in 1985 he went back to pastoral work in Timau. In 1990 he was assigned to mission promotion work in Italy at the Galatina House. Then in 1995 he went back to Kenya to work at Mikinduri for a year. From 1996 he lived in Nanyuki and was the administrator of the diocese ofr Marsabit.
Father Attilio passed away suddenly. On Tuesday, April 12, he began to feel unwell and went to rest in his room. Fortunately the Combonian Missionary Father Alex (the Vicar of Marsabit) was present. Father Alex took Father Attilio to the hospital that evening and it was immediately evident that his condition was serious. On Wednesday, April 13, Father Attilio was flown to Nairobi where he arrived at 2 PM. He went home to heaven at 6 PM. Father Attilio died from a massive heart attack. He was suffering from diabetes and was unaware of his heart problem.
His funeral was held on Wednesday evening at the Consolata Shrine in Nairobi. His brother, Msgr. Ambrogio Ravasi presided; he was accompanied by Msgr. Virgilio Pante and Msgr. Peter Kihara. Many Consolata male and female missionaries, as well as priests and religious from other congregations attended the service.
His body was taken back to Italy, to Bellusco his hometown. On Wednesday, April 20 his brother, Msgr. Ambrogio presided at a solemn funeral and Msgr. Silas Njiru, the Bishop emeritus of Meru, preached the homily.
Editors of Da Casa Madre

Grief for a friend
The painful news of Father Attilio Ravasi’s unexpected death saddened all of us – especially those who had been close to him in one way or another. At times like this it is especially important to renew our faith in the Paschal Mystery: since Father Attilio gave his life to Jesus his destiny will be that of Jesus: resurrection and eternal life.
We realize that we are unhappy and that our faith is weak. All we can do is to pray: “Lord, increase our faith.” We are certain the Lord has welcomed Father Attilio: “Come good and faithful servant and enter the kingdom of heaven.”
I feel it is my duty to give witness to the generosity and devotion that marked Father Attilio’s missionary service. It is my duty as a member of the same Consolata family, my duty as a friend and my duty because with him we must thank God who called him to the missionary life; he contributed so much to our Congregation and to this region, Kenya.
This is not the place to give a detailed account of our confrère’s life – I would only like to mention my own experiences with him. He began his apostolate in Meru. As far as I know his first assignment was not very easy: Gatonga, which even today is no easy assignment.
It was not easy for him to learn the local language but he managed to communicate with people through his openness and spontaneity. He had no trouble getting close to people, especially the most humble. His enthusiasm, energy and work for the poor won an immediate and spontaneous response. His pastoral zeal led him to the most remote corners of Tharaka. His generous dedication and commitment to our charism of consolation showed him to be truly a good shepherd.
Our formation house at Langata presented him with a new challenge. At that time in our region, formation was in its earliest stage of development – he was a pioneer. His devotion to this task was total … I remember his hundreds of letters to benefactors seeking assistance for the seminary. This work was followed by a stay in Italy where he did mission promotion. He was always willing and available to take on any task he was assigned and could be counted on to accept any task he was assigned.
On his return from Italy he went back to Meru: Timau and Mikinduri. I succeeded him as pastor at Mikinduri and I can assure you it was not an easy transition. He had been so active, energetic and popular that I had to work hard to measure up to him. Churches, schools, aqueducts: none of these projects kept him from pastoral work, from being close to people – especially the poor who queued up outside his office or whom he met in the villages.
His wisdom and patience made him a peacemaker in a world fraught with political strife and clan rivalry. He was a humble man avoiding the spotlight; he was happy to let others take credit for his accomplishments.
He was assigned to Nanyuki as administrator of the diocese of Marsabit – certainly no easy task. The vast diocese had enormous needs; he was continually traveling on poor roads; each mission had its own serious problems; he struggled daily to raise funds; there was a constant flow of visitors and volunteers to be accommodated; there were projects to supervise; the hospitals were a heavy burden – the list of his concerns was endless and he never shirked a single one.
He sometimes confided in his friends and though he noted the occasional lack of gratitude or recognition he was never bitter. He gave one a sense of security and was always ready to befriend others. Confrères who worked with him know this even better than I do. On occasion I witnessed his willingness to sacrifice himself for the good of his confrères or the region. These episodes were confidential and not generally known but I can guarantee they are a fact.
Not long ago he told me he wanted so much to go back and do pastoral work in Meru. But Jesus had other plans and we all know His plans are for our own good – even if we must pray for more faith to accept this.
Attilio, we know that you are still close to us; pray for those who mourn your departure; pray too for our region.
Father Luigi Brambilla

Father and friend
Father Attilio Ravasi was an assertive but understanding man whose death left me shocked and speechless. I knew him in the 1970s at Rovereto when he was in charge of our high school group. Afterwards he left for Kenya and I didn’t see him again until 1981 at the episcopal consecration of his brother Ambrogio, the Bishop of Marsabit.
When I heard the news of his death my mind went back to that year when he was our father and our friend. I can still see him handling one of our teen-age problems: he really disliked being harsh or reprimanding and punishing people.
The often severe seminary rules irked him and we sometimes took advantage of his good nature causing him problems with other members of the formation team.
Now that he has left us we can only recall his deep spirituality and humanity. I know that anyone who had the good fortune of knowing him carries the memory as a treasure in his heart.
Father Gianfranco Graziola