Father Diego Dalla Gassa

Brother Diego arrived in the Holy Land in 2010, drawn by the desire to spend time in the places associated with Jesus' earthly life, after a pilgrimage the previous year with some young people.After spending time at San Salvatore, the headquarters of the Custody of the Holy Land in Jerusalem, and a course at the Studium Biblicum Franciscanum, Father Pierbattista Pizzaballa, then Custos, asked him if he would like to gain practical experience as director of the Hermitage of Gethsemane, a special, unique place dedicated exclusively to prayer, interior silence, and intimate encounter with the Lord, to finally replace Father Giorgio, the friar who founded the hermitages, who had died two years earlier.

Brother Diego accepted the assignment and thus began his new experience as a friar, spiritual guide, and point of reference for all those who pass through the Hermitage and wish to stay on retreat. He also served as "physical custodian" of Jesus' garden: a carpenter to build or repair furniture and objects in the various hermitages, a bricklayer to renovate the chapel and various rooms or build dry stone walls and stone steps in the large garden, and an expert in olive trees, learning to prune, harvest, and finally produce the precious and holy oil of Gethsemane. Thanks to the donation of a mini olive oil mill by a couple who were friends of the Hermitage, the place, after more than 2,000 years, resumes the same function it had in Jesus' time, a function encapsulated in its name: Gethsemane means "oil press" in Hebrew, a truly unique and significant event in the history of the place.This year, 2025, after 14 years of service and much work carried out with commitment and perseverance, according to the various needs and requirements of the Hermitage, the urgent need for the friars' formation calls Brother Diego to take on other duties in a different role, as head of ongoing formation, and to move to Mount Tabor in Galilee. He is certain, however, that the spiritual and emotional bond with Gethsemane, the unique place of Jesus' request: "Remain here and keep watch with Me" will remain forever in his heart and perhaps one day will bring him back.

The Hermitage of Gethsemane “Remain here and keep watch with me. Watch and pray.” (excerpt from Franciscan Mission Magazine - Spring 2025)
Diego Dalla Gassa, o.f.m., director of the Hermitage
The Hermitage of Gethsemane and its theological foundation

Among all the holy places that can be visited, only a few can offer pilgrims a time of pause, silence and prayer. The most significant and unique is Gethsemane, a place related to a particular evangelical memory in which the Lord invites his disciples to remain close to him in prayer. The Lord says: “Remain here and keep watch with me. Watch and pray that you may not undergo the test.” (Mt 26:38.41) We’re convinced that this holy place, by the will of Jesus himself, is dedicated to prayer and encounter with him. It’s beautiful and fascinating for us to note that the memory of Jesus’ agony in Gethsemane was already experienced by the first Christians, and has spanned for centuries until today. Jesus, even through various mystics, continued to ask his followers to experience and share his Holy Hour with him. Why? We don’t know, but we can intuitively say that they’re asking us today to become aware of how much Jesus loved us by giving himself for our salvation and how much he wishes that united to him, we can say “yes” to his Father, thus contributing to the mystery of Redemption. It’s as if Jesus was telling us: “Look how much I loved you, to the point of dying!” Gethsemane is the most appropriate place in Jerusalem to dwell with the Lord, to learn from him through silence and meditation, to discover his will and recognize his Paschal presence in history and our personal life experience.

Guardians because they’re guarded

The Custody of the Holy Land has the privilege and grace of guarding and inhabiting this place, “called Gethsemane where the Lord himself withdrew.” It’s curious to consider how this garden has been mysteriously guarded for centuries, and as sons of Francis, we’re here to continue guarding preciously the Lord’s favourite place. If, with a vision of faith, we look at the moon that the patriarchs, prophets, children and adults have seen, with St. Francis we can welcome the privilege of our presence here and meditate on the deep connection he had with the Lord’s Passion. He liked to say, “I would like to travel the roads of the world weeping for my Lord’s Passion.” Here, in Gethsemane, we see that the world reaches the place of the Lord’s Passion, and we can be modest “mediators” so that the Lord’s love, witnessed by the offering of his life, can still become nourishment and consolation for everyone who comes to this place. Geographically, we’re close to the Basilica of the Agony, in a modest part of the old property known as Gethsemane (oil press). Thirty years ago, the hermitage was built here. This place was built exclusively to “be apart,” and welcome the mystery that the Lord manifested with his Passion. Father Giorgio Colombini, a friar from Modena, united prayer and pastoral action, with the help and collaboration of the fraternity of the Basilica of the Agony, giving life to the hermitage of Gethsemane, a very special place of the Custody of the Holy Land. The hermitage is currently run by Father Diego dalla Gassa, with the invaluable presence and help of two consecrated people, Teresa Pinta (Comunità Mariana Oasi della Pace) and Elisa Chiorrini (Order of Virgins).

The Hermitage of Gethsemane considering saint Francis’ Rule of Hermitages
If we talk about the hermitage, we need to ask ourselves how thisexperience is related to the Rule of Hermitages written by Francis: what lightwe can receive from this holy place where the Lord asks us to remainclose to him and what connections we should make with what Francisadvises to those who “want to lead an evangelical life in fraternitywithin the hermitages.” We’re aware that our reality comes closerto themodality that Francis proposed to those who lived in hermitages.
Gethsemane has a unique and particular spirituality precisely because it’s a heritage of Christianity and, as such, it must remain open to all types of people wishing to experience what this place suggests, not only to the friars. At the same time, however, in the experience of solitude that Francis proposes to his brothers, we find interesting characteristics that can help us live in this holy place.
From the Rule of Hermitages, we can retain some important elements: it’s the fraternity that experiences prayer in a careful search for a place of solitude where it’s possible to live apart with the Lord. Francis proposes a lifestyle of mothers and sons by having the evangelical icons of Martha and Mary as reference. The brilliant and fascinating intuition of the saint of Assisi is centred on welcoming and listening to the Lord to seek his Kingdom first. Finally, he exhorts each brother to beg for food like a poor from mothers and to live as a son (as lesser) who depends on the other and recognizes himself in needAll this can be considered as an integral dimension of a path of freedom and purification which, in a gentle dependence on others, opens up to a relationship with the Lord, the Other par excellence. This is the welcoming service that we regularly offer. This service is very demanding because we must offer a worthy welcome to those who come. We could say that our patron saint is Saint Martha. During the busiest times, we’re helped by volunteers from Gethsemane whom we call the Friends of the Hermitage of Gethsemane, who are dedicated and reliable people. Now, in this time of conflict when pilgrims are almost absent, we’re living what we often call: remaining at the feet of the Lord, like Saint Mary, sister of Lazarus.

Our mission
A) Being a prayer in Jesus’ prayer

In this perspective, we intuit that Gethsemane is not only the memorial of the Lord’s Passion but also the place where we experience familiarity with the Lord in a life of labour: welcoming people in his garden and remaining in contact with nature invite us to be patient like a farmer who generouslythrows the seed of the word. We see our mission here as a small and fragile silent presence that seeks to be a comfort to the Lord, who asks us to watch while he prays; therefore, our service is highly dependent on the Lord’s desire and wants to be an answer to his request. Being able to embrace the rock where he prayed the Father for our redemption is something unique and impossible to reproduce and, in reality, we’re the lesser ones, and we feel that we’re embraced by the Lord.

In these changing and contradictory times, when hatred and wickedness of man towards man seem to reign, we perceive an incessant call from the Lord: to be intercessors for anyone who finds himself spiritually in Gethsemane because of war, trial, suffering and the offering of his life! From this holy garden, also called the “Place of Struggle” (agony = struggle or battle), we become aware that, close to us, there is a loud war, but there is another one more silent, venomous and dangerous, because there is a risk that it enters the heart of each of us, leading us to be alone and torn by evil. It leads us to develop prejudices about who lives next to us, and to an even more serious suspicion: God has abandoned us! Here, on the contrary, the Lord repeats: “Watch and pray that you may not undergo the test. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” (Mt 26:41) We’re all called and reached by the Lord!
Gethsemane is the geographical and theological centre where every human being, beyond his belief, finds himself visited by the Son of God! In this sense, the silence and the search for solitude that we propose are essential modalities that we seek to experience and maintain, so that this encounter between God and the souls he has loved immeasurably may still occur.

B) Being a respectful and supportive presence

Inspired by the evangelical icons of Martha and Mary, we also seek to be mothers for those who wish to remain in prayer. It’s a delicate and precious role that allows the sons to live in solitude and listen to the word of God. By opening and closing this precious space, we offer men and women, priests, members of a religious congregation and laypeople a motherly welcome by respecting each. Unlike so many spiritual exercise centres, we don’t have a common kitchen but each hermit has the necessary to prepare his food which can be bought in the city. There is wisdom in preparing one’s food alone and silently.
In the reception area, we suggest a small set of rules and ask all our guests to respect a climate of recollection and prayer, to avoid welcoming and lodging other people in their hermitage, and to follow our advice to live the eremitic experience in the best way. As animators and like good mothers, we make sure that a healthy solitude is experienced, especially in these times when most relationships are based on interacting through technology. It’s a real challenge and an important decision to talk with God, who doesn’t use a smartphone, but rather a spiritual contact! At the hermitage, we don’t have fixed rates for hospitality, but we do ask our guests an offering to cover the costs of consumables and maintenance of the place. We would be unhappy if someone refused to live this experience for economic reasons.
We have twelve hermitages, nine of which are available to guests. This is an ideal number. The structure itself prevents a larger number of guests. We can only accommodate small groups that don’t exceed twelve people. We have learned from experience that if we exceed a certain number of guests, it’s more difficult to maintain silence and moments of solitude. Besides the guests who come alone, we welcome groups of pilgrims who wish to experience the Holy Hour, celebrate the Eucharist or spend a moment of prayer in Jesus’ garden. We keep the number of people we welcome to a minimum, in harmony with our schedule, to ensure that our guests enjoy an atmosphere of recollection and prayer. Therefore, we offer various moments of life and prayer that continue the style matured by the long experience of the founder Father Giorgio, who repeated: “Gethsemane is understood by those who experience Gethsemane.”

C) Serving others

The hermitage was designed exclusively for prayer. It isn’t, of course, a place to stay while visiting the Holy Land and the city of Jerusalem. It’s certainly one of the reasons why St. Francis, with a certain insistence, invites those who are mothers to pay attention to their sons silently, in a protected or separate place. This means that the friars could indeed be distracted or disturbed while being in contact with people. In this sense, the maternal care by the friar in charge and his collaborators is essential to guarantee the experience of sons for those who reside here, so that a prayerful experience mysteriously comes to those who desire it. We have noticed that this happens to those who need to rediscover the meaning of God in life, and who have the desire to let themselves be met by the Lord who seeks them, he, the burning bush that never burns!

Truly, here, in this place, today as yesterday, the word Nicodemus received from our Lord Jesus Christ about rebirth (Jn 3:1- 6)is being fulfilled. This is a gift and a mission that we can’t neglect. This should stimulate us to experience a life made more sacred (consecrated) thanks to the Lord, consistent with the evangelical and, I would say, Franciscan witness. We seek to nourish ourselves with the Word of God, with the grace of this holy place, so that in turn we can nourish the people, the sons, whom the Lord leads here to meet Him through us.
D) The most important work: the care of souls

Our desire to nurture a climate of prayer, whether through calm or struggle, has its deepest meaning in welcoming the mystery of the person of Jesus. In Gethsemane, the Son of God intensely experiences what he taught to the disciples, and through silence, he dramatically and gradually becomes the word made flesh; he experiences what he said: the offering of his life and the beginning of his passion. We’re amazed to see how the Lord comes to meet us, knocking at the door of our hearts. We’re aware that the consolation the Lord asks truly has the power here to become a consolation for all, with his closeness and presence, far beyond the geographical and spiritual location where each person finds himself.
We have the confidence and certainty that God is still searching for mankind today with passion and an immense, unspeakable love. This is how we imagine it, and how we often experience it: the Lord comes to his garden and spends time with his children, forging bonds of love with them (Hos 11:3-5). These are just some experiences we live in this Holy Place, considering Jesus’ desire as described in the Gospels. Here, we do many things, too many perhaps, but surely the noblest and most important: the good and care of souls, a silent dedication known only to God.
To the praise of Christ. Amen.