Born in 1931 to a good Catholic family, Rivi discovered his vocation very early and entered the seminary when he was only 11 years old. At that time, all seminarians, even those in high school, wore cassocks. After Sept. 8, 1943, Italian armistice with the Allies and subsequent Nazi occupation of northern Italy, groups of partisans were formed to support the Allies’ liberation effort. The movement was initially composed of independent troops and former officers of the Royal Army.
In Modena, partisan formations mostly consisted of communists and socialists, united by animosity toward fascists and an anti-Catholicism spirit. In particular, communist partisans especially thought that the clergy would be a dangerous impediment to their cause.
In June 1944, Nazi troops occupied the seminary, thus forcing all the seminarians out. Rivi returned to his hometown of San Valentino, bringing his books with him in order to continue his studies.
In San Valentino, the young seminarian never stopped wearing his cassock, despite the intesifying atmosphere of violence. When his parents suggested that he abstain from wearing it, Rivi astonishingly replied: “I study to be a priest, and these vestments are the sign that I belong to Jesus.” The situation, however, would grow more difficult: Four priests were killed by communist brigades, and Fr. Olinto Marzocchini, Rolando’s spiritual father, was attacked. Consequently, Fr. Olinto was transferred to a more secure place. Nevertheless, Rivi’s days were spent between service in his parish and his studies.
On the morning of April 10, 1945, after serving Mass, the 14-year-old took his books and went to the nearby woods, where he was accustomed to studying. Yet this time, he never returned. At noon, his parents, worried because Rivi had not come back for lunch; they went to the woods and found his books on the ground and a sheet of paper, where the following words were written: “Do not search for him. He just came with us partisans for a while.” Kidnapped and stripped of his cassock, Rivi was imprisoned and tortured by partisans for three days. Some of the partisans proposed to let him go, since he was only a young boy. But the majority sentenced him to death, in order to have “one less future priest.” On April 13, Rivi was taken to a forest in the surroundings of Modena. The partisans dug a grave and had Rivi kneel on its edge. While he was praying, the young seminarian was killed by gunshots to the heart and head. His cassock was rolled into a ball, kicked around and then hung as a war trophy in the front door of a house.
On Holy Thursday, with his papal signature, Pope Francis recognized that the young seminarian was not murdered by the Communists for political reasons, but in "odium fidei"—out of hatred for the faith. The Pope beatified Rivi on the Fifth of October, 2013, enabling him to be the first high school seminarian to be beatified.