Category: Italy

“I Nuovi Eremiti” is an Italian-language “blog dedicated to new hermits, metropolitan monks, and contemplatives. Articles, reviews, experiences, new communities and more. The blog aims to be a virtual meeting point for those laypersons who live experiences of contemplative life, eremitism, semi-eremitism, and for those who live following the principles of internalized monasticism.” The site is run by the anonymous “Pilgrim” since 2008. Entries are infrequent but useful in identifying the Catholic tradition of hermit spirituality in the contemporary world.

URL: https://nuovieremiti.blogspot.com/

Mauro Morandi, a 79-year old hermit on the small island of Budelli in southern Italy for nearly thirty years, is threatened with eviction, reports Il Globo.

Budelli was recently incorporated into Sardinia’s Maddalena Archipelago national park, and authorities claim that his presence on the island is incompatible with that designation. Morandi, who survived an eviction attempt several years ago due to thousands of petitions on his behalf, argues that, on the contrary, his presence protects the isalnd’s fauna and flora from the neglect of tourists and other island visitors.

URL: https://ilglobo.com.au/news/41224/italian-hermit-fights-eviction-after-30-years-of-solitude-on-sardinian-island

Mother Nature Network ofers an article about Mauro Morandi, age 79, who has spent the last 30 years alone on the deserted Italian island of Budelli near Sardinia. Morandi uses solar energy, makes furniture from driftwood, and shares photos of the natural beauty of the place on his Facebook account. He came to the island because “I was very angry with a society that does not take into consideration the individual, but only runs for power and money … We must try to see the beauty to the end, and then we will respect nature and perhaps this world will be saved.” Includes some of the photos.

URL: https://www.mnn.com/lifestyle/eco-tourism/blogs/79-year-old-enjoys-life-solitude-deserted-italian-island

A 77-year old hermit living alone on the Sardinian island of Budelli for the past 27 years is threatened with eviction. Mauro Morandi has maintained the island for many years, benefiting summer tourists, but the island is now in public hands and he fears eviction. A petition drive on his behalf using Change.org is being championed by supporters.

URL: https://www.thelocal.it/20160525/italy-launches-petition-to-stop-eviction-of-paradise-islands-hermit-custodian; Change.org petition (in Italian): https://www.change.org/p/facciamo-in-modo-che-mauro-il-custode-eremita-di-budelli-possa-continuare-a-vivere-l%C3%AC-glgalletti?utm_source=embedded_petition_view

Brief interview with an Italian hermit, Fausto Mottalini, who lives in Sostila, an Italian Alps ghost village, where he is the only resident.

“Many people think I’m a crazy kind of hermit, living here all alone, with no one to talk to or spend the days with. But I love it, I’m the guardian of this place. It’s like living in a fairy tale — time is frozen.”

URL: http://www.ozy.com/true-story/how-was-your-day-italian-hermit/67884