The Unorthodox Residents of Oblate Hill

By Mathew Martin

For nearly a century, Oblate Hill – the 41-acre home to Oblate School of Theology and the Lourdes Grotto & Tepeyac de San Antonio – has been a place of vibrant life, witnessing a rich tapestry of people, events, and even wildlife. Over the years, the grounds at Oblate Hill have seen countless Oblates, professors, seminarians, lay students, retreatants, tourists, and pilgrims pass through. The land has also offered sanctuary to a diverse range of animals, some more welcome than others. Originally known as Rattlesnake Hill, due to its former abundance of the venomous snakes, the campus held an even more surprising secret: from 1938 to 1953 a group of
alligators called Oblate Hill home.

The story began with Scholastic Brother Robert Biasiolli, OMI, who spent summers on the Texas Gulf Coast at Oblate Villa in Port Lavaca with his fellow scholastics. In 1938, while exploring the banks of the Navidad River, he discovered a clutch of alligator eggs and brought them back to De Mazenod Scholasticate, currently known as Oblate School of Theology. Recognizing the need for a habitat, Brother Biasiolli, with the help of Oblate Brothers Nash, Busch, Boonman, and Fr. Art Kaler, OMI took the initiative to design and build a distinctive rock lagoon on campus. He later created a similar pond at Our Lady of Lourdes Grotto in 1941. The alligators thrived on a diet of rabbits and other wild game abundant in the area. After his ordination in June of 1938, Fr. Biasiolli began his missionary work in the Arctic, South Pacific, and Mexico.

For over 15 years, successive classes of scholastics diligently cared for the alligator population. Unaware of how important animal bones are to an alligator’s diet for their teeth development, they prepared their food by first removing the bones – a fact reflected in old photographs showing dogs and people safely interacting with these toothless creatures. The scholastics also engaged in a unique practice of capturing rattlesnakes and selling them to Alligator Garden, a once popular tourist attraction near the Witte Museum in San Antonio. The Garden famously served rattlesnake sandwiches as a local delicacy, which helped the scholastics raise funds for baseball equipment and other essentials that they couldn’t afford.

This existing relationship with Alligator Garden proved to be invaluable when it was decided that the alligators could no longer remain on campus. In 1953, they were donated to the attraction. Upon taking ownership, Alligator Garden’s experienced staff introduced chicken backs, necks, and fish – food sources containing bones – to the alligators which eventually stimulated their teeth development. The rock lagoon, formerly located at the southeast corner of the Rock House, was subsequently dismantled. When Alligator Garden closed its doors in 1975, the alligators and their descendants were transferred to Arkansas Alligator Farm and Petting Zoo in Hot Springs, Arkansas, continuing their remarkable journey from Texas and beyond.

“Set Apart for the Gospel”: Celebrating 200 Years of Pontifical Approval for the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate

On February 17, 2026, the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate will mark a sacred milestone: the 200th anniversary of their pontifical approval as a religious congregation of pontifical right. This anniversary commemorates the day in 1826 when Pope Leo XII formally recognized the Oblates’ Constitutions and Rules, affirming their mission, their way of life, and their place within the heart of the Church. It is a moment of profound gratitude, reflection, and renewal for Oblates and their extended charismatic family around the world today.

The year was 1826. The Society of Missionaries of Provence, founded by St. Eugene de Mazenod just a decade earlier, had already begun to stir hearts and awaken hope among the poor and abandoned in southern France. Their ministry was bold, their community life was rooted in prayer and fraternity, and their founder’s vision was clear: to evangelize those most forgotten by society and least reached by the Church.

When Pope Leo XII granted pontifical approval on February 17, he did more than endorse a group of missionaries. He confirmed a charism. He recognized a spiritual fire. He gave the Church a new name for a new mission: the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate.

This approval transformed the Oblates from a regional missionary society into a congregation with universal reach. It gave them the spiritual and canonical foundation to expand their ministry across dioceses, continents, cultures, and generations. It also affirmed their Constitutions and Rules as the guiding light for their communal life, apostolic zeal, and personal oblation.

At the center of this anniversary is the Oblate charism itself—a call to be “men set apart for the Gospel,” as expressed in Constitution 2. This foundational text proclaims:

“We are men ‘set apart for the Gospel’ (Rom 1:1), ready to leave everything to be disciples of Jesus… Our apostolic zeal is sustained by the unreserved gift we make of ourselves in our oblation…”

These words are not merely aspirational. They are lived. For two centuries, Oblates have left behind comfort and familiarity to walk with the poor, to preach in forgotten places, and to build communities of faith where none existed before. Their oblation—the total offering of their lives to God—is the source of their strength and the measure of their love.

The Constitutions and Rules emphasize simplicity, obedience, and a missionary spirit that seeks out the most abandoned. They call Oblates to live in community, to pray deeply, and to serve generously. They are not a relic of the past but a living document that continues to shape the daily lives and decisions of Oblates today.

As the bicentennial approaches, the Superior General has invited the entire Oblate family—priests, brothers, lay collaborators, and those inspired by the charism—to enter into a time of grace and reflection. This is not simply a celebration of history. It is a call to renewal.

Three invitations guide this journey:

• Renewed oblation: A deeper commitment to the Gospel and to the poor, rediscovering the joy and cost of missionary discipleship.
• Communal pilgrimage: Walking together with laity who share the Oblate charism, honoring the diverse ways the Spirit animates this mission in today’s world.
• Conversion and discernment: Listening attentively to the Spirit’s voice, especially amid the challenges and hopes of our time.

This anniversary is also a moment to rediscover Jesus Christ as the center of Oblate life and mission. It is a time to rekindle the fire of the original call, to remember the faces and stories of those who have gone before, and to ask anew: What does it mean to be “set apart for the Gospel” today?

Over the past 200 years, the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate have served in many countries and communities across the globe. They have built parishes, schools, and missions. They have stood with Indigenous communities, walked with refugees, and ministered in prisons, hospitals, and remote villages. They have preached the Gospel in many languages and lived it in countless acts of compassion.

This bicentennial is a tribute to their courage, their fidelity, and their love. It is also a challenge to continue the mission with humility, creativity, and boldness. The world has changed, but the call remains: to bring the Good News to the poor, to be signs of hope in broken places, and to live the Gospel with joy and perseverance.

As February 17, 2026 draws near, the Oblate family prepares not only to commemorate a date but to renew a promise. With Mary Immaculate as their patron and St. Eugene as their guide, they step into the next century of mission—ready to leave everything, ready to serve, ready to proclaim Christ crucified and risen.