Blessed Fr. Stanley Rother
March 27, 1935 - July 28, 1981
Fr. Stanley Rother was a priest from Okarche, Oklahoma. He grew up on a farm and spent 13 years as a missionary priest in Santiago Atitlan, Guatemala.
Fr. Rother was well loved in his parish and by the local Maya people, he helped establish a school, radio station and health clinic, and worked to translate the Gospels into their native dialect. A simple man, when he returned home at the beginning of 1981, there were much concern for his safety and the safety of any foreign priests. His response was, “The shepherd cannot run at the first sign of danger” (1980 Christmas Letter to Dioceses of Tulsa and Oklahoma City).
At the request of the local people in mourning, Fr. Rother’s heart remained in Guatemala and his body is buried in Oklahoma City awaiting the construction of the Blessed Stanley Rother Shrine.
He was Beatified in Oklahoma City on September 23, 2017. He is the first martyr from the United States and the first U.S.-born priest to be beatified.
More information on Bl. Stanley Rother and his Canonization process are found on Diocese of Oklahoma City website and below is a short video the Diocese produced about him, as well.
The SOS Faith Sharing Team made a pilgrimage to Bl. Stanley Rother’s parish in 2019.
Prayers for Blessed Stanley Rother
Prayer for the Canonization of Blessed Stanley Rother
O God, fount of all holiness,
make us each walk worthily in our vocation,
through the intercession of your Saints,
on whom you bestowed
a great variety of graces on earth.
Having graced your Church with the life of
your priest and martyr, Blessed Stanley Rother,
grant that by his intercession
this humble flock may reach
where the brave shepherd has gone.
Grant that your Church may proclaim
him a saint living in your presence
and interceding for us.
Through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Prayer for the Intercession of Blessed Stanley Rother
O faithful shepherd, Blessed Stanley Rother,
as priest and missionary, you tilled the soil with your hands
and invited Christ Jesus to till the soil of your soul.
You became a sign of love of Christ the Good Shepherd for your
people, and blessed their lives by your ministry.
You stood firm and did not run from danger,
bringing glory to God and His Church in your martyrdom.
Blessed Stanley, obtain from the heart of Jesus
(here make your request...),
and pray for me, that I too may be
a sign of Christ's love among His people.
Teach me to faithfully till the soil of this life in the reality
given to me by your Father,
unafraid to stay with those God has given me,
no matter the cost.
Through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.