July 28—Bl. Stanley Rother, Priest and Martyr

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There are fourteen saints, eight blesseds, 25 venerables, and 184 Servants of God with American connections. They founded religious orders, became martyrs, taught, healed, led, and served. They ministered in America and around the world. They were all holy! 

Today’s blessed is one such man, Blessed Stanley Rother, a priest and missionary from Oklahoma, martyred in Guatemala in 1981 during its civil war. He was born in 1935 near Oklahoma City and graduated from the seminary in 1963. In 1968 he was assigned, at his request, to a mission in Guatemala. He served in Santiago Atitlán until his death. Along with his regular duties, he translated the New Testament into the native language of the people and founded a small hospital. 

The civil war eventually came to his parish. “His catechists and parishioners would disappear and later be found dead, with their bodies showing signs of being beaten and tortured.” He wrote to the people of Oklahoma in December 1980 before returning to Guatemala: “This is one of the reasons I have for staying in the face of physical harm. The shepherd cannot run at the first sign of danger.” He was told his name was on a death list but received permission to return to Santiago Atitlán. On July 28, 1981, shooters broke into the rectory and shot him twice in the head. He was one of ten priests murdered in Guatemala that year. He is buried in Oklahoma, but his heart is buried under the altar in Santiago Atitlán. 

On December 1, 2016, Pope Francis decreed that he had been killed in odium fidei, in hatred of the faith. He was beatified on September 23, 2017, the first US-born priest and martyr. Martyrdom is still a part of being Catholic. Bl. Stanley Rother, pray for us.

*http://www.catharchdioceseokc.org/history/rotherindex.htm