Tuesday, September 12, 2017

Blessed Father Stanley Rother: The First American Born Martyr to be Beatified September 23rd


There is a murdered American priest who is about to be beatified. He was an alumnus of my alma mater Seminary: Mount Saint Mary's Seminary, Emmitsburg, MD. I remember his picture on the wall and something of his story.

On a July night in 1981, three men entered a 15th century catholic mission in a small Guatemalan village and brutally murdered the priest. Father Stanley Rother knew he was in danger but stayed because “A shepherd doesn’t run.” Father Rother grew up on a farm near Okarche, Oklahoma. He is the only Catholic martyr born in the United States and is on a path to being recognized as a saint.

September 23 is the beatification.

http://stanleyrother.org is the website, with a good video of his life.