Have you ever heard of Okarche, Oklahoma? That’s where the next story of “The Saints: Adventures of Faith and Courage” begins, with a venerated holy man from the United States.
Blessed Stanley Rother was born in 1935, one of four children born to the Rother family in the middle of the Dust Bowl. He joined the seminary after finishing high school and served in many different roles, from sacristan to gardener to plumber, and ultimately had to leave due to academic struggles. This hiatus was short-lived, as he was accepted to Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Emmitsburg, Maryland not long after. While he still struggled with Latin, Rother turned out to be quite the linguist when he was assigned to minister in the rural highlands of Guatemala.
Rother supported a local radio station that broadcasted the Good News and faith-filled lessons throughout Santiago Atitlán. He learned both Spanish and Tz’utujil and even translated the New Testament – and his daily Masses! – into the regional language. He helped found a hospital and continued to offer the Sacraments to the faithful in Santiago Atitlán, even in the face of extraordinary danger. Because, in his words, “The shepherd cannot run at the first sign of danger.”
Listen to the story of Blessed Stanley Rother, starting on Monday, April 8th, at thesaintspodcast.com!
