Tell the Story
“Really great things, when discussed by little men, can usually make such men grow big.”
Saint Augustine of Hippo
Fr. Stan’s story is itself an influence upon those who hear it. The more people who know him, the more who will be moved, and the more who will find a way to act in his example. Just telling his story is a service to his Cause, to the Church, and to your Community. Be respectful of others first and foremost - be ready but wait for appropriate moments - and don’t be shy.
Loved Ones
If you love Fr. Stan’s story, then the ones who love you may love it too. Let them make of it whatever they can. But hearing it is a chance to grow.
Friends and Acquaintances
In appropriate ways you can find the right moment to ask if anyone wants to hear a good story. Don’t be pushy, but the Beatified priest who had failed Latin but toughed it out… that’s a good story!
Pray
"Prayer is the raising of one's mind and heart to God or the requesting of good things from God"
St. John Damascene
The most powerful prayers I can suggest to you are the prayer of intercession, where we ask for Fr. Stan’s help, and the prayer for Canonization when we pray for the Cause of Sainthood. Intercession is the method by which the Beatified Martyr Stanley Rother acts with effects here amongst us. Canonization is the process through which the official Church brings an individual to universal veneration within a nation or the whole church as a Roman Catholic Saint.
These are Catholic prayers. Feel free to make your own.
Prayer of Divine Favor
Blessed Stanley our Brother, you poured out your life in service and spilled your blood as a witness to the faithfulness of God’s love.
Those you loved so deeply and served so completely knew you to be their pastor and their priest, interceding for them as their open door to the presence of Christ.
Pray for us now and intercede on our behalf, as we ask you to walk with us on our journey through life, that the redeeming presence of Jesus might touch us now and restore us to wholeness and peace.
I ask in time of need [ state the need ] that your prayer accompany us; may the mercy of Christ, echoed in your ministry and your martyrdom, renew us and bring us the graces necessary to heal our brokenness, illuminate our darkness, and restore the losses in our lives, that we ma be, finally, one with you in praising God forever in heaven.
Through Christ our Lord
Amen
Prayer for Canonization
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 all.
Through Christ our Lord
Amen
Make a Pilgrimage
“Pilgrimage is a symbol of life… A soul that does not walk in life doing good, doing many things that one must do for society, to assist others, or who does not walk through life seeking God and inspiration from the Holy Spirit, is a soul that finishes in mediocrity and in spiritual poverty. Please: do not stand still in life!”
Pope Francis
Since his beatification in 2017, pilgrimages have begun to important sites in Fr. Stan’s life.
Resurrection Cemetery, Oklahoma City, OK
Fr. Stan’s resting place while his church is being built is the Resurrection Cemetery, next to the Diocesan headquarters in Oklahoma City. Pilgrimage to this site is possible. Please consult with the Cemetery staff for details.
Blessed Stanley Rother Shrine, Oklahoma City, OK
The Shrine will be Blessed Stanley’s final resting place and the center of our community of devotion. The site is under construction but rapidly progressing.
Holy Trinity Church, Okarche, OK
This was Fr. Stan’s home parish when growing up. Inside the church is a relic of the first class, as well as a small display of some of Fr. Stan’s possessions. There is a statue of Fr. Stan as well as a small gift shop.
Mount Saint Mary, Emmitsburg, MD
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If you are interested in helping organize, setup or develop pilgrimage procedures, use the button below to get in touch.