Oklahoma’s Blessed Stanley Rother Shrine reflects on connection to Pope Francis

The Blessed Stanley Rother Shrine in Oklahoma City now stands as a reminder of the legacy of Pope Francis. 

Father Stanley Rother, born and raised in Okarche, was shot and killed in Guatemala in 1981. In 2007, a Cause for Canonization, for sainthood, was opened. 

Then, Pope Francis recognized Father Rother as a martyr in 2016, propelling him further along the path to sainthood. He was beatified in 2017 and became the first U.S.-born priest to be beatified. 

Early beginnings for the shrine 

“I just heard when I woke up this morning and we had a group message with some of our staff,” said Andrew Darling, communications director for the shrine. “Pope Francis is the one that paved the way for Blessed Stanley to be beatified.” 

Darling said Oklahoma will always be grateful for the pope’s historic impact on the state. 

“We’ve had hundreds of thousands of people that have come from around Oklahoma, from around the country, and from around the world, to visit the shrine,” he said. 

The shrine’s leadership says they pray for the repose of the Holy Father, and for peace to all who knew him. 

They’ll honor Pope Francis and his commitment to Blessed Stanley through continued education. 

“There’s a whole room about his beatification and the next steps and we’ll add on to that, hopefully, along the way as we move toward canonization and we pray for that miracle,” he said. 

Visiting from afar 

When José Sánchez de Lira planned his visit from Aguascalientes, Mexico to Oklahoma City, he hadn’t expected he would visit the Rother Shrine the day Pope Francis had died. 

“On the one hand, poor guy, he suffered a lot with his illnesses,” Sánchez said. “And thank God he’s finally going to rest from all that. God is with him. Now we can say that: with God, our Lord, up there in heaven.” 

Sánchez also remarked on Pope Francis being a historic leader in a unique way. 

“Now, he was the first pope from here in the Americas,” he said. “And he really was a person who had a lot of communication with the nation, with the world, with the people. And he had understanding, so much understanding, to dedicate part of his life, his time.”