# Blessed Stanley Rother Part I

An episode of [Saints Alive Podcast](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1598392451), 23 Feb 2026, 16 min.

Audio: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1882754/episodes/18728726-blessed-stanley-rother-part-i.mp3

Join Mia and Paul as they hunt for miracle stories in the library and discover Blessed Stanley Rother’s early life. Follow his call from the Oklahoma farm to the seminary and a second chance that changes everything. Today’s episode is a special public release of the story of Blessed Stanley Rother that is part of our Hallow exclusive Lenten series for families: The Miracle Hunters! Tune in to a new episode everyday by joining the challenge on Hallow! This one's for you, Charlie! Saints Alive is brought to you by the #1 Catholic Prayer App, Hallow! Sign up today with a 30-day free trial! Please rate, review and share with friends and family! Find out more about Saints Alive at our website: https://www.saintsalivepodcast.com/

## Transcript

[0:03] SPEAKER_00: Welcome back to the Miracle Hunters.
[0:06] SPEAKER_00: We're so glad you're here.
[0:08] SPEAKER_00: Last week, we listened as Paul and Mia began their Lenten journey and their search for miracles.
[0:14] SPEAKER_00: Today, we'll join them as they hear the story of an incredible man on his path to sainthood.
[0:22] SPEAKER_07: Okay, can you just tell me?
[0:24] SPEAKER_06: I'll show you.
[0:25] SPEAKER_06: Come on, we're almost there.
[0:26] SPEAKER_07: You know, you walk a lot faster than me.
[0:30] SPEAKER_07: Now, they are practically a teenager.
[0:34] SPEAKER_06: Okay, here it is.
[0:36] SPEAKER_07: What am I supposed to be looking at?
[0:38] SPEAKER_07: What do you mean?
[0:39] SPEAKER_07: Look at this.
[0:40] SPEAKER_07: It's the school library.
[0:42] SPEAKER_06: Mia, you're not looking at it right.
[0:44] SPEAKER_06: You have to see with the eyes of faith, like Uncle Tanner said.
[0:48] SPEAKER_06: Um what?
[0:49] SPEAKER_06: Just think of how many miracle stories lie within these books.
[0:53] SPEAKER_07: Oh, okay.
[0:54] SPEAKER_07: I'm following now.
[0:56] SPEAKER_07: You could have just told me that.
[0:57] SPEAKER_06: Yeah, but where's the fun in that?
[0:59] SPEAKER_06: Come on, let's look around.
[1:04] SPEAKER_07: Okay, so what are we looking for exactly?
[1:07] SPEAKER_06: A miracle story.
[1:08] SPEAKER_06: Once we read one, we can add it to our miracle jar.
[1:11] SPEAKER_07: Well, you know what mom always says.
[1:13] SPEAKER_06: Don't forget your lunch?
[1:14] SPEAKER_07: No.
[1:14] SPEAKER_06: I'm more of a lake person than a pool person.
[1:16] SPEAKER_07: Why?
[1:17] SPEAKER_06: No.
[1:17] SPEAKER_06: Green gum drops do not count as something green when the doctor asks.
[1:21] SPEAKER_07: No, no.
[1:23] SPEAKER_07: She always says, when in doubt, start with the saints.
[1:26] SPEAKER_06: She does say that a lot, doesn't she?
[1:28] SPEAKER_07: I mean, not nearly as much as don't forget your lunch.
[1:31] SPEAKER_06: True.
[1:32] SPEAKER_06: Okay, let's find a good Saint book.
[1:35] SPEAKER_07: Oh, I think I got it.
[1:37] SPEAKER_07: Haven't you always wanted to know more about him?
[1:40] SPEAKER_06: Blessed Stanley Rother?
[1:42] SPEAKER_07: Yes.
[1:42] SPEAKER_07: Huh.
[1:43] SPEAKER_07: I always thought it was Rother.
[1:44] SPEAKER_06: Well, there's only one way to find out.
[2:03] SPEAKER_02: You're up early.
[2:05] SPEAKER_05: Mm-hmm.
[2:05] SPEAKER_02: You want coffee?
[2:07] SPEAKER_05: Oh, coffee would be great.
[2:09] SPEAKER_02: Uh, your father spent all yesterday afternoon trying to fix the tractor.
[2:13] SPEAKER_02: Seems like the starter's stuck.
[2:15] SPEAKER_02: Oh wait, Stan.
[2:17] SPEAKER_02: Where are you going?
[2:19] SPEAKER_02: To fix it.
[2:26] SPEAKER_02: Oh, it's no use tinkering with it.
[2:29] SPEAKER_02: I'm not tinkering.
[2:31] SPEAKER_02: Well, then what are you?
[2:35] SPEAKER_05: I'm fixing.
[2:40] SPEAKER_13: Dumb luck.
[2:41] SPEAKER_05: I think the word you're looking for is perseverance.
[2:44] SPEAKER_13: There are a lot of words I'm looking for.
[2:48] SPEAKER_13: Now you get out there and feed the herd.
[2:55] SPEAKER_09: My brother Stanley.
[2:58] SPEAKER_09: I can see him so clearly in my mind's eye.
[3:03] SPEAKER_09: The way he was that summer.
[3:06] SPEAKER_09: Tall, handsome, and quiet.
[3:10] SPEAKER_09: He was only 18, and to anyone else in town, he was just a simple, hard-working farm boy.
[3:18] SPEAKER_09: But to me, his little sister, I knew his gaze was already fixed on love itself.
[3:27] SPEAKER_09: Farming came so naturally to stand.
[3:30] SPEAKER_09: Riding across the rolling hills of Oklahoma in the tractor, fixing things.
[3:37] SPEAKER_09: Milking the cows.
[3:39] SPEAKER_09: That's why all of us were surprised when he had plans outside of Okachi, Oklahoma.
[3:46] SPEAKER_09: Outside of the family farm.
[3:51] SPEAKER_12: Betty May, can you pass the butter?
[3:54] SPEAKER_02: Apparently there are quite a few novices joining the Adores of the Blood of Christ, and they'll start at the same time as you in Wichita.
[4:00] SPEAKER_02: Betty, can you Isn't that wonderful?
[4:03] SPEAKER_02: It really is.
[4:05] SPEAKER_04: Sorry.
[4:06] SPEAKER_04: Tom, can you pass the butter?
[4:10] SPEAKER_04: I did.
[4:10] SPEAKER_04: The starter was jammed.
[4:12] SPEAKER_04: Can someone please pass the butter?
[4:13] SPEAKER_04: Well, that's a good thing.
[4:15] SPEAKER_04: I've got my own personal handyman on the farm.
[4:18] SPEAKER_04: Well, Stan.
[4:23] SPEAKER_10: What is it?
[4:24] SPEAKER_05: Well, I've been praying about this for some time and I decided to join the seminar.
[4:53] SPEAKER_05: I can't deny this.
[4:59] SPEAKER_04: Well I can say is that it's gonna be hard on me.
[5:04] SPEAKER_04: Calling you father.
[5:09] SPEAKER_05: I'll have to get used to that too.
[5:12] SPEAKER_10: Yeah, that'll be so weird.
[5:15] SPEAKER_02: Well, congratulations, Stanley.
[5:17] SPEAKER_02: I mean, that's wonderful.
[5:18] SPEAKER_05: Thank you.
[5:18] SPEAKER_05: I I really am excited.
[5:21] SPEAKER_02: How blessed am I?
[5:23] SPEAKER_02: A daughter off to the convent and a son joining the seminary?
[5:27] SPEAKER_12: Oh, thanks, Mom.
[5:30] SPEAKER_12: I realize I may not be joining a religious life, but I do have something to say.
[5:34] SPEAKER_12: We're listening.
[5:35] SPEAKER_12: For the love of all that is good, can someone at this table pass me the butter?
[5:47] SPEAKER_12: Here, Jim.
[5:48] SPEAKER_12: Thank you.
[5:49] SPEAKER_12: Leave it to the future priest to lend a hand.
[5:56] SPEAKER_09: And so, that summer, my parents packed up the car and drove me to the convent in Wichita.
[6:04] SPEAKER_09: And then turned right around to pack up Stanley and drive him to San Antonio to start seminary.
[6:11] SPEAKER_09: Despite Stanley's clarity that this was his vocation, his time in seminary?
[6:17] SPEAKER_09: Well, it wasn't easy.
[6:23] SPEAKER_08: And so.
[6:25] SPEAKER_08: In summary, Aquinas is clearly stating what?
[6:31] SPEAKER_08: Mr.
[6:32] SPEAKER_08: Rother?
[6:33] SPEAKER_05: I'm I'm sorry, I I missed the question.
[6:36] SPEAKER_08: The question or the lecture?
[6:41] SPEAKER_08: Mr.
[6:41] SPEAKER_08: Rother, why don't you stay after class to talk with me?
[6:48] SPEAKER_05: Yes, sir.
[6:53] SPEAKER_08: Stanley.
[6:56] SPEAKER_08: I think you know why.
[6:58] SPEAKER_08: I've asked to speak to you.
[7:00] SPEAKER_08: Correct?
[7:01] SPEAKER_05: I can take a guess.
[7:03] SPEAKER_08: Your grades are well.
[7:08] SPEAKER_08: There's really no easy way to say this.
[7:12] SPEAKER_08: But after years of struggling academically, you are well, you're failing.
[7:21] SPEAKER_05: I I truly feel called to be a priest, but maybe this isn't my vocation.
[7:28] SPEAKER_05: Do you wear glasses, Mr.
[7:30] SPEAKER_08: Ralph?
[7:31] SPEAKER_05: Glasses?
[7:32] SPEAKER_05: Um no, Professor.
[7:35] SPEAKER_08: Well then, I suggest you get your eyes checked.
[7:40] SPEAKER_05: I I don't understand.
[7:42] SPEAKER_08: Clearly, you can't see what's right in front of you.
[7:47] SPEAKER_08: You have a vocation to the priesthood, Mr.
[7:52] SPEAKER_08: Ratha.
[7:53] SPEAKER_08: Don't doubt that, because of a few C's, D's, or F's.
[7:59] SPEAKER_08: They might not be the grades that let you pass the seminary this time around.
[8:05] SPEAKER_08: But they certainly don't determine your vocation.
[8:10] SPEAKER_08: Or worth, for that matter.
[8:16] SPEAKER_05: Thank you for saying that.
[8:18] SPEAKER_05: I I needed to hear it.
[8:21] SPEAKER_08: I know you did.
[8:22] SPEAKER_08: You'll make a remarkable priest one day.
[8:28] SPEAKER_08: Stanley.
[8:29] SPEAKER_08: Keep your chin up.
[8:34] SPEAKER_09: And that's exactly what he did.
[8:38] SPEAKER_09: Soon enough, he was given a second chance to make it in seminary.
[8:43] SPEAKER_09: I remember the day I heard the news.
[8:46] SPEAKER_09: I was teaching a classroom full of eighth-grade students.
[8:52] SPEAKER_10: Sister Marita?
[8:53] SPEAKER_10: Oh, yes, letter for ya.
[8:57] SPEAKER_10: I will be starting at Mount St.
[8:59] SPEAKER_10: Mary's Seminary in Maryland to redo my year of theology one.
[9:03] SPEAKER_10: Is that your brother?
[9:05] SPEAKER_10: Yes.
[9:06] SPEAKER_10: The Almost Priest?
[9:09] SPEAKER_10: Yes, Billy.
[9:10] SPEAKER_10: The almost priest.
[9:12] SPEAKER_10: It looks like he's been given his second chance.
[9:15] SPEAKER_10: Sister Marita?
[9:16] SPEAKER_10: Yes, Claire.
[9:17] SPEAKER_10: I think we should pray for him right now.
[9:20] SPEAKER_10: He needs it.
[9:22] SPEAKER_10: I agree.
[9:23] SPEAKER_10: Let's begin, shall we?
[9:25] SPEAKER_10: In the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
[9:36] SPEAKER_09: In the end, love pulled him through.
[9:40] SPEAKER_09: And on May 25th, 1963, Stanley was ordained a priest.
[9:47] SPEAKER_09: I'll never forget the peace in his eyes that day as he lay down in front of the altar and gave his life to Christ.
[9:59] SPEAKER_01: Francisca Stanislaus Rother.
[10:02] SPEAKER_01: May God who founded the church and guides her still protect you constantly with his grace, that you may faithfully discharge the duties of the priesthood.
[10:15] SPEAKER_01: May he make you a true shepherd to provide the living bread and word of life to the faithful, that they may continue to grow in the unity of the body of Christ.
[10:28] SPEAKER_05: Amen.
[11:07] SPEAKER_09: And Bishop Reed from Oklahoma became convicted that it was time for missionaries to spread the gospel in a little town in Guatemala.
[11:18] SPEAKER_01: The Christian renewal of the people of Santiago of Tetlan must come through a dialogue with them.
[11:26] SPEAKER_01: There is much we can learn from them.
[11:30] SPEAKER_01: Christ hides himself in them and waits for us.
[11:33] SPEAKER_01: We hope that our missionary work among them will result in a more resplendent revelation of Christ, both in them and in ourselves.
[11:46] SPEAKER_09: And so the Archdiocese of Oklahoma sent out a mission team to Artiglon.
[11:53] SPEAKER_09: After five years of work, the head of the mission, Father Ramon Carlin, had someone in mind he wanted to recruit.
[12:02] SPEAKER_05: Morning, Father Carlin.
[12:04] SPEAKER_05: Oh, just call me Tex, Father Rother.
[12:06] SPEAKER_11: Thanks for coming down.
[12:08] SPEAKER_05: Of course.
[12:08] SPEAKER_11: Hi there.
[12:09] SPEAKER_11: What can I get, y'all?
[12:10] SPEAKER_05: I'll just have a coffee, thanks.
[12:13] SPEAKER_11: And what about you?
[12:14] SPEAKER_11: I'll take the omelet.
[12:16] SPEAKER_11: Me and my coffee.
[12:18] SPEAKER_11: Cream and sugar?
[12:19] SPEAKER_03: Yes, please.
[12:20] SPEAKER_11: Coming right up, y'all.
[12:22] SPEAKER_03: Well, you want to take a wild guess why I asked you here?
[12:25] SPEAKER_05: To be honest, I'm I'm stumped.
[12:28] SPEAKER_05: Does it have anything to do with your assignment?
[12:31] SPEAKER_03: No, but it has everything to do with yours.
[12:34] SPEAKER_05: I'm listening.
[12:35] SPEAKER_03: Here's the thing.
[12:36] SPEAKER_03: I've been working the Guatemalan Mission Project, and I think you would be the perfect priest to join.
[12:42] SPEAKER_03: These people, they're suffering in ways I can't even describe.
[12:47] SPEAKER_03: All of them live in cramped, thatched huts with dirt floors.
[12:51] SPEAKER_03: They're ravaged by sickness and live in utter poverty.
[12:54] SPEAKER_03: And I just have this sense that your peaceful demeanor, it's just what they need.
[12:59] SPEAKER_05: Well, I'm honored.
[13:02] SPEAKER_03: And I'm terrible with languages.
[13:05] SPEAKER_03: Should I take that as a yes?
[13:07] SPEAKER_03: Whatever God wills, I'm in.
[13:15] SPEAKER_09: And so in June 1968, Bishop Reed appointed Stanley as the 12th member to join the mission team.
[13:24] SPEAKER_09: Stanley packed up his belongings, hugged us all goodbye, and drove his red Ford Bronco 2,000 miles to the Nikotopla, the Catholic mission of Oklahoma.
[13:38] SPEAKER_09: The beauty of Atetalon was breathtaking.
[13:42] SPEAKER_09: With a deep blue lake in the center, surrounded by towering mountains and volcanoes.
[13:50] SPEAKER_09: It was about as different from Oklahoma as you can get.
[13:58] SPEAKER_03: Long, but beautiful.
[14:00] SPEAKER_03: Well, bienvenido a Santiago.
[14:04] SPEAKER_03: What do you think?
[14:05] SPEAKER_05: I think.
[14:06] SPEAKER_05: I think I'm home.
[14:24] SPEAKER_06: There you two are.
[14:25] SPEAKER_06: Hi, Mom.
[14:26] SPEAKER_07: Oh, hi.
[14:27] SPEAKER_07: I was not expecting to find you guys in the library.
[14:30] SPEAKER_07: What are you up to?
[14:31] SPEAKER_06: We're doing research.
[14:33] SPEAKER_07: It's classified.
[14:34] SPEAKER_07: Oh, research, huh?
[14:37] SPEAKER_07: Yeah, we're on the hunt for miracles, and we decided to start with Blazed Stanley Router's story.
[14:42] SPEAKER_07: Mom, he was amazing.
[14:44] SPEAKER_07: Wait, I thought you said it's classified.
[14:47] SPEAKER_07: Yeah, it is.
[14:48] SPEAKER_06: Mia, what do you think classified means?
[14:52] SPEAKER_07: Important?
[14:53] SPEAKER_07: Close enough.
[14:55] SPEAKER_07: Alright, ghettos, grab your backpacks.
[14:57] SPEAKER_07: We gotta go home.
[14:58] SPEAKER_06: Okay, let me just check this book out first.
[15:00] SPEAKER_06: It's so good.
[15:01] SPEAKER_07: And I'm gonna check out a dictionary because I have no idea what classified means.
[15:08] SPEAKER_06: Good idea.
[15:12] SPEAKER_00: Thank you so much for listening.
[15:15] SPEAKER_00: Join us again tomorrow to hear more of the story of Blessed Stanley Rother.

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