The Museum of the Bible in Washington recently opened a new exhibit on Blessed Stanley Rother, an Oklahoma priest who served as a missionary in Guatemala, helped translate the New Testament into Tz’utujil and was martyred for his faith.
Using photographs and personal belongings from the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City archives, the exhibition traces Blessed Stanley’s early life as an ordinary Catholic schoolboy in Okarche, Okla. Though many expected him to become a farmer, he instead discerned a call to the priesthood.
In 1968, Father Rother began his missionary work in Santiago Atitlán, Guatemala, where he served the Tz’utujil, a Mayan community that came to love him. He helped build a hospital, a radio station and a school. He helped translate the New Testament into Tz’utujil, and established a farm cooperative to help residents grow and sell crops.
His work made him a target of the army during the Guatemalan Civil War. Despite knowing he was on a death list, he persevered, saying “the shepherd cannot leave his flock at the first sign of danger.” He was martyred July 28, 1981.
The exhibition runs through Oct. 1, 2027.
Find out more
For more information and to get tickets, go to museumofthebible.org.
