e-newsletter companion of Eastern Oklahoma Catholic magazine
Memorial of Blessed Stanley Rother, Martyr, Observed Today
BROKEN ARROW — On this date, 44 years ago, an Oklahoma-born priest serving in the mission field of rural Guatemala was gunned down in the middle of the night by three assassins. On that fateful day in 1981, Father Stanley Francis Rother, or Padre Francisco as he was known to his flock, became the first American-born martyer for the Catholic faith.
Each year, on July 28, the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City, the Diocese of Tulsa and Eastern Oklahoma, the Diocese of Little Rock, Ark., and parishes in the Diocese of Sololá in Guatemala, observe the Memorial of Blessed Stanley Rother.
Born March 27, 1935, in Okarche, Okla., the oldest of the children born to Franz and Gertrude Rother, he grew up on the family farm. After his schooling, he was ordained a priest on May 25, 1963, then served as an associate pastor for five years in Oklahoma, including at Holy Family Church (now Cathedral) in Tulsa, before discerning a call to the mission field.
He sought and received permission to join the staff at the Oklahoma diocese's mission in Santiago Atitlan, Guatemala. He served the native Mayans of the region, particularly the Tz'utujil people. While he served in Guatemala, a civil war raged between the militarist government forces and guerrillas. Thousands of Catholics were killed during the conflict.
Eventually, Fr. Rother’s name appeared on a death list. For his safety and that of his associate, Father Rother returned home to Oklahoma, but he didn’t stay long. He returned to Santiago Atitlan to continue the work of the mission. Within a few months, three men entered the rectory around 1 a.m. on July 28, 1981, fought with Fr. Rother, and executed him.
The Rite of Beatification — the final stage before canonization to sainthood — was held on Sept. 23, 2017, in downtown Oklahoma City – an event attended by more than 20,000 people from around the world. In 2023, the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City dedicated the Blessed Stanley Rother Shrine in south Oklahoma City.
Blessed Stanley Rother’s story is the subject of various books, documentaries, and an upcoming feature film. To watch a short film about his life, An Ordinary Martyr: The Life and Death of Blessed Stanley Rother, click here.
About the Blessed Stanley Rother Shrine in Oklahoma City:
Standing as a beacon of faith and a visible sign of the Church’s presence in Oklahoma, the Blessed Stanley Rother Shrine is a resource for the entire archdiocese. The shrine welcomes pilgrims from throughout Oklahoma, the United States and beyond.
Inside the 6,000-square-foot facility, pilgrims will find a museum and gift shop. The museum highlights the story of Blessed Stanley Rother’s life and mission. It features artifacts from every stage of his life and provides information about his martyrdom and beatification.
The shrine is open 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. every day.
700 SE 89th St.
Oklahoma City, OK 73149
info@rothershrine.org
Study: Diocese Ranks Among Top 5 Nationally in Ordinations Relative to Total Catholics
BROKEN ARROW — According to a report in the July 17, 2025 issue of National Catholic Register, priestly vocations are booming in the Midwest and the South and that includes the Diocese of Tulsa and Eastern Oklahoma.
The Register analyzed data on ordinations collected by Georgetown’s Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA) over a five-year period. It found that nationwide, no matter the region, rural dioceses tend to outperform urban ones. The top five dioceses ranked on the number of recent priestly ordinations relative to their current Catholic population are Bismarck, N.D.; Steubenville, Ohio; Wichita, Kan.; Tulsa; and Fairbanks, Alaska.
Within the 5-year study window, Tulsa ordained 11 priests for a ratio of 5,230 Catholics per ordination, ranking it fourth in the nation during that time period. According to the report, the total estimate of Catholics within the diocese at that time was 57,533. However, local estimates currently exceed 60,000.
“Measuring ordinations relative to total Catholic population is important because while 20 ordinations would be very impressive in a diocese with a small Catholic population like Jackson in Mississippi, it would not be in a diocese with large numbers of Catholics like Los Angeles,” states the article's author Luke Larson. “The data only accounts for ordinations of diocesan priests, that is, priests who serve a particular diocese. It does not factor in priests ordained for religious orders like the Benedictines or Franciscans.”
To put that in perspective, the Diocese of Wichita — with just over 100,000 Catholics — had 40 seminarians in the 2024-2025 academic year. The Archdiocese of New York — with 3.1 million Catholics — had only 18. According to the data, the nationwide average is 38,487 Catholics per priest ordination.
As of July 21, there were 79 ordained priests actively serving and living within the Diocese of Tulsa and Eastern Oklahoma. This number does not include retired priests, nor those currently serving as chaplains in the military, or who are currently on sabbatical.
Father Jack Gleason Celebrates 30th Anniversary of Ordination as Priest
TULSA — Father Jack Gleason recently celebrated the 30th anniversary of his ordination to the priesthood.
Ordained on July 21, 1995, at Holy Family Cathedral, Fr. Gleason is pastor of St. Bernard of Clairvaux Church in south Tulsa. Parishioners there note his example of joy, kindness and service including washing windows, blessing pets, and sharing his culinary skills to benefit an ACTS fundraiser. During his 30 years as a priest, he says blessed encounters happen every day.
“When I see people living out their faith, it inspires me," says Fr. Gleason. "When I see people grappling with their faith and desiring to find where God is acting in their lives, it inspires me. When people come to confession, recognizing their need for God and inviting His mercy, it inspires me. When I see families/couples striving to cultivate faith in the home, it inspires me. When people are celebrating some event in the life of faith (a baptism, a confirmation, a wedding anniversary) and I witness that sincere desire for God and joy, it inspires me. When young people are asking questions about the faith and sincerely seeking God, it inspires me. When I see people moving through a change (illness, a death or a job loss) and they are groping for evidence of God in the midst of it, the very fact that they are seeking God in those moments inspires me."
“When I see people living out their faith, it inspires me," says Fr. Gleason. "When I see people grappling with their faith and desiring to find where God is acting in their lives, it inspires me. When people come to confession, recognizing their need for God and inviting His mercy, it inspires me. When I see families/couples striving to cultivate faith in the home, it inspires me. When people are celebrating some event in the life of faith (a baptism, a confirmation, a wedding anniversary) and I witness that sincere desire for God and joy, it inspires me. When young people are asking questions about the faith and sincerely seeking God, it inspires me. When I see people moving through a change (illness, a death or a job loss) and they are groping for evidence of God in the midst of it, the very fact that they are seeking God in those moments inspires me."
Father Gleason says he has been inspired and blessed daily throughout his 30 years as a priest.
"Most recently, my daily prayer has been that, in spite of my faults and failings, God will make me His instrument in sharing these privileged moments and pointing to His presence there," says Fr. Gleason. "I am grateful that God has called me to such a great community at this point in my life and priesthood. I am blessed!”
Other diocesan priests celebrating ordination anniversaries this month include Fr. Lawrence Nwachukwu, Fr. Emmanuel Nduka, Fr. Leonard Ahanotu, Fr. John O'Neill, Fr. Sean O'Brien, Fr. Ismael Comayagua, Fr. Robert Dye, Fr. Michael Pratt, Fr. Kingsley George-Obilonu, Fr. Kenneth Iheanacho, Fr. Joshua Litwack, Fr. Richard Cristler, Fr. Paul Amaliri, Fr. James Caldwell, and Fr. Matthew LaChance.
Photos courtesy of St. Bernard of Clairvaux Church
Monthly Pilgrimage Mass Set for August 2 at Saint Catherine of Alexandria
TULSA — Father Robert Kimpu and the parishioners of Saint Catherine of Alexandria Catholic Church in west Tulsa, are preparing to host the First Saturday Pilgrimage Mass for August at 10 a.m. this Saturday. This will be the eighth such monthly pilgrimage Mass to take place in the Diocese of Tulsa and Eastern Oklahoma during the 2025 Jubilee Year of Hope.
The theme for the August Mass is Catechists, Teachers, Educators & Support Staff. The morning will begin with Reconciliation from 8:30 a.m. - 9:45 a.m. and Mass at
10 a.m. to be celebrated by Father Gary Kastl, vicar general of the diocese.
10 a.m. to be celebrated by Father Gary Kastl, vicar general of the diocese.
According to parish history, "the first Church of Saint Catherine was erected on the rowdy, bustling west bank of the Arkansas River in the spring of 1925 to serve Catholics who worked for refineries and the Frisco Railroad. By September of that year, the church attained parish status and was located at 905 West 23rd Street, encompassing the Red Fork, Carbondale, Oakhurst and Garden City areas."
"In 1949 the Precious Blood Fathers purchased the tract of land on which St. Catherine now stands, hard work, sacrifice, and the generosity of benefactors brought about the erection of the school building and rectory in 1955. The hopes to have a new church built on that same land dwindled as parish finances simply would not allow for it, however, in 1969 a benefactors gift of $75,000 gave those hopes new light."
Plans to build became a reality and on Sept. 27, 1986, when the current church was completed.
With last year's canonical merger of Tonu Maria Siangtho Lungtang Parish (Zomi-Burmese parish) with St. Catherine, the thriving west side parish now includes some 200 families and a vibrant pre-K through 8th grade school serving more than160 students.
For a listing of the remaining pilgrimage sites within the diocese for the remainder of the Jubilee year, click here.
New Principal Begins at School of Saint Mary
TULSA — The School of Saint Mary has a new principal for the 2025-25 school year. Raymond Lewis’s hiring was announced by Saint Mary's Pastor Fr. Stuart Crevcoure in February, but he just started his new job on July 1.
"While Lewis is a Chicago native, his wife Jessica is Tulsa-born and raised, so they have many family connections here," said Fr. Crevcoure. "They married at St. Catherine Church here in Tulsa in 2020. They are parents to two young boys."
Lewis completed his undergraduate degree in chemical engineering at Vanderbilt and subsequently earned his master’s degree in education while teaching in the ACE (Alliance for Catholic Education) program at Notre Dame. In 2024, he completed a second master’s in educational leadership through the Remick Leadership Program at Notre Dame. Since 2019, he has been teaching science at St. Ignatius College Prep in Chicago.
In making the announcement back in February, Fr. Crevcoure thanked the Principal Search Committee, which included faculty members, parents, parishioners, Parochial Vicar Fr. Vince Fernandez, and Catholic Schools Superintendent David Dean.
"Our search committee began by examining what makes our school the special place that it is, and we thank the members of the community who shared their thoughts and answered surveys," said Fr. Crevcoure. "Our own positive impression of his qualities and character was confirmed by glowing recommendations from his professional references."
For more about the School of Saint Mary, click here.
Raymond and Jessica Lewis with their children.
Save the Date: St. Benedict 4-Day Mini Eucharistic Congress Set for November 5-8
BROKEN ARROW — The Church of St. Benedict has announced that it will host a Mini Eucharistic Congress, Nov. 5 - 8, which organizers say will be packed with daily worship and fellowship. All are welcome to this free four-day event in which Jesus is front and center of the celebration with Eucharistic Adoration.
Guest speakers will include Fr. Jon Fincher, chaplain at Bishop Kelley High School; Fr. Joshua Votruba, parochial vicar at Holy Family Cathedral; and Fr. John O'Neill, pastor of St. Joseph Catholic Church in Muskogee.
On Saturday, multi-platinum record-selling, Grammy- and Dove-award-winning contemporary Catholic Christian music pioneer John Michael Talbot will perform. His music has been the soundtrack to the faith journey for millions of believers throughout the world. In addition to being a Christian music legend, he is also a best-selling author and founder of the Brothers and Sisters of Charity.
Additional details will be announced soon. An Event page on Facebook has been set up here.
From the Editor...
This past Saturday, my wife and I made our first pilgrimage to the Blessed Stanley Rother Shrine in Oklahoma City. As both of us are new Catholics, we found the story of his early upbringing in rural Oklahoma, his unrelenting pursuit of his call to the priesthood, and his years of roll-up-your-sleeves style ministry in and around the village of Santiago Aititlan in the highlands of Guatemala to be incredibly inspiring.
We also learned additional details of his service in the Diocese of Oklahoma City and Tulsa during the mid-1960s. Following his ordination in 1963, Fr. Rother served initially as an associate pastor at St. William Church in Durant, where he drove an 83-mile circuit to celebrate Mass at multiple missions in a three-county area. In his spare time, he built four cabins for a retreat center at Lake Texoma which are still in use today. In 1965, he was assigned as associate pastor of St. Francis Xavier in Tulsa. After a year there, he served briefly as associate pastor at Holy Family Cathedral before accepting another parish assignment in Oklahoma City.
But shortly thereafter, his desire to serve the mission field would take him to the highlands of rural Guatemala. The country was embroiled in a bitter civil war and the governement persecuted the Church and its servants. After initially heeding advice to return to Oklahoma for his own safety when his name appeared on an anonymous government death list, Fr. Rother returned to Guatemala to serve his beloved Tz'utujil (Mayan) parishioners.
"The Shepherd cannot run at the first sign of danger," Fr. Rother wrote shortly before returning to his flock. "Pray for us that we may be a sign of the love of Christ for our people, that our presence among them will fortify them to endure these sufferings in preparation for the coming of the Kingdom."
If you haven't had the opportunity to visit the Blessed Stanley Rother Shrine, I highly recommend it. Leave plenty of time to soak in the well-curated museum exhibits about his remarkable life, walk the expansive and peaceful grounds, and attend a daily Mass and/or Adoration in the exquisite chapel and church. You will likely come away inspired by the extraordinary life of faith and service to our Lord Jesus Christ — even unto death — of this ordinary man raised on a farm in Okarche, Okla.
Note: The October-November issue of Eastern Oklahoma Catholic magazine will feature the story of Deacon Kevin Sartorius, CEO of Catholic Charities of Eastern Oklahoma, who recently returned from a three-month sabbatical in Guatemala, following in the footsteps of Bl. Stanley Rother.
Chris Rush
Editor
"Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things" — Philippians 4:8
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