Credit: Reuters/Mario Anzuoni

Many believed that it was a mystery 'angel' priest who was sent by a higher power to save the life of a 19-year-old teenager who was trapped in a car crash in Missouri. Now that the mystery is solved behind the missing hero background, family and friends of victim Katie Lentz can now thank the named Reverend Patrick Dowling from the Jefferson City Diocese.

According to a press release by Fox News, the diocese shared that the angel priest Father Dowling had been on travel in between his Mass assignments in the northern and central parts of Missouri. The priest who was not recognised during the accident attended to the victim and prayed over Ms Lentz before disappearing. The said miracle created a stir especially in the online world as the story went viral fast and easy.

How the Angel Priest Was Discovered

It was actually Rev Dowling who identified himself as he posted a comment in one post seen on the National Catholic Register site. However, it just went unnoticed for days.

Angel Priest Rev Dowling wrote that he had mass in Ewing, Missouri, since the usual priest assigned in the place was sick. And as he was on his way back, he arrived at the scene of the accident, wondering why the traffic was being redirected. In his actual posting, he wrote:

"I absolved and anointed Katie, and, at her request, prayed that her leg would not hurt. Then I stepped aside to where some rescue personnel and the (rescue helicopter) pilot were waiting, and prayed the rosary silently.

"I left when the helicopter was about to take off, and before I got to my car..."

To add up to the mystery of the story, Fire Chief Raymond Reed, who was part of the rescue team, mentioned that in the total number of 80 photos taken, the angel priest was not seen in a single one.

Rev Dowling presently serves for a prison ministry and also leads a parish ministry that caters to Catholics who speak Spanish. He is an Irish native and was ordained as priest for the Diocese of Jefferson City, Mo. in 1982.