Willard Bean accepts a mission from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to travel to a new town, where he must fight to win respect.

In this belated sequel to 'Lilies of the Field' (1963), jack-of-all-trades Homer Smith revisits the chapel in the Arizona desert that he helped build for five German nuns under the supervision of Mother Maria, and he reluctantly helps them out of a pinch once more.

A prostitute and a skier who have been "brought back" from the brink of death relate their experiences to a skeptical doctor, who begins to believe them.