Stephen Fermoyle has grown up in Boston at the turn of the twentieth century knowing that his destiny lies with the Catholic priesthood. Finally finishing his studies in Rome, he returns to America full of certitude and ambition to one day join the College of Cardinals. But his road to that office is a long one, paved with crises. In Boston, he must decide whether to save the life of his sister or her unborn child, conceived out of wedlock. In Austria, he confronts the question of whether to remain with the priesthood or abandon his oath so that he can be with the woman he loves. In Georgia, he contends with Rome's indifference in the face of racial bigotry. And in Austria, he finds himself personally involved in the church's dealings with the Third Reich.

The Special Edition DVD features the documentary Preminger: Anatomy of a Filmmaker (1991).

Cardinal Glennon:
We've never had a priest working with the Mafia before. But I suppose you made some interesting contacts in Rome.


Stephen Fermoyle:
I had no choice, Your Eminence. I had to work my way through the seminary by selling opium in St. Peter's Square.


Cardinal Glennon:
You're not afraid of me.


Stephen Fermoyle:
No.


Cardinal Glennon:
Why not? Most people are.


Stephen Fermoyle:
I think it's because you remind me of my father. He was known as "Den the Down Shouter," but I soon learned his roar was the only fierce thing about him.


Cardinal Glennon:
He's a lucky man to have a son who's not afraid of him.

Continuity: When the blood is flowing from the statue's heart and Father Fermoyle addresses the worshiping crowd, the length of the flow on the statue is inconsistent between cuts going from nearly all the way down the statue to being shown at midway down the statue and returning to be all the way down the statue.

Lyrics by Albert Stillman
Music by Jerome Moross
Performed by Robert Morse