Jack Holland, an Irish teenager without a morsel of religion and even less talent for celibacy - feeling pressure from his family - flees to the shelter of a seminary. It was supposed to be a temporary measure but, being a procrastinator, he never quite summons the courage to leave. Almost by default, he finds himself in California as a Catholic priest. His life among the Californians is an odyssey of shattered vows and unexpected career success. He is dogged however at every turn by a wrathful God.