On Transubstantiation

Jack is a friend from college and a retired professor from there. He has been reading some of my Catholic essays and books, books by Karl Keating, and others. He is considering Catholicism, although it's been on his mind for some decades, I think. He has another Catholic friend, Jim, who is also a Catholic convert like me, from Evangelicalism.  Jack wrote us both the following query.

What I have so far: 1) On the issue of Transubstantiation, it’s hard to resolve because it’s hard for me even to conceive. To most Protestants, the Eucharist elements are symbols—an abstract concept. To Catholics, the elements are physically unchanged by the priest’s blessing, but are believed to be body & blood in an invisible sense—another abstraction. I can’t see how rational argument can pull this together, since it’s even hard to see the big difference. (I know, you would say it’s a HUGE and OBVIOUS difference; but how to define it?—certainly not in empirical terms!

I replied to Jack in my typically obsessed leave-no-rock-unturned, 1,490 word way (below). I love detail and the paths that get me there. And yet I've left an infinite number of rocks unturned.

Jim, on the other hand is a lot smarter. He answered Jack in 223 words (15% of mine) and perfectly communicated the crux of the issue. I need to hang out with Jim, but he probably doesn't have the time. 

Here's Jim's response:

 One thing I’ll say today Jack about the Eucharist:  in John 6:50-53 or beyond Jesus said, multiple times and in very direct speech that we must “eat his flesh and drink his blood” or “there is no life in us”. A few verses later many of His followers left because it was a “hard teaching”. Would He have let them walk away from salvation because of a confusion?  No!  This is why for 1517 years, give or take 33, EVERYONE in the church taught that the Eucharist was the “body, soul, blood, and divinity of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ”. The early Protestants: Luther, Calvin, Zwingli etc. believed it. Luther, bi polar as he was (and he was) grew to hate the hierarchy so much he tried to dismantle the belief from transsubstantiation to consubstantiation.

Descriptitransubstantiation to consubstantiation.

I may have some of my facts off a little but I find the Eucharist, after 41 years as a Catholic, a daily miracle in every Catholic Church in the world. If I don’t accept this on faith then what about all the other miracles: The resurrection, ascension, Saint Thomas’s “my Lord and my God” moment, road to Emmaus, etc. etc. etc.  Did all these not happen?  Are they too difficult to get our heads around?

I wrote more than I thought I would. More later. 

[Jim. More later????  Allow me. Stan.]

My reply to Jack.

There are numerous arguments about the real presence, especially NT Scriptural references by Christ and Paul, and the whole thing about OT types that are made real in the NT. But I think what you’re asking here, Jack, references our human ability to sense the real presence and how we come to “know” through our senses. You’re not asking for the theological arguments. But I must digress...

 First, Catholics believe (by faith) that the bread and wine elements ARE changed, but we can’t SENSE them. We refer to the taste of bread and wine as the "accidents" of the past, not the substantive reality of the present. Theologians such as Thomas Aquinas made a distinction between the "substance" of something and its "accidents".  Where the "substance" reflects God's multi-dimensional reality, and the "accidents" reflects our limited dimensional reality of our universe. 

But that is a semiotic issue and again a theological issue. It does not address directly the issue you raise. (If I understand what you’re raising.) Rather than the word “abstraction” the term “sacramentally” changed, is a better phrase. It literally means that a miracle has occurred and the PHYSICAL sensor thing that is seen, touched, spelled, tasted may seem the same, but the underlying substance is something other than it was before. We see this sacramental miracle in the feeding of the 4,000 and 5,000. To the people on the hillside, what they ate tasted like fish and bread. But clearly it was something more. It was supernatural. Not only did it multiply, but there were baskets left over. When Jesus blesses the bread at Emmaus, he suddenly disappears. But what is left behind….the sacramentally blessed bread, the "accidents" … is still him. He is still "substantively" present. There are physical miracles (the changed elements and his disappearance into a nearby physical dimension….neither of which we can perceive, but the change supernaturally is obvious to our senses.  (But this doesn’t answer what you see today.)

Second, there are what are called “Eucharistic Miracles” where preserved hosts that are in some monasteries and which have been examined by doctors, and which are bloody (type o+) evidently…and are physically evident to our senses today. But that still doesn’t explain what you’re asking.

Third, it’s just not Catholics, however, that believe in Transubstantiation. Orthodox believe it. Anglican believe it. And in a different way, but still supernaturally, Lutherans believe it. They call it consubstantiation. ALTHOUGH there are many division among Orthodox, Anglican and Lutheran, so I can’t vouch for all of them.

Fourth, I think the fundamental belief in it (and sorry but this still does not answer your question) is that the NT writers, and the Early Church fathers believed it so strongly that you could not be considered a Christian unless you confessed it. There are secondary NT Scripture passages that point to this, and the writings of the Early Church fathers leave nothing to the imagination of any thing left to interpret. 

 So, after all that, which is a lot and worthy of believe in my mind, that leaves the human, sensory issue, which is what you ask, if I understand it. 

Fifth, and this is my best answer to you on this. Like “presumption of salvation” it’s a matter of faith, based on so much of everything else that is said without analogy or metaphor and we take as literally true, although out senses seem to defy what God tells us. Do we believe in heaven? Well, have you seen it, or is it just an abstraction. Do you believe you have been saved or will be saved from hell? What physical evidence do you have? [I hope your answer is not the movie “Heaven Is For Real (2014).”  It was a bad movie.]  Do we believe that Jesus walked on Earth and was the Son of God? Prove it, with physical evidence available today. (Yes, I edited and published a book about that with a lot of good evidence I think) but ultimately I can’t walk outside and point to the granite rock and say, “See, there it is.”   There are perhaps a 100 things we take as true as Christians based on the preponderance of related evidence and because of the preponderance of A through M, we believe N through Z. Faith is not blind but based on the extrapolation of reliable evidence we can sense. 

You’ve ready my story about reading John 6 and believing in the real presence. I think John 6 is the best argument (the whole chapter, not just the Eucharistic stuff. You have the miracle on the hillside, and in the boat…in which John tells you, “Look, these things happened. Our senses cannot make sense of them. But they happened. So, in this third part of the chapter I’m going to tell you something else that Christ told us 20 or so times (literally and in metaphor), although our senses tell us something different. But because he said it, so literally,  you better believe it, or you do not have eternal life. He says that. He lays it out in John 6. It’s pretty black and white. (See also this post: John 6 Commentary. )

When I was considering becoming Catholic I did not believe all the stuff taught by the Church about Mary. But ultimately I came into the church because of the preponderance of other evidence, and then, I came to understand Mary. Today I have no problem and can even argue the Mary stuff like I did the Eucharist.  Like Deacon Alex Jones says in DINNER WITH ALEX JONES in answer to Mike Allie about understanding these things, “Start in Genesis. Don’t jump to Revelations.” Give God time to work on your heart and increase your faith. 

Sixth. While my fifth point above, is the best argument I have, here’s the icing on the cake-argument for me. Do you believe that Jesus Christ was the son of God, conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of a woman, walked and lived as a human on Earth for 30 or years, was crucified, died, and was buried, and then rose from the dead and ascended to heaven?   Clearly the Apostles believed those things. They believed Jesus was God. AT THE SAME TIME what did the first century Palestinian pagans see? What did the Pharisees and others see? Did they see God, or did they see just a man. You have in the physical body of Jesus Christ a God-Man, both, equal, fully. I think you believe that. But even his Apostles most of the time, simply saw a man. They didn’t see God. In EXACTLY the same way that Jesus was the REAL PRESENCE of God on Earth, but he appeared in his "accident" nature as only a human being…in the same way you have the Eucharist. Are you going to see Jesus the man, or God. Are you going to see Bread and Wine or Jesus?

Another example, but same sort of thing. Dr. Ray Guarendi in his DVD I produced WHY BE CATHOLIC tells a funny supposed story of medical researchers with an electronic microscope who are able to peer into Mary’s womb when she was pregnant with Jesus. They see an embryo. The first guy looks through the microscope (actually looks at the video display because electron microscopes don’t use light and lenses) and says, “Guys, look what I see. It’s not a human embryo, it’s…. G O D.”  Now, had such a thing been possible, that would NOT have happened. Why? Because our five (actually six) senses cannot sense the other dimensions of reality (somewhere between 10 and 26 dimensions) in which God exists. Our senses are limited just like our human eyes cannot see into the ultraviolet range like some birds can. Birds can see a small insect high in a tree because they see ultraviolet light given off by the bug that we can't see. 

I refuse to be a materialist, if for not other reason than I know the portion of the universe that I can sense is tiny compared to all that is real. JUNK DNA?  DARK MATTER? That’s all the silly ramblings of people who because of human pride cannot believe in the things that are beyond their physical senses.  We don’t  understand “JUNK DNA” or the “DARK MATTER” that makes up most of our DNA and the mass of the universe, but I believe they have purposes.

Dr. Ralph Miller, head of the physics department at Greenville College when I was a physics major there told the story of a young freshman who had to take a physics course. There was a lab experiment she participated in that involved burning a chemical in an arc and photographing the emissions from the burning. They got everything all set up and then Dr. Miller told the students they had to leave the room because the sound was going to be too loud for their ears, the spark (like a welding torch) would blind them, and the fumes given off were toxic. The girl immediately decided she didn’t like physics because she couldn’t see it, hear it, or smell it.  

Such is the universe that God has created, for our benefit and wonder. A mystery.

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MIRACLES - JUST IN TIME

During the Shutdown, here's a good edifying, educational, mind-expanding book to read. 

This is an excerpt from Chapter 13: Are Miracles a Means to An End? from our new book BASIC CHRISTIANITY: Facts-Evidences-Reasons, AVAILABLE HERE. 

Miracles - A Significant Adaptation of Means

The regularity of nature, what we call the laws of nature, is God doing the same thing in the same way, most of the time, day-after-day. God does this in order to provide a stable environment so we can develop character and responsibility. Without the stability of nature, if nature was really random, we could never plan what we were to do the next day and would too easily give up telling others what time we'd be over to help them, because time would be unpredictable.

We need to think of the universe and its laws as designed to run in a way to achieve God's purpose, of showing us love. Thus, the universe and its laws are the means to an end, where the end is God revealing his love to us by giving us a stable world in which to live and grow. But sometimes we need an extra dose of love, and so we are confronted with miracles, whether through answered prayer, or just an angel who swoops down and saves us from disaster. It is from these moments that Dr. Walters invokes Dr. Elton Trueblood's definition of a miracle as "a significant adaptation of means." That is, God adapted natural laws significantly in some way to help us. God significantly adapted the laws of the universe: the means to his end of loving us.

The point is, ordinarily the means that God uses to do things are the means we know about all the time. But, if he wishes, he may make a significant adaptation of means and then there occurs something which we're not accustomed, to which we do not find it possible to explain by ordinary cause and effect, and which we would call a miracle.

Now, this idea, that God controls, and manipulates the universe for his own purposes, leads to three implications for our life.

------begin lecture excerpt from Dr. Walter's book Basic Christianity chapter 13------

Three Implications

1. Things Don't Happen by Accident to the Christian

Lecture from Dr. Stan Walters

One of them is this. There is a sense in which things do not happen by accident.  When he was a university student at Oxford the late William Temple (1881-1944), whom some people consider the greatest Christian philosopher of the 20th century, wrote a letter home to his parents in which he discussed a particular examination that he had taken. Temple wrote that he'd done rather well on the exam, better it seems than he had expected to do. And he wrote, "I was going to blaspheme and say 'Lucky'."

Now, why should Temple say that "Lucky" is blasphemy?  Because lucky implies there isn't any pattern. There isn't any purpose. It is random that things just happen without being part of some overarching purpose. And the Christian cannot say that, ...not and believe in the God whom he meets in the Scriptures and in Jesus Christ. Because the God whom we meet in the Scriptures is in charge of things.

It is true that the universe operates according to patterns describable by us most of the time.  But from the Biblical point of view, God is somehow in these operations working out his eternal purposes. And to say "Lucky" would be to say there are some things that God wasn't in, they just happened. And that would be saying the Creator is not the Creator. He's only a part of this operation. And it would reduce the Creator to the level of the creature. We ought to take this more seriously. Things don't happen by accident to the Christian.

2. The Universe is Run by the Eternal Purpose of God

Secondly, there's an interesting implication, for me at least, in this about prayer. When I first began to see the ideas that I've been trying to develop for you in these periods, it made prayer much easier for me, because I saw that in praying what I really had to do was something like this:

Oh God, here is a particular need.  Will you use any means necessary to meet that need? You pick the means Lord. And you know what it's going to take to meet that need. Devise and use whatever means are necessary to meet that need.

I think it's helpful to our prayer life to see that the universe is run basically by the eternal purpose of God and not by a cast iron set of causes and effects.

3. Christians Need to be Open to the Novel and Unexpected

The third implication is that Christian people are required to have a very great openness to the novel and the unexpected. You don't know when it may suit God's purposes to vary things just a little. And therefore, the novel may occur. The resurrection of Christ was an extraordinary novelty for which any kind of meaningful precedent was almost totally lacking. And yet we think that it happened. God is never bound by precedent. And in your life and mine and in those communities of Christian persons which are nearly everywhere in this world, there ought to be great openness so that God may do what he wishes to do even if it is something just a little different than we're used to.

------- End of lecture excerpt -------

A "miracle" in practice and lecture summary.

In a recent post I shared a picture of a large tree limb that had fallen on my wife's car. It destroyed the passenger door, the windshield and frame, an "A" pillar, and most notably the structural steel in the roof panel.  Pam had just acquired the car from her elderly father, and it was special, although it had modestly high mileage. And while it was in generally good shape with no rust (we live in Michigan where they use salt on the roads in winter), we had already put over $1,000 in repairs just in the last few weeks. She loved the car, but I was worried a bit about the future expense of keeping it up.

Unfortunately, AAA Auto Insurance had to "total" the car because the parts were no longer available and it could not be repaired. We were both devastated. We could not afford another car payment, and Pam needed the car for her ministry at church and several other families.

What was interesting about the event was where she had parked the car just minutes before the limb fell (during a wind storm). It was in our driveway, but about six feet further away from where she normally parked it. And that was because while doing some yard work I had temporarily placed something in her side of the garage preventing the car's entry. But, had she parked the car in her normal spot in the driveway, the limb would have missed the car entirely. The circumstances leading up to it, and the limb's falling on her car, were both novel and unexpected. But was it a miracle?

At first, we would never have called it that. But as time went on and as we prayed for wisdom, several things occurred to Pam's mind about the car and its demise. They were incidental things, but they related to two people she was always praying for. Were these people connected directly with the car? Not really. But the car being totaled gave Pam fresh ideas of how to pray for those individuals and how Pam's life and theirs were related. But what to do, we were in a quandary. We expected a settlement check form AAA, but it wouldn't be enough to get another car, and we were already cash strapped.

Then, not thinking of the unexpected, a few days later AAA made a cash settlement for the car in an amount that was far more than what we thought the car was worth. And with a small savings Pam had, it appears she will be just able to acquire a newer car, with fewer miles, that will allow her to continue her ministry in a less expensive manner. Much less, in fact. And, had she tried to trade in the car, she would not have gotten as much for it, and getting a newer car, with less miles, would have been out of the question. So, the limb falling oddly on the car was a blessing? Who would have guessed that?

Pam and I pray together each morning and evening, in addition to our private time of Bible reading and prayer. We try to keep our faith strong, but there are times, like this, that test us. Then, as this car and tree limb situation was unfolding, I was editing these chapters, in Dr. Walter's book, on miracles, and came to the section I've shared with you above. While we do not know the real reason why her car was totaled, the oddity of how it happened brings the implications noted above into focus for us.

1. Things don't happen by accident for the Christian.

2. The Universe is Run by the Eternal Purpose of God.

3. Christians Need to be Open to the Novel and Unexpected.

—Stan Williams

The Political Divide: Use Jargon Not Argument

The source of political and religious divide in America is wonderfully illustrated in Uncle Screwtape's first letter to Wormwood. (C.S. Lewis, The Screwtape Letters)

It sounds as if you supposed that argument was the way to keep [your target] out of the Enemy's clutches. That might have been so if he had lived a few centuries earlier. At that time the humans still knew pretty well when a thing was proved and when it was not; and if it was proved they really believed it. They still connected thinking with doing and were prepared to alter their way of life as the result of a chain of reasoning. But what with the weekly press and other such weapons we have largely altered that. You man has been accustomed, every since he was a boy, to have a dozen incompatible philosophies dancing about together inside his head. He doesn't think of doctrines as primarily 'true' or 'false', but as 'academic' or 'practical', 'outworn' or contemporary', 'conventional' or 'ruthless'. Jargon, not argument is your best ally in keeping him from [the truth].

The Incarnation

Here is Part 3 of Lecture 4 from Stan Walters's BASIC CHRISTIANITY: FACTS-EVIDENCES-REASONS. In the post immediately below, you'll find the whole lecture from which this video is excerpted.

Book available at: http://www.stanwilliams.com/NINEVEHSCROSSING/BCInfo.php

This lecture series on the Facts, Evidences, and Reasons for the authenticity of Christianity is a foundational course for all Christians and is good for adult Sunday School, small group study, home school, college, and advanced high school students.  For content outline and to purchase copies. http://www.stanwilliams.com/NINEVEHSCROSSING/BCInfo.php

Basic Christianity Documentary (WATCH BELOW)

In an effort to promote Dr. Stan Walters's book, Basic Christianity: Facts-Evidences-Reasons, (available here: http://www.stanwilliams.com/NINEVEHSCROSSING/BCInfo.php) I ventured into a video recording of me presenting Dr. Walters's Lecture 4: Getting Information About God.  (I mean our initials are the same "SDW" as are our first two names, Stanley David...) Now, I say that with a bit of sarcasm and deep respect for my mentor, Dr. Walters.  I do wish he was still on the lecture circuit, because his stage presence was very engaging, as the writer of the book's Foreword, Dwight Gregory so well articulates in his Foreword and in the video testimonial on the book's website. So, because I am not the assured, confident, and posed Walters, I have supplemented his words (from the edited book) with lots of graphics and pictures.

Now, that is not really why I added the images and animation. I did such to make Walters's words accessible to the huge audience of young people who don't read so well, or who would have trouble following the logic without visual support. A lot has changed in communication media in our culture since these lectures were last presented by Master Walters in 1968.  I guess, I also added all the visuals and music because when he delivered these, as good as he was, I was a very poor student. It still is hard, although not as much, to listen to a sophisticated talk and understand much of what is being said. I prefer books which allow me without cost, except for time, to re-read a sentence or paragraph many times in order to grasp its meaning. Videos are good too because I can play a section over and over until I get the joke—thick I am.

Also, the meaning behind Dr. Walters' talks are significant in the realm of Christian apologetics. They were very helpful to me, and I want them to be helpful to others.  So, I hope you enjoy the video documentary of his talk (presented by me with the help of Final Cut Pro and a bunch of technology) and remember, you can play a section over and over until it puts you to sleep.

I doubt that I will do more than this one lecture. It is taking a long time, and it's not earning my any money to pay for the software updates. (smile)

Blessings,

Stanley D. Williams

Prayer and Life Workshop (PLW) - A Critical Review

LATER ADDITION and WARNING: An insightful associate (J.S.) who follows this blog, asked for a photograph of the Imprimatur page for The Prayer and Life Workshop (PLW) material. We have a number of PLW publications, including all their workshop materials, study guide, leaders guide, and a large document that traces the history of the organization. THERE IS NO IMPRIMATUR. The organization has a very large presence on the web, with workshops in dozens of countries. But when you ask Google to find the term IMPRIMATUR in connection with PLW, NOTHING COMES UP.

PLW

The Prayer and Life Workshop, which is presented in many parishes around the world and in many different languages, has a noble goal and evidently has helped thousands develop an authentic prayer life. This is commendable.

My wife, Pam, has taken the PLW leadership training, which is extensive although a bit repetitive, but has successful produced confident workshop leaders.

The workshop is an authentic "workshop" in that it meets once a week for 2 hours for 15 weeks and interactively involves the participants. Participants learn to pray in a variety of ways and are immersed in the Christian Scriptures. Interactively, during the workshop sessions, there are exercises for relaxation in an effort to disengage from the worries of the day and to focus on God, especially by invoking the Holy Spirit. There are Bible readings, songs, quiet reflections, times of silence, times of sharing in the small group that meets, and two fairly long talks in two parts of each session, presented via CD by a slow speaking, serious, male voice.

I have started taking the workshop, mostly because Pam has asked me to. But, normally, we have always prayed a lot together, and when the kids were around we conducted daily devotions of Bible readings and prayers. Even today, privately, I will spend easily an hour day in some form of prayer. I start before I rise from bed by listening to the Divine Office's Office of Readings. After dressing and before breakfast I will write in a prayer diary, which I've kept since I was a teen, my meditations on Bible passages (sometimes contemplations) and a list of intercessory prayers. At noon my iPhone alarm reminds me to stop and pray the Rosary. Before Pam and I start in on our daily activities, we will pray together extemporaneously, and at night before bed we will do the same. At the end of our evening prayers we will recite the Our Father, a Hail Mary, the Fatima Prayer, the Prayer to the Archangel Michael, a Glory Be and finally Bless ourselves. Then, finally, as I go to sleep my iPhone will play the Divine Office's Night Prayer.  Prayer and related times of reflection, meditation and contemplation, are invaluable in communicating with God and the saints. They are important forms of therapy, and irreplaceable tools for accomplishing things out of my control.

I write all of that to reinforce that the PLW is something I easily support. But, I have....

Some Criticism

The Smell of Smoke was Not on Them

Posts by this author now appear at her own blogsite: NoSmellofSmoke.blogger.com.

The satraps, the prefects, the governors and the king’s counselors gathered around them and saw that in regard to these men the fire had no effect on their bodies—their hair was not singed, their clothes were not scorched or damaged, even the smell of smoke was not on them.
DANIEL 3:27 AMP

https://bible.com/bible/1588/dan.3.27.AMP

Dear Stan & Pam,

I am writing this to remind myself that God's salvation is not just surviving but surpassing, surreal and supreme. 

After the interview yesterday, roaming aimlessly in the small downtown shopping center in the chilly autumn weather, I felt undeniably and unprecedentedly old...I definitely have entered into the middle age. Shopping attracts me no more and not even distracts me. 

What's the point of a middle-aged woman with no prospect of relationship spending money and energy on looks? And I told myself even if life goes on I will be forever scarred and look permanently different. And imagine I was thinking in this direction even before I learned that my interview didn't quite seal the job for me. 

This morning I thought I couldn't get out of bed...I have to make decisions about a number of interlinked logistic issues...my own return, my parents accommodation and my own and if I would live with them in city, etc...

And if Pam still remembers, the Croatian guy in whom I placed a certain vague hope... Nothing came out of it... despite the good laugh and talk each time we saw each other at the dance classes or parties. He asked about my latest and I politely said goodbye. He wished me well. 

All these small bits and pieces are eating away my strength and resilience.

I will have no job or love here or back home. I'm just an old useless woman. I felt I couldn't get out of bed to face today.

To deafen the "all wise" pessimistic voice I keep on listening to sermons... I find in my case some of the so called prosperity preaching is really like sugar for hypoglycemia patient...life saving. Although, it is maybe not so for those who suffer from obesity and diabetes... But me...oh, messages about how God loves us and will do the best and never will leave us... is never going to be an overdose.

I told myself..my Father will not just save me, but will restore my youth and energy... that in the end no one not even myself will be able to tell the hell I have gone through... 

There will be no smell of smoke about me.

Amen.

I love you.. To be able to share these with you is such a blessing.

Your friend.

Invest in a Short Catholic Dramatic Film

Listen up, folks! Stan Williams here coming at you with a brand-new, exciting film project sure to touch hearts and move the soul. You know those classic kind of good-and-evil stories we rarely see anymore, set in the real world, about real people, but maybe a little different? Well, I've got one here that gets pretty intense, and - here's the best part - it's small scale enough that it won't break the budget.

So, what's it about? I'm glad you asked. Here's the scoop. Meet Sister Clare, a nun-in-training. You like nuns, right? Well, this one's a little too attached to, let's just say, the comforts of her convent. She's tasked by her Mother Superior to go shepherd a group of orphans in East Los Angeles - kind of a rough area, if you aren't familiar - for the night. Needless to say Sister Clare is a little out of her comfort zone here. What follows is not only a fish-out-of-water story, where Clare has to be a 'mother' of sorts (something she'd NEVER thought she'd be), but also a confrontation with the dangers of the real world, with Clare as the protector, when a gang war erupts outside. Through strength and will and that handy little thing called prayer, she and the children are able to make it through the night. Happy ending and hugs all around, but we were scared there for a bit.

It's a short movie with what I think is a really powerful message. And seriously, when was the last time you saw a movie with a nun* as the main character that wasn't all kinds of preachy? This film is fun and cute and has a lot of heart. At the end of the day it's about a young woman discovering that there's more than one way to make a difference in the world. I cry every time I read it.

I'd love it if you could help out. This film would only be about 30 minutes long, and there's serious upside if we can make it right and license it to streaming services like Netflix or Amazon Prime. But I need your help first! They won't even look at it until it's done. The budget? $164,000. Very doable!

If you'd like to get involved in this 5-day production, please contact me! We have the script, we just need the investment dollars.

* Why a nun? It just makes sense. Catholic nuns have been doing this kind of service work for centuries. They teach school, care for the homeless, and in this film's case, help a group of orphans get through a night during a gang war. It's an application of real world stories and people. And this one's a little different than what we're used to seeing, but hey, that's what makes it interesting, right?

And remember what Mother Theresa said, "You can do no great things, only small things with great love."

Stan Williams, Executive Producer

248-344-4423

Stan@StanWilliams.com