The Carpenter (Wilson)

Jeff Masters arrives in a small town to find work as a carpenter. Though there is no mystery about his arrival -- except that people are not in the habit of coming to small towns for no reason at all -- the townspeople start speculating. Jeff boards in the home of Sam Farris and his wife, Martha. Then follows an incredible series of events in which Jeff is the prime mover. He becomes a modern disciple of a Carpenter of an earlier day, straightening out the tangled lives of his neighbors, doing good in a practical, non-preachy sense, and finally sacrificing his own life in a vain attempt to rescue a town unfortunate. Then Jeff's story becomes known: he had been a highly successful minister in a large city church. He resigned because he believed that the Christian way must be lived rather than preached. He had come to town to see if he could live the way Jesus had lived, among the same kind of people. Every character is honestly portrayed and fascinating, the story is a strong one, and its value for production in a time of greed and selfishness can hardly be overemphasized.