Since the story's action was tied to the chapel's construction, a crew had to work through the night to keep up with its "progress" in the film. Smith stays longer and finds himself driven to work on the church. In this case, the truth is more compelling than the trappings of …

Mother Maria hears him start up his station wagon, but remains stolidly in her seat, singing along with the rest of the sisters, as Smith drives quietly off into the night. The Lilies of the Field By William E. Barrett Chapter one.

The scene was dubbed over after the voices were flattened in editing.

Everyone is astounded that he’s returned – except Old Mother. Considered to be one of fifteen films that changed American cinema. Shot on-location in Arizona in only fourteen days. The Lilies of the Field is a 1962 novel by William Edmund Barrett based on the true story of the Sisters of Walburga.

Whilst the nuns attend Mass, he takes the opportunity to get a ‘man’s breakfast’ at the café. The book is a true story and the movie is based on the book.

They find ways to lend a hand that Smith cannot easily turn down—the lifting of a bucket or brick, for example.

Nothing but bare patches of brown dirt remain in what was once a brightly-colored field of flowers, bursting in full bloom.

Almost overnight, Smith finds that he's become a building foreman and contractor. Is the book Mississippi Bridge a true story? The townsfolk start to assist, delivering adobe bricks, but Smith is ever more reluctant to let them help him build ‘his’ church. Showing all 20 items. His works, small in number, were masterfully crafted inspirational tales of faith. As he gains a larger and larger audience for his efforts, the locals, impressed with his determination, but no less dogged than he, will content themselves no longer with just watching. Lilies of the Field (1963) Trivia.

The story of ‘Schmidt’ gains legendary status very quickly. Lilies of the Field is a funny, sentimental, charming and uplifting film, in which intelligence, imagination and energy are proved again to be beyond the price of any super-budget. Lilies of the Field was written as a short novel by William E. Barrett. “The lilies that form the decorative floral motif of Solomon’s Temple (1 Kings 7:19; 7:26) are probably water lilies or the lotus,” Harpercollins Bible Dictionary explains, “The reference to ‘lilies of the field’… probably refers to the common crown anemone or windflower. The word BAPTIST was deleted from the scene where Homer Smith wrote his name at the base of the Cross.

For this film, Sidney Poitier was the first black man to win the Academy Award for Best Actor.
Mother Maria insists that he attend the opening Mass next day to receive proper recognition from the congregation.

... Is the book Lilies of the Field a true story?

The actual building was real and could have stood for decades, but because it was built on rented property, it had to be demolished immediately after the filming was completed.

Lilies of the Field (1963) is the first film for which Sidney Poitier received an Oscar. He is speaking of the lilies, the bulbous plants which spring into flower in countless thousands every spring, over the downs of Eastern lands. Smith can handle nearly every piece of heavy equipment he owns.

He assisted the nuns when they arrived, but is unwilling to do more, such as donating To earn money to buy some "real food" to supplement the Spartan diet the nuns are able to provide him, Smith gets a part-time job with Livingstone, two days a week. He buys some usable items – a bathtub and some windows – then heads back to the farm to install them so that the nuns at least have a proper bath, not just buckets, in which to wash. The nuns have essentially no money and subsist by living off the land, on what vegetables the arid climate provides, and some milk and eggs.

Welcome, welcome, WELCOME!!
Making no reply to any of this, Smith tricks Mother Maria, as part of the night's English lesson, into saying "thank you" to him. After losing another duel of Bible quotes with Mother Maria, Smith acknowledges that he has always wanted to be an To earn money to buy some "real food" to supplement the spartan diet the nuns are able to provide him, Smith gets a part-time job with the nearby construction contractor, Ashton (director To pass the evenings, Smith (whom the nuns call "Schmidt") helps the sisters improve their rudimentary English (only Mother Maria speaks the language well enough to converse with him) and joins them in singing. This poppy-like flower, which is not a true lily…

When his money runs out, he takes a job on a wrecking crew, dirty and dangerous work. Tourists come to admire the church, stories are written in the press and donations are made to complete other buildings. Whilst the nuns attend Mass, he takes the opportunity to get a ‘man’s breakfast’ at the café. He assisted the nuns when they arrived, but is unwilling to do more, such as donating To earn money to buy some "real food" to supplement the Spartan diet the nuns are able to provide him, Smith gets a part-time job with Livingstone, two days a week. She speaks enthusiastically of all that "Schmidt" still can do to aid the town, such as building a school. The church doors were borrowed from the Chapel in Sasabe, Arizona. Lilies of the Field is a 1963 American film adapted by James Poe from the 1962 novel of the same name by William Edmund Barrett, and stars Sidney Poitier, Lilia Skala, Stanley Adams, and Dan Frazer. The title comes from Matthew 6:27-33, a portion of the Sermon on the Mount, and its parallel scripture from Luke 12:27-30.