In 1965, Father Martin, a Roman Catholic priest, is working as a high school teacher in Chicago when he runs into his friend, Bishop Keegan, on the El train. The bishop asks him to replace his former pastor, Father Bernard, who has disappeared without a trace in the Peruvian Andes. Father Martin reluctantly agrees. When he arrives at his assigned mission, he is chased out by an angry mob that threatens his life. Father Martin is taken to a nearby clinic for his injuries. There, he is treated by a beautiful Peace Corps nurse who warns him of the dangers of remaining in Valle Sagrado, but he refuses to leave. Over time, Father Martin realizes that there is more to his predecessor's disappearance than anyone could have imagined. He also notices that the meticulous, rigid expressions of church dogma threaten the ancient traditions of the people of the Sacred Valley, sometimes with tragic results, so he strives to embody a more transcendent experience of charity, forgiveness, and love. Based on the actual stories of missionaries who served in the Peruvian Andes, Blessed Are the Meek teaches the importance of community and acceptance, even in the most trying of times.