Brouwers dips his pen in poison as he portrays a Roman Catholic monastery and boarding school for boys, in which a completely perverted community of males goes about its business with impunity. Not only are the pupils humiliated and brutalized by the friars, they are also sexually abused.

This all takes place under the concealment of a church that propagates charity. Young friar Bonaventura faces a dilemma. Will he choose to be the silent accomplice who helps the victims as much as he can? Or will he decide to go, leaving them to their fate?

It takes a woman in the world outside the monastery to be able to make the decision. During a visit to the dentist, Bonaventura meets young widow Patricia. But even after a secret love affair develops between them, he remains indecisive for a long time.