With the passing of Bishop Thomas Gumbleton on April 4, 2024 the filmmakers have made the full film available to the general public via the Vimeo platform. In lieu of payments and to honor the bishop’s memory, we strongly suggest that before watching the film viewers give a donation to Kay Lasante, a free clinic in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, which was co-founded by Bishop Tom and the House of Grace Catholic Worker in Philadelphia.
THE INSPIRATION
American Prophet is a narrative short film based on the life of Bishop Thomas J. Gumbleton of Detroit. As an internationally-renowned peace activist and social justice advocate, Bishop Gumbleton has become a hero to many around the world.
GALLERY
THE MUSIC OF AMERICAN PROPHET
In 2015 excerpts from the music of American Prophet were featured in the Kresge Foundation’s Art X Detroit exhibition, held at the Detroit Symphony Orchestra’s Max M. Fisher Music Center. The song Light of the Sun was created for the film by composer Steve Sholtes and lyricist Steve Kopera, and was performed by Malaya Watson, a former parishioner of Bishop Gumbleton’s and an American Idol finalist, the Mosaic Youth Theatre Singers, John Thorne and the Black Catholic Ministries Choir, composer Keir Ward and the singers and musicians of the Motown Legends Gospel Choir, Rick Robinson, the Cut Time Productions musicians and conductor Augustus Hill.