How does a man go from being an atheist doctor to becoming a minister and founding a church in Palm Beach? The Rev. Dwight Stevens, founder and pastor of the Paramount Church in Palm Beach, answers those questions in his new book, Atheist Doctor to Palm Beach Minister.
Stevens will discuss his book on Monday, May 15 at 7:30 p.m. at St. Peter’s United Methodist Church (12200 W. Forest Hill Blvd., Wellington). Doors open at 7:15 p.m. The talk is free and open to the public. It will be followed by a book signing.
“The reason that I wrote this book is because people frequently ask me, ‘How did you go from being a medical doctor to becoming a minister and then starting a church?’” Stevens said.
The idea to write the book began with Howard Minsky, the producer of the film Love Story. Minsky was in the audience when Stevens debuted a classic movie series at the Paramount Church. Minsky forged a friendship with Stevens and became the adviser to the film series. “Howard had written his life story, The Love of My Life,” Stevens said. “He repeatedly encouraged me to tell my own story.”
The book is a fast-paced saga of an accomplished and well-traveled man who didn’t believe in God until the continued, fervent prayers of a few of his dermatology patients broke through. It culminated in a spiritual awakening.
Stevens began his life in the suburbs of St. Louis, but his route to finding God, becoming a pastor and founding a church is circuitous. His journey includes life with a provincial Italian mother, a college party gone awry, jazz dancing in Greenwich Village, a car crash in Kansas, the trials of becoming a doctor and overcoming heartbreak.
The event is sponsored by the St. Peter’s Men’s Ministry. For more info., call (561) 307-3091 or e-mail stpetersumcmen@gmail.com.
