Elbridge Gerry Brooks

Elbridge Gerry Brooks (1816-1878) was a Universalist minister, born in Dover, New Hampshire, who overcame the loss of a leg in a boyhood accident to become a prominent figure in the denomination. He was a persistent advocate of stronger organization and deeper devotional life in the Universalist church, arguing in Universalism a Practical Power (1867) and Our New Departure (1874) that Universalists should match their doctrine with active institutional and spiritual work, views that drew criticism as well as support. He died in Philadelphia in 1878, two weeks after preaching his last sermon at the Church of the Messiah; his son Elbridge Streeter Brooks became a well-known author and editor.

Discourses arguing that Universalism is not a speculative opinion but a working moral force — in character, philanthropy, and public life. Brooks preached these convictions before writing Our New Departure (also in this collection); together the two books frame his campaign to turn a controversial movement into a practical church.

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Written as organized Universalism entered its second century, this is a reformer's manifesto from within. Brooks argues that the denomination, having largely won its doctrinal battle against endless punishment, must now make a 'new departure' — from controversy to spiritual culture, evangelism, organization, and practical Christian work. The book captures the denomination at a turning point and shaped its institutional development in the decades that followed.

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