Reverend Frederick Denison Maurice

Back in May of 2008 I posted a brief biography about the founder of The Catholic Worker: Dorothy Day. This time I’ve decided to post a short biography of one of the lesser known advocates of cooperativism: Reverend Frederick Denison Maurice.

Reverend Maurice (b. 8/29/1805 – d. 4/1/1872) was the son of a Unitarian minister and one of the most brilliant of the 19th century Christian Socialists. He’s been described as “mild, unobtrusive, averse to undue opposition, convincing by his example and his earnest logic rather than by appeals to the feelings.”

Maurice honed his skills on a debate club as a young man in an Owenite society. As a young adult he was denied the right to graduate from Cambridge for refusing to sign the Anglican Church’s "Thirty-nine Articles." He later reversed himself and signed the Articles, which allowed him to attend Oxford. Between Cambridge and Oxford, Maurice worked as a writer and wrote a novel. In addition, after being ordained he served as a chaplain at Guy’s Hospital.

While a member of the faculty at Cambridge's King's College Maurice was known for being scholar, theologian, and historian. After his book, Kingdom of Christ, was published his reputation was enhanced. The Kingdom of Christ is often viewed as an omen of the future ecumenical movement for holding that while there are many divisions, such as denominations and sects, the church is essentially united. In 1848 Maurice joined with Kingsley and others to form the Christian Socialist Movement. Then in 1853 he published Theological Essays in which he expressed a belief that hell was not eternal. This was the last straw and as a result he was dismissed from his position at King’s College. He then became the first principle of the Working Men’s College.

According to Capaldi, the Christian Socialists "tried to combine cooperative economics with political conservatism." Of Christian Socialism, Maurice wrote that it was, "true socialism, true liberty, brotherhood, and equality- not the carnal dead level equality of the communist, but the spiritual equality of the Church idea, which gives every man an equal chance of developing and rewards every man according to his work." Once Maurice learned of the Parisian co-ops he was convinced that there was a need of cooperatives in England. He then wrote several pamphlets on cooperatives and declared that anyone that accepted the principles of cooperation could be called a socialist. In addition, Maurice and the Christian Socialists rented a building in London to start a cooperative with 12 tailors called the Working Tailor’s Association. Later the Society for Promoting Workingmen Associations was formed, which made loans to start-up other cooperatives.

Early on Maurice and the Christian Socialists were very successful. Soon in London there were approximately 17 cooperatives. After a point these cooperatives formed a central body, which was a forerunner of the Co-operative Wholesale Society. But they weren't limited to London. Cooperatives also began springing up in other large cities.

By 1853 though, things began to fall apart. The productive cooperatives started to close as problems appeared in their organizations. Some workers were robbed of their funds. Others closed due to internal disputes or apathy. Yet, he did help push through some legislation that helped cooperatives. While the Christian Socialists of the time failed to substantially change England, the work of Reverend Maurice did have a major impact on Christianity that is still felt today.